ATLANTA, Jan. 23, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Dealertrack, a Cox Automotive brand, is redefining the future of auto finance with a suite of new APIs, product enhancements, and industry-first integrations designed to help maximize contracting and funding efficiency for lenders and their dealer partners. As the auto retail industry faces increasing pressure to deliver seamless, omnichannel shopping experiences while reducing errors and mitigating fraud, Dealertrack is leading the charge to help remove friction points across the consumer buying journey and accelerate digital adoption – a key factor in driving customer satisfaction, according to the latest Cox Automotive Car Buyer Journey Study.
With 86% of auto finance contracts now eligible for digital submission, Dealertrack believes the time has come where all digitally submitted auto loan contracts may be funded without manual intervention (Source: Dealertrack Data 2025). Recent improvements to reduce fraud throughout the car-buying experience include earlier clearing of stipulations—especially regarding income—during the purchase process, and soon, the company will introduce real-time point-of-sale checks for all funding package documents, including vehicle service contracts.
“We led the automation of credit applications, and now Dealertrack is focused on helping lenders and dealers achieve the pinnacle of efficiency with auto-fundable contracts,” said Andy Mayers, lender solutions strategist, Cox Automotive. “Everyone wins when buyers spend less time at the dealership, dealers can close deals faster and more profitably, and lenders can reallocate resources spent manually reviewing contracts to other important business initiatives.”
Dealertrack possesses a unique and powerful combination of leading products and large-scale network of dealerships, aftermarket providers and lending partners giving them the ability to transform auto finance and deliver the results the industry requires.
New advances that drive digital transformation, helping to improve the car buyer’s journey while designed to deliver peak finance efficiency, include:
Tools and enhancements that empower dealer partners to close deals fast — and lenders to fund fast — this reduces need for dealers and lenders to rehash alternative deal structures.
Omnichannel Solutions – Dealertrack’s Contracting Services, now with a complete set of digital retailing API’s, enable anytime, anywhere purchase transactions. Partners can originate contracts on their platforms, assist in and ensure that deal data accurately flows across marketplaces and platforms. Buyers can now move from online to in-store or finish their purchase 100% online.
Stipulation Management – Dealertrack now can automate the stipulation capture and clearing process for dealers and lenders. Coming later in 2026, Dealertrack’s Stipulation Capture, Stipulation Delivery, and its Income Verification will clear at point of sale.
Aftermarket validation – Over 61% of contracts today include one or more aftermarket products that could require one of 250,000 different forms – a process desperately in need of streamlining. Dealertrack’s recent partnership with F&I Sentinel now gives dealers insights into their lending partners’ acceptance of and compliance of aftermarket forms. Soon they will add the capability to help validate all data on aftermarket forms to match the financing contracts.
Leveraging AI – AI will help eliminate some of the manual reviews that lenders are performing today by analyzing and comparing all deal data and documents to ensure they meet lenders policies prior to submission for funding reducing the risk of returned contracts or delayed funding.
Fighting Cost of Fraud – At a whopping $9 billion dollars in 2025, fraud costs top the list of auto finance challenges in 2026. According to Cox Automotive’s 2025 Car Buyer Journey Study, 91% of buyers complete some or all purchase steps online. Dealertrack provides tools designed to streamline key steps—from credit application to final signature—helping dealers deliver a smooth and secure digital experience.
Dealertrack’s approach focuses on supporting both operational efficiency and consumer convenience. Dealertrack’s focus is two-pronged:
Helps to empower dealers by providing insights through our Compliance Suite and 2026 Dealertrack Compliance Guide, launching Jan. 27.
Leveraging strong industry partnerships with Poin Predictive’s BorrowerCheck solution— particularly in the areas of synthetic ID.
These enhancements help dealers, lenders, OEMs, and other digital retailing partners to create customized, transparent, and flexible experiences that meet the demands of today’s car buyers.
“Reducing fraud and automating the funding process are lenders’ top priorities. They need more communication with their digital contracting dealers about contract issues prior to submission. Lenders have also asked us to deliver the results of point-of sale validations at the time of funding to reduce manual reviews. Dealertrack’s investment in AI, risk mitigation, and partnerships like those with F&I Sentinel and Point Predictive are getting us to our goal of a fully automated funding process,” concluded Mayers.
“Dealertrack is committed to providing innovative technology that is critical to the success of any automotive dealership or lending institution,” added Derek Hansen, senior vice President, Dealer, Lender and Inventory Solutions, Cox Automotive. “Our unmatched product suite fosters efficiency through integration, enabling focused decision making that yields measurable results and growth.”
For more information about Dealertrack’s finance efficiency capabilities and best practices, visit coxautoinc.com or see us at NADA 2026.
About Cox Automotive
Cox Automotive is the world’s largest automotive services and technology provider. Fueled by the largest breadth of first-party data fed by 2.3 billion online interactions a year, Cox Automotive tailors leading solutions for car shoppers, auto manufacturers, dealers, lenders and fleets. The company has 29,000+ employees on five continents and a portfolio of industry-leading brands that include Autotrader®, Kelley Blue Book®, Manheim®, vAuto®, Dealertrack®, NextGear Capital™, CentralDispatch® and Cox Fleet®. Cox Automotive is a subsidiary of Cox Enterprises Inc., a privately owned, Atlanta-based company with $23 billion in annual revenue. Visit coxautoinc.com or connect via @CoxAutomotive on X, CoxAutoInc on Facebook or Cox-Automotive-Inc on LinkedIn.
SOURCE Cox Automotive
