ConsumerFi Podcast: Collateral Protection with Bryan Nieves of AUL

Transcript

Joel Kennedy: [0 4:29:22 AM] You’re listening to the ConsumerFi Podcast powered by Nortridge Loan Software. Software that accelerates dream

[00:00:20] Hey everybody. Welcome to the pod today. We’ve got Brian . Did I say that right, Brian? I never. Okay. A long time. Fantastic guy, uh, with AUL. Um, Brian, welcome to the program.

[00:00:35] Bryan Nieves: [00:00:35] Thank you. So I

[00:00:39] Joel Kennedy: [00:00:39] love having you, Brian is, is my bro. I’ve known him for a while because he is a great guy and he’s, he’s never steered me wrong.

[00:00:49] Uh, and we used AUL back in my Pelican days. And we saw some really substantial differences between the AUL, uh, the, the customers [00:01:00] that elected to take a service contract versus not, we manage that loss program ourselves. So it was our own pool and we chose to manage it to a zero loss equation, which meant there were some customers that had.

[00:01:13] Some things happen that might not have conformed with the contract terms, but we went ahead and we, we took care of them anyway, cause we wanted to, we wanted to see the losses, right? Uh, the net losses kind of improve as a result. We knew that mechanical failure was a big component of, uh, of this. And, and so, you know, obviously people know what’s going on with the used car market and uh, wholesale values and all that.

[00:01:36] So I think, you know, these, these investments, these vehicles to the lender, to the dealer, to the consumer, It does make sense to have a little bit of protection around them. And I thought it would be a great time now, as we come out of COVID to talk with Brian about what’s going on, man, like, like how was it last year?

[00:01:54] Um, how was it during COVID, uh, really interested to hear how things have been [00:02:00] going, but, um, but Brian, before we get into that, maybe if you want to just do a quick little background for yourself, because you have a unique background with, with some of the places that you’ve worked and how you’ve come up.

[00:02:12] Bryan Nieves: [00:02:12] Sure. Thanks. So, um, yeah, I started at AUL in 1993, um, as the first salesperson after our, uh, CEO. And started calling on dealers. Uh, it was like feeding candy to a baby back in the nineties, as you might know, AOL was the first use car service contract. So nobody had ever heard of such a thing and didn’t think it was possible to, to reserve appropriately to cover a used car.

[00:02:45] And, uh, it was, it was, it was amazing. And I did that. Um, For 10 years, uh, before, uh, leaving AUL to get into the retail side. And I’ve worked at, uh, [00:03:00] a franchise dealer group in California, worked the line, uh, worked, uh, was a fleet guy, uh, worked, uh, in F and I was a F and I director and then started my own, a used car dealership here in the Bay area.

[00:03:20] Spent three years selling, you know, high mile used cars to some prime customers was, uh, you know, a Westlake credit, acceptance credit West kind of a store, you know, a deep discount, peak subprime stuff, and really learned. Learn the used car business. That way it’s a completely different world than the, a franchise and, and, uh, you know, bell to bell every day, getting up at five in the morning to get to the auction and hunt cars down and drive them and take my chances in the [00:04:00] lane.

[00:04:01] And, uh, in 2007, when the, uh, Everything crashed. And I went from selling 50 cars a month to three. I had learned that, you know, my experience with AUL, um, Kind of came to light then that, you know, when I was calling on dealers and I would ask them for more service contracts, I’d say, well, you know, thanks for the three you sold last month.

[00:04:33] I know you did 20 cars. How can I get five? Or how can I get you to sell more service contracts? And the dealer would say, well, I would love to, but the bank won’t advance for it. You know, I have no room in my deal. There’s only a thousand dollars down. And, um, so I saw, uh, an opportunity there and then, uh, came back to AUL to, um, pilot, [00:05:00] our lender program.

[00:05:01] And here we are now almost well over, over 10 years later, 13 years been back at the company and, uh, we definitely lead the, uh, the country. I like to say the world in, uh, You know, offering service contract programs and structuring them specifically to, to fit with, uh, lending models, whatever, whatever they are.

