Auto lenders that offer a strong digital experience through their websites and mobile apps have much higher customer satisfaction levels and greater self-service usage. But according to the J.D. Power 2024 U.S. Automotive Finance Digital Experience Study
40% of automotive finance digital experiences fail to meet basic standards for modern design, ease of use, and problem-free operation.
The study highlights that only 2% of auto finance websites and apps deliver a truly comprehensive digital experience, meaning they allow customers to verify payoff amounts, view account balances, and select payment amounts.
“Lenders have a huge opportunity to build customer loyalty and advocacy by fostering streamlined, two-way communication, but far too many are treating their digital properties as a transactional portal that only exists for bill pay,” said Patrick Roosenberg, senior director of automotive finance intelligence at J.D. Power.
“These digital properties should be seen as two-way portals to communicate with customers on a month-to-month basis, while improving customer satisfaction and reducing cost to serve,” he said.
Lags behind others
Additionally, the auto finance industry lags behind other sectors like wealth management, retirement plans, and insurance in terms of digital experience.
The study also found that non-captive auto finance apps (those not tied to a specific brand, like Chase Auto) tend to outperform captive apps (like GM Financial), likely because non-captive apps use more advanced mobile banking frameworks.
GM Financial ranked highest among captive lenders in digital experience satisfaction, while Chase Auto led among non-captive lenders. The study is based on responses from over 6,000 automotive finance customers.
For more information about the U.S. Automotive Finance Digital Experience Study, visit https://www.jdpower.com/business/us-automotive-finance-digital-experience-study.