Hyundai Motor Finance and Kia Motors Finance Become the First Captive Auto-Finance Companies to Offer Free FICO Scores to All of Their Customers

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Feb 23, 2015, 01:36 ET

IRVINE, Calif., Feb. 23, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Hyundai Capital America (HCA), a top-10 U.S. captive auto-finance company, that does business as "Hyundai Motor Finance" and "Kia Motors Finance," is pleased to announce it has expanded its partnership with FICO (NYSE: FICO), a leading predictive analytics and decision management software company.

Today, HCA became the first captive auto-finance company to provide free FICO^® Scores to all of its customers as part of the FICO^® Score Open Access program.

All Hyundai Motor Finance (HMF) and Kia Motors Finance (KMF) customers can easily opt-in via the HMF and KMF web and mobile sites. Participating customers are able to view their free FICO^® Score from HMF and KMF when they log into their account (in keeping with the company's "Go Paperless" efforts, the scores will only be available online). The FICO^® Score will be updated on a quarterly basis and customers will continue to have access to their free FICO^® Score for one year after their retail finance or lease contract is paid off.

Last year, HCA became the first captive auto-finance company to offer free FICO^® Scores to customers, focusing exclusively on participants in the company's College Grad program. Today's step represents a major expansion of the program, and an increased commitment to helping customers stay informed and empowered when it comes to their financial health.

"We're proud to be a leader amongst the captive auto-finance companies in providing free FICO^® Scores to all of our customers," said Larry Frankel, senior vice president of sales and marketing for Hyundai Capital America. "From applying for a loan to returning a lease, we're committed to making the financing process an easy and positive experience for our customers. This program enables us to add transparency on top of convenience. It's a great tool that helps us further demonstrate to our customers that we are focused on building long-term relationships and serving their auto-financing needs for years to come."

In addition to providing customers with online access to their FICO^® Scores, HMF and KMF will also provide the top two factors currently affecting the customer's individual FICO^® Scores as well as online access to educational content designed to help customers understand their credit score.

"We applaud Hyundai Capital America for being an early adopter of the FICO^® Score Open Access program," said Jim Wehmann, executive vice president of Scores at FICO. "This step will provide more borrowers across the country with the tools and information they need to more fully understand how to manage their financial health and build a strong financial foundation for the future."

ABOUT HYUNDAI CAPITAL AMERICA
Headquartered in Irvine, CA, Hyundai Capital America is a top-10 U.S. auto finance company supporting the financial services needs of Hyundai Motor America and Kia Motors America. Through its Hyundai Motor Finance^® and Kia Motors Finance^® brands, the company provides financial products to Hyundai and Kia dealerships nationwide, including dealer inventory and facility financing, as well as indirect vehicle financing for retail and lease customers. Through its subsidiary, Hyundai Protection Plan, the company offers vehicle service contracts and other vehicle protection products under the Hyundai Protection Plan™ and Power Protect^® brands. As of 2015, the company serves over 1.4 million customers and over 1,500 dealers nationwide, and has over $25 billion in assets. In addition to its three offices in Irvine, CA, Hyundai Capital America has operations centers in Atlanta and Dallas.

ABOUT FICO
FICO (NYSE: FICO) is a leading analytics software company, helping businesses in 90+ countries make better decisions that drive higher levels of growth, profitability and customer satisfaction. The company's groundbreaking use of Big Data and mathematical algorithms to predict consumer behavior has transformed entire industries. FICO provides analytics software and tools used across multiple industries to manage risk, fight fraud, build more profitable customer relationships, optimize operations and meet strict government regulations. Many of our products reach industry-wide adoption. These include the FICO^® Score, the standard measure of consumer credit risk in the United States. FICO solutions leverage open-source standards and cloud computing to maximize flexibility, speed deployment and reduce costs. The company also helps millions of people manage their personal credit health. FICO: Make every decision count™. Learn more at www.fico.com.

FICO and "Make every decision count" are trademarks or registered trademarks of Fair Isaac Corporation in the United States and in other countries.

Kia Motors Finance is the registered trademark of Kia Motors America, Inc. and is used with permission.

SOURCE Hyundai Capital America