[00:05:29] There are many different

[00:05:31] Joel Kennedy: [00:05:31] variations. Yeah. And that, that lending program that you piloted Brian was the one that, that really got us tied in because we were a sub sub prime lender and didn’t. Didn’t have a consistent experience with all of the various providers of warranty and service contract. And so, yeah, like lenders, when they have that kind of experience, they’re not excited about funding, uh, that [00:06:00] into the deal.

[00:06:01] But when we found out that we could own our own loss reserve through you guys, that was a big game changer. We liked that level of control and we actually. You know, I kicked you guys. I kicked the tires. I did the compliance due diligence. There’s no PII exchange. So it was easy slam dunk on that. But I actually think that it was a huge customer benefit and it really was because, like I said, the way that we did it, we had a lot of flexibility too, to keep our customers happy.

[00:06:30] And when you get people together, like, like you and the great folks at AOL and, and these lenders and your common mission is to lift up the consumer. It really makes you feel good about yourself at the end of the day? It does.

[00:06:45] Bryan Nieves: [00:06:45] Yeah. It does. You’re right. You have such good insight,

[00:06:50] Joel Kennedy: [00:06:50] Joel.

[00:06:53] Anyway, I, I kinda T I teed this up before, but so, um, innovation, I mean, [00:07:00] that’s, that’s part of, that’s part of the bag, Brian. Um, and, and you. I love how the innovation came from your experience at the dealership. Right? Because I don’t have dealership stink on me. And I really wish I did to some extent, because people will ask me about dealership related things and I’m just, um, utterly ignorant.

[00:07:18] I, I, aside from buying a vehicle, I really don’t know what goes on inside the dealership, but, um, I love that perspective. And so. And, and I love how you bring that forth, you know, so, you know, you know, dealers as well as, you know, the lenders, which I think is great. And, and that’s really in order for you to contrive a product like that, you have to understand both sides.

[00:07:37] So in terms of, um, last year, uh, with COVID, um, what did it look like for you guys? And I wonder, you know, I don’t even know if you, if you know, if it’s indicative of the market at large, but let’s talk about what, you know, How did you guys do from a revenue and growth standpoint, uh, where you, where you beat down, um, did you pick up volume, you know, give us a little light.

[00:08:00] [00:08:00] Bryan Nieves: [00:08:00] Well, I hate to shed light or an Indian on to try to paint it in a, uh, it w it was a scary year. It was for everybody, and it was shocking. You know, working remote and all the things that went along with 2020. Um, but all in all, um, we, we came out of it with, with many positives that the, I think the, the per per contract or per per vehicle revenue was down a little bit, but the volume, um, would actually increased.

[00:08:42] I don’t believe it increased so much per dealer, um, on, on every program. But. It did increase, you know, significantly. And [00:09:00] I think it was attributable to, um, our team and our, our product development side. We came out with some new stuff where we S we started rolling out some new. New products, right about February when, when everything went down and we were just determined to continue to roll those products out, regardless of, uh, the work environment or, or outside influences.

[00:09:26] And, and we were successful by keeping our head down and grinding it out. Yeah. So. Yeah,

[00:09:36] Joel Kennedy: [00:09:36] we were talking a little bit about some of the I’m super interested in just the application of these things, you know, at, at the different points that we mentioned. Um, you mentioned something about. The time restriction versus the mileage, right?

[00:09:51] So it’s always a game you play when you have a contract and you say five years, 50,000 miles or whatever. And so you sit there and you sell it to a grandma knowing she’s not going to [00:10:00] drive the car more than a hundred miles a year. Right. And you’re like, Hey, like, man, I wish I wish, you know, for her. You know, she’s going to have that car for a while with low miles.

[00:10:09] Um, it sounds like you guys have to have a thought on how to address that.

[00:10:14] Bryan Nieves: [00:10:14] Yeah, it was pretty serendipitous. So our, our, our product change for 2020, um, was an unlimited time product and it, it just fit. Very well with the times we, we it’s, like I said, it’s pretty serendipitous that we were coming out with it prior to COVID, but it made it really easy to, for a dealer to sell it to a consumer.

[00:10:45] When they say, well, I’m not driving right now. I don’t commute anymore. I’m working from home. And so we have an unlimited time. So it expires by miles only program that. Seem to be, you know, [00:11:00] the greatest thing since sliced bread, uh, to a dealer, uh, last summer. And it, it just picked up momentum all the way through the year and is now one of our, one of our highest growth, uh, you know, most recent moves and it’s, it’s worked out real well.

