Your customers’ need for financing might not just be prevalent in your dealership F&I office.

The need could be significant in your service drive, too, based on a recently completed a survey of 1,100 fixed ops service professionals at more than 500 dealerships in the U.S. orchestrated by Sunbit.

More than 75% of the participants reported that at least one in four customers verbally express concern with the cost of repairs.

Additionally, the vast majority of those surveyed (nearly 70%) report that less than 50% of repair orders (ROs) are fully executed. And nearly 25% of ROs are declined entirely.

Sunbit discovered most service drives surveyed report that they offer a financing option less than 25% of the time.

Sunbit acknowledged traditional financing options have low approval rates and lengthy applications.

“As such, harried advisors working to close service agreements don’t want to further compromise acceptance rates, embarrass their customers, or lose precious time with long application processes,” Sunbit said in a news release.

Yet, in a recent Harris poll of more than 1,000 consumers, nearly 70% of respondents expressed interest in an option to spread the cost of necessary expenses (such as vehicles repairs) over time.

Based on Sunbit’s proprietary data, when customers are approved for financing, the RO is executed more than 70% of the time and nearly doubles in value, and the customer is more likely to come back for additional service.

In fact, nearly one-third of drives surveyed report higher CSI scores thanks to good financing options, according to the company.

Sunbit is a preferred partner of 14 OEMs offered in more than 6,000 dealerships and 1,500 independent service shops and has partnered with 22 of the top 25 largest auto groups in the nation.

In addition, Sunbit technology is fully integrated into leading customer experience platforms, including Xtime, Quik, Update Promise, and Everyware, making financing an integral part of the customer journey.

Sunbit is available at booth No. 6729 at NADA Show 2023 in Dallas next week. The complete survey report can be found via this website.