ATLANTA -

Cox Automotive announced enhancements to Remote Signing on Dealertrack Digital Contracting, and dealership clients already are seeing benefits when catering to vehicle buyers who want to take delivery as quickly as possible.

Mark Garcia is F&I manager at Nissan of Boerne in Boerne, Texas, which is located about 30 miles northwest of San Antonio.

“Remote Signing has significantly improved our workflow and customer experience,” Garcia said in a news release from Dealertrack. “The process is seamless and allows us to focus on the deal without having to stop and walk customers through signing.

“Our customers can review and sign at their convenience, even on their phones, so it’s quick and easy for them,” Garcia continued. “And with compliance obligations like eSign consent and all transaction touchpoints recorded, there’s less for us to worry about.”

As the Texas dealer recapped, the latest move is an expansion of Cox Automotive’s digital retailing portfolio of solutions. Remote Signing is designed to deliver a more efficient, secure, easier digital experience anytime, anywhere — no matter how a consumer chooses to buy. 

Enhanced Remote Signing is geared to equips dealers with a variety of secure and convenient features, including:

— Multifactor authentication: Starts with an email to the consumer, triggering a SMS text to obtain a passcode. With this verification, the signing process can begin securely. 

— Signing initiation: Provides an email to the consumer to begin the remote signing process so that buyer consent is captured for all signing instances. In addition, each activity in the transaction is logged within an audit trail.

— Review copy: Enables the consumer direct access prior to signing to review with consent and activity being captured in the audit log.

— Audit log: Provides visibility into the trail of consumer and dealer activities including MFA, consent, review and signatures.

— Signing device: Expanded to flex the process across mobile phone, tablet and desktop.

— Contract package delivery to consumer: The consumer receives a link (active for 30 days) to print and download final documents. 

— Signing room: Requires all consumer signers to sign remotely if the signing begins remotely for one, which is captured in the audit log. 

“Consumer shopping and buying preferences have evolved, with 76% of consumers open to the idea of buying a car completely online. The easier we make the experience the more likely consumers are to embrace this evolution. Dealers and lenders are seizing the opportunity by shifting even more processes to a fully digital workflow that customizes the consumer experience,” said Kait Gavin, vice president of operations for Dealertrack F&I Solutions at Cox Automotive. 

“Using a mobile phone or other device to search for a car has evolved to increased demand to complete even more steps digitally, including contract signing,” Gavin continued in the news release. “By giving consumers the ability to sign anywhere, on any mobile device, Remote Signing gives buyers the convenience they desire, and ensures contracts are more accurate, efficient and compliant for dealers and lenders.”

As Gavin mentioned, Cox Automotive said finance companies are also gravitating toward Remote Signing.

In fact, the company said 85% of finance companies that engage in Dealertrack Digital Contracting are now enabled for Remote Signing. That percentage is expected to grow to more than 90% in the next few months, according to the company.

Stemming from the Cox Automotive 2022 forecast, the automotive industry remains on a healthy course for this year. Experts projected there will be enough buyers in-market to support 16 million new-vehicle sales and 39 million used-vehicle sales.

However, Cox Autmotive acknowledged that a looming interest rate hike and continued pricing increases signal affordability issues for some consumers, who as a result, may need to explore several scenarios to get financed.

Cox Automotive pointed out that digital contracting and the ability to sign anywhere on any mobile device can open more financing channels, delivering an enhanced online car shopping and buying experience that reaches as many consumers as possible.  

“Enhancing the Dealertrack platform was a natural step to meet lenders’ and dealers’ needs, and to future-proof business continuity and compliance as the car buyer journey continues to evolve,” Gavin said.

“Enabling Remote Signing — especially on mobile phones — is another example of how Cox Automotive is transforming retail transactions online and instore, with more eCommerce capabilities on the horizon,” she went on to say.

More information about Dealertrack Digital Contracting with Remote Signing is available via this website.

The tools also will be showcased at the upcoming NADA 2022 show.

For information on all Cox Automotive’s 2022 new offerings or to schedule a briefing with the team, visit this webpage.