[00:11:20] We started it in the franchise dealer. Franchise dealers only, uh, at the beginning of the year. And then somewhere around on the fourth quarter, we decided to put it into all of our or product line. Um, because it, it just was so fitting for the times. And, um, yeah, so we offer unlimited time, uh, 75, a hundred, 125 and 150,000 miles.

[00:11:50] And it’s, it’s been great. It’s been well received. Yeah. It’s yeah, not to say that that’s, [00:12:00] um, the only area we also, uh, as you know, we rolled out a technology only product. So for the consumer that. It has never had their engine go out because they maintain them properly and they don’t buy warranties. At least they don’t see any value in the covering the powertrain.

[00:12:23] We came out with a product that excludes the power train, but covers all of the, the little things that remind you of your cell phone that people touch every day and take for granted like the backup sensors and the. The computer pieces of the car and they’re, they’re, they’re very easy to sell to a customer.

[00:12:48] We don’t recommend it until, until you’ve offered them the powertrain or, or the, you know, the, the factory type, you know, bumper to bumper type coverage. [00:13:00] But if, if the consumer doesn’t. It is just not going to buy that. Um, everybody has a case on their cell phone for a reason, uh, they know how much the electronics costs.

[00:13:13] And when you tell them that there’s 150 cell phones in their car, uh, they, they kind of understand it, it hits home a little bit more.

[00:13:25] Joel Kennedy: [00:13:25] I had, I had personal experience with this myself over the past couple of years. I don’t think. Prior to that. I don’t think I’ve ever really done too much on insurance claims.

[00:13:33] I had a condenser go out that leaked into my sub floor. I had to hit a home warranty and hit my, my actual, um, My home policy, right? So I have one of these home warranties in the home policy that really reminds me of what you’re talking about here. So my home policy is the catastrophic, that’s the engine, that’s the tranny, that’s all that.

[00:13:55] But then this other home warranty thing, like you go buy an appliance and then you [00:14:00] buy a TV and then you buy something else. The, each of the guys is going to try to sell you their own warranty. And I thought, well, I’ll just get a blanket warranty for the whole, all the consumer products in my house.

[00:14:10] Right. And, uh, and just do that. And I used both when I had that issue and I even told you about how my, my end tune system, it’s kind of like the whole entertainment system within my Toyota Highlander, which I love that thing went out. And that was a $5,000 claim that I put through insurance, you know, uh, It, it just, I think it’s a great, I think it was a great ad, Brian, and it makes a lot of sense.

[00:14:36] And these are the things that at least in my mind tend to go out. I remember talking to customers a lot complaining, trying to push back on making a payment and they would say, well, my power windows aren’t working, or my radio is off and I just refuse to pay. And I think, um, you know, I get it, but I don’t get it right.

[00:14:55] The, the, the radio isn’t keeping you from getting your kids to school and you to work and all [00:15:00] that. It’s really not that critical, but I do get that. It’s a nuisance and, and I think it’s a nice ad to have out there for, for consumers. It’s kind of turning the. It makes you feel more like you’re shopping at Nordstrom or Costco when you can kind of return stuff, you know, after the, after the, you know what I mean?

[00:15:17] These extended warranties kind of for free

[00:15:20] Bryan Nieves: [00:15:20] it’s really. Have you heard,

[00:15:22] Joel Kennedy: [00:15:22] have you gotten feedback from consumers on any of these, on that, that new product at all?

[00:15:29] Bryan Nieves: [00:15:29] Well, we have, and there’s a big value there. Um, not only for the consumer, but for the, for the dealer, with, with. Used car prices being what they are and the value is being through the roof and the inventory being tough on even new cars.

[00:15:48] I was on the phone with a franchise dealer this morning, that sold a hundred. I don’t know. I think he said 165 units last month and they only have [00:16:00] 14 cars left on the lot. So, you know, um, The values are so high that this gives the dealer a way to make some additional income on the car that, you know, they wouldn’t close in F and I, we find that a dealer that offers service contracts on every car, like they should.

[00:16:25] If, if they then offer the tech only, uh, their, their penetration can go up by as much as 10 to 15%. And that’s, that’s really driving, uh, profits into the dealership and also the finance company as well, because they’re of the higher, um, loans, you know, that.

