SALT LAKE CITY — Prime Acceptance Corp. recently shared how a partnership with National Creditors Connection is helping the company to re-establish contact with overdue customers who are not responding to phone calls or letters.

The initiative is meant to keep these consumers in vehicle loan contracts rather than have to go through more repossession and charge-off process.

Basically, NCCI provides Prime Acceptance's collection team with the ability to generate a field call through a secure Web portal. By submitting the account via the site, an NCCI field agent can be face-to-face with the debtor in an average of three business days. The agent can help re-establish contact and a payment schedule.  

Prime Acceptance employs a full-time field agent, but the individual's geographic reach was extremely limited.

"Our partnership with NCCI, a company with a nationwide presence, has allowed us to achieve ubiquitous coverage. The service NCCI renders is a resource any finance company can utilize and appreciate," stated Kelly Boulton, Prime Acceptance's senior portfolio manager.

"Their results turned frustrated Prime Acceptance staff members into optimistic, enlightened and productive employees," Boulton also noted. "Field calls have proven to be a secret weapon for managers driven to motivate their staff and increase productivity."

Boulton went on to emphasize that as a subprime lender, the company always had the need for a field-call firm to bridge the communication gap between the collection team and customers who don't respond to telephone calls or letters.

"Prime Acceptance Corp. is a rapidly growing finance company faced with the challenges many creditors have experienced during the economic turn-down," Boulton explained.

"To counter such challenges we've mandated a general practice to acquire knowledge and resources which keep our team ahead of the curve," Boulton continued. "Partnering with NCCI has contributed to furthering our efforts in loss prevention by reducing charge-offs."

Boulton echoed a sentiment probably shared by other lenders — how crucial it is to keep payments coming from consumers who previously couldn't be reached.

"The service provided by NCCI has produced results we've found to be priceless," Boulton declared.

"When a low-cost field call allows Prime Acceptance to avoid what could be a $10,000 charge-off, it's a good day," Boulton emphasized.

Ariel Lane, national account manager at NCCI, described what's ahead for the two companies working together.

"NCCI is proud to form a partnership with Prime Acceptance Corp.," Lane insisted. "Their successful track record in the auto finance space makes them a valuable addition to our existing client base.

"We look forward to strategizing with Prime Acceptance Corp. in the coming months on how NCCI can continue to help them achieve their objectives in 2010 and beyond," Lane concluded.