P&A Magazine had the opportunity to catch up with David Trinder, CEO of F&I Administration Solutions to discuss his company, products, the industry now and what it will look like in the future.
Tell us about your company and the products that you offer.
F&I Admin is dedicated to the development and support of the SCS Auto platform. SCS Auto is a fully integrated, web-based solution that automates and streamlines the administration of F&I products. We have developed modules to support a broad array of products including VSC, GAP, Limited Warranty, Key Replacement, Theft, Tire & Wheel, Appearance Protection, Prepaid Maintenance and much more. In addition to a full administration solution, we support a dealer front end for electronic quoting, electronic contracting and electronic remittance as well as many other functions. Our system is also electronically connected to over 20 menu and other dealer systems for electronic rating and electronic contracting. In short, we are the leading solution for the administration of all F&I products.
How does your product offering differ from other providers?
Our system supports more products and is more widely connected than any other system available today. With over 20 menu and other selling systems connected for electronic rating and electronic contracting our provider customers are able to offer more options for electronic contracting to their dealers than all other administrators. In addition, SCS Auto has specific enhancements to support GAP, Limited Warranty, Tire & Wheel, Appearance Protection, Roadside Assistance, Theft, Prepaid Maintenance and more. Our connectivity with Wright Express for single use credit cards for claim payments to dealers and our functionality to electronically request and track inspection requests with a number of inspection companies also sets us apart from all other systems available today.
Who are your target markets and what messages would you like to give them?
All administrators of F&I products can benefit from our services. Our message to them is that adopting our solution will ensure that they achieve the greatest operational efficiencies possible as well as guarantee that they are as widely and comprehensively connected to agents and dealers as technology can deliver today. But perhaps most importantly, we believe that the interconnectivity of all systems within the auto industry and its constituents – the dealers, agents, administrators and insurers - will increase exponentially in the years ahead, and being part of the SCS Auto platform will guarantee that they are at the leading edge of these developments.
Tell us about yourself and the path that lead you to F&I Admin.
I emigrated from South Africa to Canada in 2000 and soon found myself as CEO of DealerAccess Canada Inc. DealerTrack bought the Canadian business and in 2005 I moved to the DealerTrack New York office where I took various roles as a Senior Vice President and member of the management team. In February 2009, I left DealerTrack and Kumar Kathinokkula and I bought this business from DealerTrack. In the last three years we have tripled the number of customers and significantly broadened the company’s offering.
Looking back over the past five years, how has the industry changed and how do you see it changing in the future?
The past five years has seen a growing influence from technology in the F&I office and dealerships as a whole. Whereas five years ago, technology had to be pushed onto an F&I manager, today the F&I manager (and dealership) is demanding that technology adds to the ease, accuracy and speed of their sales and administration processes. The next few years will see mobile technology become mainstream, an expectation that all systems will seamlessly talk to each other and that technology delivers on its promise to create efficiencies throughout the entire process.
What technology and products do you believe will drive your future success?
Our mainstream administration solution will always be at the core of our success and we will continue to add functionality to ensure that our customers have a solution that is far ahead of any competitive offering. At the same time, we will continue to build on our success in connecting to third party systems to support sales and operational efficiencies. Last but not least, our mobile strategy will be a big driver of our future success.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
Family is at the top of the list although with two children in college and one a Junior in high school, my wife and I are starting to find the time to play golf together again. When not golfing, or coaching my son’s ice hockey team, I sail as much as possible. In my late 20’s my wife and I sailed round the world on our 31ft yacht. Since then I have raced yachts of all sizes on a regular basis.
