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Jennifer Oribello says referrals from bankruptcy attorneys bring her store “a few extra deals” per quarter.
Every couple of months, Jennifer Oribello spends her spare time mining the docket of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Detroit and Googling contact information for local bankruptcy attorneys.
She sends letters to gauge whether the credit-blemished folks on the docket or among the attorneys’ clients would be interested in buying and financing a car at Cueter Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge-Ram in Ypsilanti, Mich., where she is special finance manager.
Only a few folks on the docket have come in after receiving letters. Oribello has reaped more success from contacting the bankruptcy attorneys, many of whom have referred their clients to her. The number of referrals she receives varies month to month: She could get seven or she could get zero. Still, “overall it brings in a few extra deals” per quarter, she said.
The prospective customers aren’t worried they’re being scammed, Oribello said. They “are more nervous about getting approved.” She works with lenders willing to finance bankrupt consumers, such as Chrysler Capital, Santander Consumer USA, Consumer Portfolio Services and Tidewater Finance Co.
In the long run, having an auto loan will help those customers re-establish credit, and Oribello, a 2016 Automotive News 40 Under 40 retail honoree, gives them tips to help them improve.
“It’s important that they are educated as well on how to repair their credit; it’s helping them,” said the 38-year-old Oribello. “I really like educating people, too, as far as their credit goes and how to help them get out of the situation that they’re in and start rebuilding and re-establishing.
“I really like educating people … as far as their credit goes and how to help them get out of the situation that they’re in and start rebuilding and re-establishing.”
Jennifer Oribello
Cueter Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge-Ram
“I’m brought in early in the deal, and I’ll talk to customers” about their credit report, explaining “why it is, what it is, why it will be what it’s going to be,” she said. “[I] educate them to try to better it.”
She recounts the story of one customer who was in bankruptcy. The first time he came in, he financed a used vehicle with a three-year loan through Consumer Portfolio Services at a 23 percent interest rate. He came back two years later to trade in that car and buy a new Dodge Journey. This time he was able to finance with Chrysler Capital at an APR of only 1.9 percent.
According to Oribello, 35 to 40 percent of finance transactions at Cueter Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge-Ram are special finance deals.
The credit scores for these customers vary. Some first-time auto buyers might qualify as special finance because they’re considered inexperienced borrowers, having, say, only one credit card and a 700 credit score.
Oribello said her customers are in the upper 500s on average, but some have credit scores in the 300s.
Getting credit-impaired customers auto financing has paid off for those customers, Oribello said. One couple in bankruptcy that Oribello worked with recently had a credit score of 375 when they bought their first car from Cueter.
One month later, they came back for a second car. Their score had already shot up to 500.
Credit repair specialist helps customers and her store
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