Dealers Tell Lenders: Make Financing Easier

The interest rate matters, but it is far from the only thing determining where auto dealers send their financing business.

That is one of the major findings from the J.D. Power 2026 U.S. Dealer Financing Satisfaction Study, which shows dealers are placing increasing value on speed, consistency, easy-to-use technology and getting problems solved correctly the first time.

According to J.D. Power, a competitive interest rate was the single most frequently cited reason dealership finance professionals choose a lender, but it accounted for just 18% of the reasons dealers send business to a particular financing source. Factors including ease of doing business, speed of approvals and relationships with lender sales representatives collectively accounted for 70% of the reasons.

In other words, having a good rate may get a lender into the game, but making the financing process easy can help determine who gets the deal.

Consistency is particularly important. J.D. Power found overall satisfaction rises to 967 on its 1,000-point scale when dealers receive consistent lending decisions. Dealers want confidence that substantially the same credit application will receive the same decision regardless of which lender analyst happens to review it.

Problem resolution is another major factor.

The study found lender employees resolved 82% of dealer problems, questions or other issues during the first contact. When a lender resolved the matter the first time, overall dealer satisfaction averaged 841. When a second contact was necessary, the score dropped to 599 — a sizable 242-point difference. J.D. Power says nearly 20% of dealer-lender interactions still require that second contact.

Dealers are also making it clear they would like greater control over the financing process without having to call the lender every time something needs to be changed.

Nearly three-fourths — 74% — of dealer finance professionals surveyed said they want to mostly or completely self-serve. Restructuring credit applications was the top task dealers said they would like to manage themselves. J.D. Power says the results point toward growing demand for real-time tools that allow dealership personnel to change deal structures, clear issues and restructure transactions without having to contact the lender directly.

Patrick Roosenberg, senior director of automotive finance intelligence at J.D. Power, said dealership finance professionals are signaling that the overall experience with a lender can matter as much as, or even more than, the financial terms. He said lenders that provide faster and more consistent decisions, greater self-service capability and first-contact problem resolution have a better opportunity to earn more dealership business.

J.D. Power also ranked lenders in five categories.

Among captive premium lenders, Jaguar Land Rover Financial Group ranked highest with a score of 879, followed by Porsche Financial Services at 853 and Maserati Capital USA at 844.

In the captive mass-market category, Subaru Motors Finance finished first with 879 points. Southeast Toyota Finance followed at 871, with Toyota Financial Services third at 813.

TD Auto Finance topped the non-captive national prime category for the seventh consecutive year with a score of 895. Capital One Auto Finance ranked second at 871, followed by Ally Financial at 868.

Huntington National Bank ranked highest among non-captive regional prime lenders for the fourth consecutive year, scoring 794, followed by Fifth Third Bank at 748. In the non-captive subprime category, Capital One Auto Finance ranked first with 864 points, followed by Ally Financial at 858 and Chase Auto at 802.

The 2026 U.S. Dealer Financing Satisfaction Study was based on 25,541 evaluations from 5,662 dealership finance professionals. The study was conducted during April and May 2026.

The message to lenders seems pretty straightforward: Dealers still want a competitive rate, of course. But once the numbers are close, the lender that answers quickly, makes consistent decisions, provides useful technology and fixes problems the first time has a considerable advantage.

For anyone who has ever watched a car deal grind to a halt while somebody waits on hold for an answer from a lender, that may qualify as the least surprising finding of the year.