FORT WORTH, Texas -

Along with an education initiative announced with Recovery Services Industry Co., Digital Recognition Network reported it recently reached a certification training deal with Recovery Compliance Solutions.

The pact means DRN’s national network of more than 450 affiliates can attend the RCS certification program for free.

To complement its core service offering to lenders, Recovery Compliance Solutions in cooperation with DRN is set to launch the RCS certification program for repossession vendors in the first quarter of this year. Officials insist the RCS certification will be the only independent third-party certification that can provide lenders a service backed by a $1 million E&O insurance policy.

All agents who have earned this certification will have met specific, lender-driven requirements, including:

—$1 million minimum general liability per occurrence.

—$1 million minimum auto liability per occurrence.

—Wrongful repossession coverage.

—Garage keepers’ coverage.

—On-hook coverage.

—Drive-away coverage.

—State and local business licensing requirements.

Additionally, officials indicated the RCS certification comes with a host of benefits for the repossession agents, including the RCS renewal program, in which RCS can handle all agencies’ insurance renewal obligations. Certified agents will only have to submit their renewal certificate once and RCS can make sure that all clients are kept up-to-date.

Furthermore, RCS lender clients can search for certified agents via the RCS website, a process aimed at creating valuable business development opportunities for individual agencies.

To support the efforts of its affiliates, DRN indicated it is prepared to subsidize the cost of these services for its affiliates during the first calendar year.

Going forward, the company plans to make it a mandatory requirement that new affiliates receive this certification before their license-plate recognition cameras are operable.

“As lender adoption of LPR technology continues to rise, especially programs that provide real-time recovery like DRN’s LPR2.0 service, it is imperative for both automotive lenders and recovery agents to take the necessary steps to protect themselves from the risks that are inherent in the process of repossessing vehicles,” DRN management explained.

“Recovery agents have a greater chance of expanding their roster of lenders when they achieve and maintain a high level of education and certification,” DRN continued. “Lenders who are looking for more and more vehicles via DRN’s LPR2.0 platform can mitigate against unnecessary risk when they choose to work with certified, professional agents.

“For national lenders, like Ally GMAC, RCS will vet repossession agencies, verify insurance requirements, state and local licenses and provide other vendor relationship services as well,” DRN officials stated.

Terry Tonsing, president of Recovery Compliance Solutions, explained, “Recovery Compliance Solutions has a proven track record of success in reducing lender liability and relieving the heavy burden of recovery agent management.

“The partnership between RCS and Digital Recognition Network is a perfect fit and will finally allow the industry to take a big step forward in being able to distinguish between a true professional recovery agent who shows his commitment to professionalism by carrying the proper insurance, licenses and bonds and those who don’t,” Tonsing continued.

Cort DeHart, president of Digital Recognition Network, stressed that he’s confident the partnership with RCS will elevate an industry standard of professionalism to an “unprecedented level” and establish the DRN affiliate network as the benchmark not only in recovery rates but in quality of education, training, vendor requirements and certifications.

“With RCS, we believe a powerful recovery and risk mitigation solution has been developed for automotive lenders,” DeHart emphasized.

“When a client sees an RCS certified recovery agent, they know they are working with a truly ‘professional agent,’” he went on to say. “No other LPR company has an Affiliate network in place that can meet this level of training and certification. Utilizing DRN’s network of certified agents, who have met stringent certification and education standards, not only increases a lender’s recovery rates, but greatly reduces liability exposure.”

DRN Commits More Than $1 Million for CARS Training

In other company news, DRN announced that effective immediately affiliates have an opportunity to earn Certified Asset Recovery Specialist (CARS) certification through an agreement with Recovery Services Industry Co.

To ensure a high degree of participation and emphasize support of the network, DRN plans to subsidize the cost of these services for its affiliates. DRN also insists that it will make it a mandatory requirement that new affiliates receive this certification within 30 days of their camera order.

DRN executives calculated this financial commitment equates to approximately $1 million over the first year of the program.

Similar to its pact with Recovery Compliance Solutions, DRN stands confident its partnership with RISC can elevate standard of professionalism to an “unprecedented level,” making the DRN affiliate network more recognized in the recovery industry.

“DRN has long been a steadfast supporter of our affiliates’ commitment to maintaining a high level of professionalism, conduct and education to serve the automotive finance community with the highest level of service possible and made a diligent effort to find a suitable partner to implement this platform,” DeHart explained.

“RISC is a company that shares DRN’s vision of creating a verifiable, objective method to separate those who make a true commitment to professionalism from those who do not,” he went on to say. “In today’s increasingly litigious environment, maintaining this standard of education and certification is critical to the success of all parties involved in the process of safe and legal repossessions by reducing the exposure to risk and liability.”

The CARS (Certified Asset Recovery Specialist) and FRS (Field Recovery Specialist) certifications have been approved by various government regulatory agencies, including the states of Florida and Louisiana, as well as the city of Chicago.

At DRN’s suggestion, RISC agreed to combine the CARS and FRS programs into one course that covers all of the topics relevant to the repossession industry and includes sections on applicable federal law, applicable state statutes, insurance and ethics, professional conduct and communication.

By combining the courses and offering the materials and testing online, DRN and RISC think they have greatly improved the process, thereby making certification more attainable for recovery professionals.

“RISC is excited to partner with DRN as we share a common vision of improving the industry through education and training,” noted Stamatis Ferarolis, president of RISC.

“Being a DRN affiliate myself, I applaud DRN’s financial commitment to certify each affiliate as it raises the bar for those working collateral recovery assignments, strengthens the affiliate network and helps mitigate the risk to both the client and affiliate,” Ferarolis went on to say.

DeHart explained, “We strongly believe in the potential of our affiliate network and trust that this investment in both effort and financial resources will demonstrate our commitment to making sure that all DRN affiliates have the opportunity to showcase their commitment to professionalism, education and training within their industry.

“DRN recognizes that there are other certification programs sponsored by other organizations affiliated to the repossession industry, and we applaud all efforts made to better educate recovery professionals to reduce the risk to the automotive lenders and uphold standards,” he added.