Why Mechanic Shops That Finance Auto Repair Outpace Their Competitors

Auto repair holds a reputation for being quite expensive, and this often keeps consumers from getting the preventative maintenance that they need. What expert mechanics know, though, is that this is a large part of the reason why mechanic bills tend to climb so high. As a result, anything that can get car owners to come in early and often will help keep their cars running without breaking the bank.

Luckily, consumer financing doesn’t just save clients money by getting them to come in before their problems get too expensive—it also saves them money on every bill by breaking it up into smaller monthly payments. This is why mechanic shops that finance tend to outperform those that don’t.

To help shop owners get up to speed and offer financing of their own, we are going to cover:

• The benefits for mechanic shops that finance
• What financing options make sense for mechanics
• How to offer auto repair financing

The Benefits for Mechanic Shops that Finance

Obviously, offering something so convenient to consumers will make them happy and offer them plenty of value. The question is, what value does it bring to the mechanic shops that finance? The good news is that there are even more benefits for the mechanic than for the consumer getting the financing.

These benefits include:

• Customers may add on services such as oil and filter changes while more costly repairs are being performed.
• A broader customer base by capturing those that need financing
• More repeat business
• Higher customer satisfaction
• A higher likelihood of customers purchasing performance modifications

All of these benefits not only make life easier for mechanics but also provide more stable income and better customer reviews. Experienced shops understand the value of turning first-time clients into loyal, repeat customers. They also know how powerful a good review can be, and high repair bills are a major cause of bad reviews for mechanics.

What Financing Options Make Sense for Mechanics

To get the most out of their financing offers, mechanic shops that finance should ensure that they offer the right payment options. Consumer financing is popular in several industries, but the specific vehicle through which consumers choose to get funding varies depending on the use case.

For mechanics, we recommend offering:

• Buy now, pay later (BNPL)
• Credit cards
• Personal loans

We’ve placed these in order, with BNPL being the most useful for every consumer and personal loans being the most case-by-case option. So let’s dive into each and the situations in which they are best utilized.

BNPL

BNPL payment plans operate like loans, but they often charge lower interest, with payment structures comprising of 4-or-fewer payments usually not charging any interest at all. They also don’t report to credit bureaus as long as payments are made on time, meaning they will not affect a consumer’s credit. By going through a fintech partner that uses soft credit checks, mechanics can ensure that even the application will not negatively affect a customer’s score.

Due to their convenience and flexibility, BNPL payment plans should always be the first offer to any client. They can be made to work for any size repair bill, and they offer the fewest drawbacks of any financing option.

Credit Cards

Another common financing offer for auto repair is a store credit card. These cards typically offer promotional reduced interest rates for the first purchase made with the business that provides it, allowing consumers the most flexible way to pay off their repair bill without paying too much in interest charges.

Since credit cards provide a permanent line of credit, they are best used when a client has a consistent need for repairs. This could be because they have an expensive car, multiple family cars, or they run a business that requires an entire fleet of vehicles. Credit cards work well in these cases because it only takes a single application to get access to financing every time they walk into the shop.

Personal Loans

Consumer loans and BNPL are very similar. However, BNPL offers much less hassle than personal loans do. Unfortunately, some consumers may need a payment schedule that is too long for a BNPL payment program, or they may not qualify for one. For these use cases, mechanics that offer financing should always have a personal loan option to offer their customers.

How to Offer Financing to Auto Repair Customers

The best way to offer financing is to partner with an experienced fintech provider with a high-quality software platform. To give customers the best possible experience, mechanic shops should make sure the platform they choose offers the following features:

• One-click applications for fast approvals.
• A clean and simple user interface to make things easy on employees and customers.
• Omnichannel functionality to ensure that consumers can get financing in-shop, online, and through an app.

Luckily, Skeps offers all of these features and more.

Offer Mechanical Auto Repair Financing With Skeps

Skeps offers a comprehensive, end-to-end consumer financing program that helps businesses modernize their entire payment process. We go above and beyond one-click payment, also offering a one-click application process for several different types of consumer financing, including:

• BNPL
• Store credit cards
• Consumer loans and leases

If you’re looking to partner with a forward-thinking fintech company that will keep consumers' eyes on the purchase while offering best-in-class financing, Skeps is the perfect fit.