DALLAS — More than 500 attendees from throughout the nation and Canada gathered for the National Alliance of Buy-Here, Pay-Here Dealers Underwriting and Collection Conference held in Dallas.

Ken Shilson, CPA and conference chairman, stressed that this was the largest underwriting and collections conference in BHPH history.

"The conference included several interactive panels covering collections, underwriting, payment devices, integrated technology solutions, predictive dialers and maximizing recoveries," said Shilson. "The knowledge level of the panelists and attendees was truly exceptional this year. Attendees left with knowledge of the latest technology and ways to improve their collection and underwriting operations."

The legal and regulatory sessions included three of the nation's leading attorneys — Tom Hudson, Chuck Dodge and Chip Zyvoloski. These sessions included an extensive discussion of the new Consumer Financial Protection Act and the latest regulatory, legal, collection and compliance issues. NABD indicated it will support initiatives to enhance the BHPH industry image and to comment on proposed new regulations.

Recovery expert Alex Price was also on hand. He conducted a session on advanced skip-tracing techniques and participated in a panel discussion about organizing a successful recovery operation.

"In the higher default environment of today, maximizing recoveries has never been more important," Shilson stressed.

John Marcus, a Wall Street investment banker, was also at the event. He discussed capital market alternatives, while Brent Carmichael, executive moderator at NCM, discussed the value of Twenty Groups in improving collections.

Continuing on, Shilson also revealed a second study on the use of payment devices, which included a panel discussion by experienced device users. The study provided new insights into how users implement these devices and Shilson delved further into the numbers and what they mean from his initial study.

Rick Potter, president of CAR Financial, delivered a presentation on underwriting mistakes that reduce portfolio values, which was also of great interest to attendees.

Shilson also took to the stage, discussing the importance of developing portfolio performance metrics in finding capital, as well as covering the latest benchmarks and industry trends.

The program included separate tracks on both underwriting and collections. The underwriting track included a presentation on credit reports by Experian and an overview of compliance issues by attorney Zyvoloski.

Meanwhile, the collections track included a session on "Turning Skips into Cash," by utilizing license plate recognition technology and a national database of impounded vehicles. Other panelists in this session were OPENLANE, Recovery Database Network and the American Recovery Association, whose representatives all said they will search for previously unrecovered vehicles on a contingent basis.

NABD will facilitate this process via its new interactive website at www.bhphinfo.com, which is expected to be completed by Jan. 1.

A sold out exhibit hall featured the latest technology, products and services, which can help enhance underwriting and collection results.

"Our special thanks to all those sponsors who continue to support the BHPH industry and who made this event possible," Shilson said.

Presentations from the conference will be posted on the NABD site at www.bhphinfo.com and audio recordings of the sessions will be available through the alliance in the near future.

"The value of this education and training has never been more important given the challenging economic environment of today," Shilson pointed out.

Overall, attendee feedback was very positive about the event.

For instance, Shauna Brown, of Plains Choice Auto Credit, in Lubbock, Texas, noted, "I am brand-new to the industry. It was extremely informative. I feel like it answered so many questions I had regarding collections. I also learned about many new products that are improving and making the BHPH industry more efficient."

Meanwhile, Daphne Spratling, of Credit Management Acceptance, in Columbia, S.C., added, "The speakers were outstanding! Overall, very well run and organized. I was very impressed with the organization of the event and presentations."

Joyce Caudill, of Time Auto Sales, in Walton, Ky., said, "Let me congratulate you on another very successful conference! It was the best yet! The depth of information and the panels should convince everyone that ‘This ain't your daddy's car lot anymore.' Between the new regulations and the ever-changing climate in the industry, there is no way to keep up and prosper without seminars like this."

Finally, Molly Lynch, of CAR Financial in Christiansburg, Va., pointed out, "I really enjoy the panels. I think they are always made up of very knowledgeable members."

In the future, NABD plans to host both a BHPH Dealer Training Academy at The Venetian in Las Vegas on May 16-17, as well as its National Conference at that hotel on May 18-20.

Information on these upcoming events is available at www.bhphinfo.com or by calling NABD at (713) 290-8171.

Editor's Note: For more details from this event, stay tuned to SubPrime News Update.