[00:16:51] Joel Kennedy: [00:16:51] I just, I just look, I loved, I loved the, the, the no mileage restriction, but that tech only product to me, like I was [00:17:00] saying earlier, a customer may push back and say they don’t want to make a payment because something that we consider to be somewhat frivolous, isn’t working.

[00:17:09] But if you look at the consumer and what’s most important to them, and if it’s substantial enough that they’re going to make that threat. It’s a worthwhile endeavor to try to address it and try to hedge it, you know? And yeah, I mean, I can give so many examples in personal life. If there was one feature on your phone that wasn’t working, you’d, you’d probably get pissed and want to buy a new one.

[00:17:30] Right. Um, but now not everybody has the wherewithal, right. And, and the planning and the rest of it to kind of make that happen. What do you think is next? I mean, for, for the, for the market broadly, in terms of service contract and warranties, like, I hear the adoption of some of these new products, but how about some of the classic products that you you’ve been offering or, you know, like have, have you seen any change in dealer or consumer tastes associated with those?

[00:17:56] Bryan Nieves: [00:17:56] Yeah, I think that there’s a, uh, um, There’s [00:18:00] an awareness building to the value and the fact that most, most people can’t afford to fix their car. If then getting their transmission goes out and we’re being aided every day by infomercials and people selling, uh, warranties on TV. You know, warranties outside of the car loan warranties, you know, down the road, you know, I think I see a, a car shield commercial almost every day.

[00:18:30] You know, I don’t know if it’s just because they’re on ESPN and that’s what I watch all those commercials, but, um, there’s a big awareness out there and there’s, um, You know, I’ve been offered a warranty on my car from my car insurance company. You know, everybody gets the pieces of mail or gets the phone call.

[00:18:50] This is I get one. I get one every day for the last five years that says. You know, this is, this is your last chance to buy a warranty on [00:19:00] that Volkswagen Passat that I haven’t owned for four years, but of, of phone calls, infomercials. And, uh, I think just the awareness is, is a lot greater and also the. The willingness of repair facilities to take a warranty and submit a claim is, is far higher than it.

[00:19:29] It was a decade ago.

[00:19:34] I think the reputation, I think a lot of, you know, back in the nineties, you know, people were selling warranties, but they didn’t pay any claims. And I think that’s been flushed out by. Uh, different, different regulatory institutions, but better business Bureau and the reputation of a warranty to actually do what it [00:20:00] was meant to do has elevated substantially over time and continues to grow.

[00:20:09] And, you know, we have. We make a conscious effort to, to have fleet accounts with national providers like Meineke and Ampco that boys, those kind of repair facility chains. And, um, I think just the, the overall awareness and the acceptance is such now that, you know, I buy a warranty on my car every time I wouldn’t drive in my car without being under warranty.

[00:20:39] Yeah. And I think a lot of consumers have the same

[00:20:43] Joel Kennedy: [00:20:43] experience. Yeah. I think to me, it’s, it’s a lot of it is, is the advancement of tech. And I can’t, I can’t sit there with a soldering iron and fix like a mini microchip. I just bought a motorcycle as you know, and I, I got a service contract for that and that’s going to take [00:21:00] me up through, I don’t know, however long, but I don’t know anything about motorcycles, dude.

[00:21:05] You know, I just, I’m still learning how to ride. I don’t want to mess with it.

[00:21:10] Bryan Nieves: [00:21:10] I remember the days when my car didn’t run right where I would, I would go to AutoZone and buy a new distributor cap and, you know, a spark plug wires. I don’t even think those things exist on new cars anymore, bro.

[00:21:28] Joel Kennedy: [00:21:28] I used to change my own oil in the driveway.

[00:21:30] I had the little drip pan and everything, you know, I mean anything to save a buck.

[00:21:36] Bryan Nieves: [00:21:36] Yeah, definitely gone for the most part.

[00:21:44] Joel Kennedy: [00:21:44] Well, I’m kind of turn it, turn in the corner to some of the conferences you’re going to be at APHSA independence at the end of may. Are you not?

[00:21:54] Bryan Nieves: [00:21:54] Absolutely. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.

