FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Southern Auto Finance Co. announced late last week that its board of directors has named Brian Switalski as company president.

In this role, he will be responsible for executing the Company's day-to-day business activities. 

Switalski, a seasoned automotive retail finance industry veteran, brings over 20 years of extensive industry knowledge and expertise to SAFCo.  He joined SAFCo from Ford Motor Credit, where he served in positions of increasing authority, most recently as manager of retail marketing.

Prior to his time with Ford Credit, Switalski served at Comerica Bank and Norwest Financial.

During the past year at SAFCo, officials said he has achieved a number of accomplishments, including:

—Implementation of a new front-end system, which streamlined the way in which the company reviews and approves credit applications.

—Restructuring of the company into an efficient Regional Buying Center format.

—Development and implementation of new credit processes.

—Refocusing the leadership team.

George Fussell, founder of SAFCo, will continue on as chief executive officer and chairman of the organization. 

Commenting on Switalski's promotion, Fussell said, "I am very pleased to have attracted someone of Brian's caliber to SAFCo, as I believe that the benefits he has brought clearly show in our business results. 

"Through it all, Brian has been a bright beacon of light in the form of a leader who has come to guide our company through this challenging period, as well as the successful years I know we will have in the future," he added.

"At SAFCo, our mission is to provide our dealer partners competitive financing options to build strong relationships today and for the future, while providing our consumers the opportunity to build their credit for a better tomorrow," officials told SubPrime Auto Finance News for its special lender directory issue, which will hit streets the first week in August.

"SAFCo is the partner more dealerships turn to for financing their most challenging customers: buyers with no credit, bad credit, prior bankruptcies and even repossessions," executives added.

Basically, SAFCo will finance up to $15,000, plus TTL and up to $2,650 additional for warranty and GAP coverage.

"We offer advances of up to 110 percent of N.A.D.A. Trade with qualified credit, 60-month terms and competitive fees from $500 to $1,500. SAFCo will consider vehicles up to 10 years old, and up to 100,000 miles. SAFCo is also a member of the DealerTrack network of financing sources," officials concluded.

The company operates in 22 states: AL, AZ, CO, FL, GA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MD, MS, MO, NC, NV, NM, OH, OK, SC, TN, TX and VA. Its Web address is www.GoSAFCo.com; dealers can request information from the Dealer Services group via e-mail at dealerinfo@gosafco.com, or phone (800) 277-9198.