[00:21:56] Um, I’m, uh, really looking forward to seeing [00:22:00] our customers and our, our longtime friends. And, you know, we, I think we took for granted that we would see each other four or five times a year, uh, before last year. And, uh, I’m looking forward to seeing everybody face to face and telling stories about 2020, it’s going to be fun.

[00:22:22] Yeah.

[00:22:23] Joel Kennedy: [00:22:23] Yeah. I, I get a sense that everybody’s a little bit pent up and, uh, is actually, uh, you know, it’s always funny. I’ve been on both sides, right. So I’ve been sold to, and then, uh, um, you know, obviously my role today with North Ridge, um, I’m looking to try to provide assistance. I want to help people, right.

[00:22:41] I mean, that’s, that’s it at the end of the day, but yeah, I’m trying to sell stuff. Okay, great. You know, big epiphany. Don’t go running away and telling me like, you don’t have business cards and all this other mumbo jumbo, you know, it’s, it’s like I D we, we all dealt with that for some measure, you know, and then, and then [00:23:00] now it’s like, people want to talk and that’s all I ever wanted to do was talk and say, Hey, I want to get to know you and find out, Oh, you’re a bank.

[00:23:10] Okay, fine. You know, you, you need a system that handles deposits. Okay, great. I’ll be the first to tell you that that’s not my bag. But if you’re maybe with a system that you don’t really like, it doesn’t hurt to look at something else, you know, but I’m really looking forward to the conferences this year.

[00:23:27] Cause I think it’s really a great opportunity for everybody to get together again and try to do some deals, you know, try to try to get the deals flowing because look with the way that the market is going and the shortages we have in chips in petroleum and how that’s flowing through and the whole thing.

[00:23:46] I mean, This is, I keep trying to look back to like prior periods to see like, you know, what I can use as a historical template. And, um, you know, the pandemic itself is different from a financial crisis, right? We’ve already [00:24:00] established that. Like, it’s just, uh, I think it’s going to be some interesting times.

[00:24:05] And I think that thanks to the whole pandemic and the work from home thing, it really shattered a lot of these preconceived notions and we saw how much we can really get done. When we put our mind to it, you guys had a great year with some innovations and that was done all under the work from home.

[00:24:23] Bryan Nieves: [00:24:23] Yeah. And the car, the car business is resilient, car dealers and, uh, and the, the car business in general are, you know, they’re gonna, they’re gonna make the best out of it. Regardless. Pandemic economic crisis. They’re there. We’re sourceful and, uh, yeah. I think the future’s going to be great.

[00:24:48] Joel Kennedy: [00:24:48] I think so. I think we’re looking to, if we can control the inflation and hopefully help the employment issue with the people on the losing side of the case, shape recovery, which the [00:25:00] today, uh, Uh, Biden released his, his trillion dollar package for, uh, kind of lifting up some of the lower tier, uh, socioeconomic groups with things such as, um, uh, starting, uh, you know, education and KinderCare at the age of three and four and, and subsidizing, um, Childcare and things that we’ve looked, we’ve seen this example work in in places like France and other European countries.

[00:25:26] I think it does make sense to kind of put some of these things into play, but, uh, but yeah, I’m, I’m, I’m bullish on, on a nice on, on a, on a recovery, if we can kind of keep those things at Bay, um, And I hope, I hope, I hope that people, you know, keep that in mind as, as they move forward, because we can’t, we can’t keep doing business the same way we’ve been doing it before.

[00:25:46] Right. I mean, things have really radically changed. Uh, the consumer tastes, the dealer tastes how people do business far more online and omni-channel, and, uh, Yeah, I’m all. Um, I’m, I’m actually, um, I’m beyond [00:26:00] excited to actually listen to sessions. Usually I’ll go to these conferences and I’ll, I’ll hop in here and there.

[00:26:05] Uh, I get a lot of value off of having one-on-one conversations, but I think I’m going to be a lot more interested in kind of sitting in some sessions this year.

[00:26:13] Bryan Nieves: [00:26:13] I agree.

[00:26:15] Joel Kennedy: [00:26:15] So absent dependence is going to be the next one. That’s that’s at the end of may. It’s in Fort Lauderdale. If you go to the webpage, they show the hotel it’s right on the beach.

[00:26:25] Uh, In case you needed any encouragement to go, I’ll be there. Brian, you’re going to be there. Uh, for sure if you’re listening to this, you know, I’ll give the same offer that I gave with our, our, our mutual friend and colleague, uh, David . If you see us, we’re good for a drink. Okay. At least, uh, you want to have a more substantial conversation.

[00:26:48] We’ll put a stake in front of you. Okay. That’s our offer. That’s our commitment to you. Okay. And sometimes even Brian and I and David will, well, sometimes team forces, right team up to make a [00:27:00] larger dinner. You know, these, these become kind of like nice little social events. I’ve had such fun at some of the dinners that you’ve put on in the past.

[00:27:06] Brian, you know, Folks, listen to this. I think they should try to pull a ticket and say, Brian, I need to get on your short list.

[00:27:13] Bryan Nieves: [00:27:13] Yeah, do it please. I want to meet and meet all the new people too.

[00:27:20] Joel Kennedy: [00:27:20] Yeah. Yeah. Well, I know we were joking, but honestly, AUL is, is a fantastic product and Brian’s fantastic people.

[00:27:29] And to me, that’s like the perfect synergy because, you know, it’s, it’s really down to the people at the end of the day and you have some great people. I, I, we still talk about the story when, when, when we signed with you guys and we came up and, and came off the elevator and everybody was clapping for us.

[00:27:44] And they had this thing on the screen, welcoming Joel and Troy and team. And I felt like I was like some kind of superstar. I felt I’ve. Honestly, I’ve never felt so good in my life. It was, it was a great feeling.

[00:28:00] [00:28:00] Bryan Nieves: [00:28:00] I encourage,

[00:28:00] Joel Kennedy: [00:28:00] I encourage everyone else. Everybody else to take a, take a sip of that tea, but so, okay. So the offers are out there. We’re going to be at APHSA. Um, Brian’s a great guy. Uh he’ll he’ll give you an education on the whole risk and loss management side, but, uh, Brian, if anybody wants to get ahold of you or find out more about AUL, you know, what’s a good, um, uh, contact for you w go to the website, shoot you an email,

[00:28:25] Bryan Nieves: [00:28:25] give you a call.

[00:28:26] They can go to the website. It’s AUL Corp com a U L C O R P. Uh, dot com. We have a great website. You can, you can track me down from that. I can also, uh, my, my, my email address N I E V E S S well Corp com. And, um, I’d love to hear from many of your listeners that are interested in service contracts, or, you know, talking about how the, how the benefits of, of financing a service contract and [00:29:00] impact the portfolio.

[00:29:02] Uh, with, with lower losses with, you know, uh, just flat out, putting more money on the street. AUL does unique. Unique things for our lender partners, such as, uh, 100% re uh, 100% refunds on, uh, repossessions. So w we look at ourselves as a true partner with the lender. So if the consumer can’t afford it, and then they, they haven’t had to already replace their engine.

[00:29:35] Uh, you know, we give all the money back and we, we can price a product specifically to, to fit. Uh, a lending portfolio. We simplify, we blend our product and simplify it. So it makes it really easy for the dealer to offer a service contract. When he knows, uh, than a particular customer, maybe their credit [00:30:00] profile or the vehicle they’re purchasing purchasing should, should go to a specific lender.

[00:30:08] Um, there’s, there’s a, a ton of ways that we, we can help make a product work for everybody. And, uh, that’s, that’s, that’s our specialty.

[00:30:21] Joel Kennedy: [00:30:21] That’s awesome, man. I’ve been pleased with the performance, as I know all the others that have used your product, you know, we would certainly agree. What’s good. Has been Brian nievus with AUL Corp and thank you, Brian.

[00:30:34] And, uh, I know I said it a couple of times. We are we’re conference. We, we grok the conferences. We’re looking forward to seeing everybody to APHSA.

[00:30:44] Bryan Nieves: [00:30:44] To be great.

[00:30:46] Joel Kennedy: [00:30:46] Well, thanks for being on the podcast today,

[00:30:48] Bryan Nieves: [00:30:48] Brian,

[00:30:53] and we’ll see you soon.

[00:30:55] Joel Kennedy: [00:30:55] The consumer five podcast has been brought to you by Northbridge loan software. That [00:31:00] accelerates change. We’d also like to thank the national automotive finance association, the only trade association, exclusively serving the non-prime auto financing industry.