Recoveries are one of those parts of dealership operations that rarely get easier with time. Customers change numbers. Vehicles move locations overnight. Repossession timelines tighten, and recovery agency workloads fluctuate. Meanwhile, no one wants to raise their cost per recovery, especially when margins are already under pressure.
The good news is that many dealers can improve recovery rates without adding new expenses, vendors, or tools. The quickest wins usually come from tightening up how you use the tools you already have, especially your GPS tracking platforms, reporting, and recovery workflows. That matters in today's environment, considering that Cox Automotive estimated auto loan repossessions were at about 1.72 million in 2024, up roughly 43% compared to 2022. (Cox Automotive)
Repossession activity has been trending upward again across the industry, and the pressure shows up in everyday recovery work. Agencies have more assignments to work, timelines are tighter, and the cost of small delays adds up quickly when a vehicle is actively moving. The dealers who improve recoveries without increasing costs are usually not doing something flashy. They are using the GPS tools they already have, the right way, and eliminating the moments where a recovery stalls because someone is waiting for information.
At the same time, completing those assignments can be tougher. The CFPB noted that in September 2022, 27% of accounts assigned to repossession were completed, down from 38% in September 2019. (CFPB)
That gap is where process matters. When more accounts are headed toward recovery and fewer assignments are getting across the finish line, you do not necessarily need to spend more. You need to shorten response time and make sure your recovery partners are working with accurate, reliable device data.
A GPS tracking device is not only about dropping a pin on a map. In practice, it is a recovery operations tool. It supports asset recovery, collateral monitoring, and repo management when you treat it like a program, not a one-time action.
Recovery starts before the tow truck hits the road by reviewing device health, checking reports, and responding with care to notifications, so that if recovery becomes necessary, the recovery agent doesn’t go into the field to find an offline unit, a low battery, or non-existing location history.
PassTime customers often build this discipline inside OASIS, our device management system, using tools in the platform like reports, notifications, and, when necessary, Recovery Assist.
When a repossession or recovery assignment gets issued, time quickly becomes the enemy. One of the most common slowdowns is the back and forth between the dealer and the recovery agent. An agent asks for the latest location, the dealer's team has to check the system, the agent waits, then the vehicle moves.
Recovery Assist, with PassTime, is designed to reduce that friction. It’s a feature within OASIS that lets you securely share access to a single device with a third party for a limited time, which is commonly used for recovery agents. Access can be set for a defined window of time and is automatically revoked when that period ends, which helps you avoid managing extra logins or lingering access.
Practically, this means the “boots on the ground” can work from the same source of truth that you use, with the locate history available when they need it. This easily removes a bottleneck that slows down recovery and drives up avoidable labor on both sides.
A quick compliance note: as with any location-based tool, always make sure your use aligns with customer disclosures, internal policies, and any legal or regulatory requirements that apply to your operation and market.
If you are using a battery-powered device, like PassTime Encore, another major level of control is power management.
Encore is built with power modes designed to balance tracking capability and battery longevity. There are several things you can begin thinking through if an account is tending towards recovery. Do not wait until a vehicle is already assigned to a recovery agent to adjust power behavior.
Instead, you should build a standard process in your repossession workflow, like:
This process is simple but prevents a too common scenario where a recovery agent has access, but the device hasn’t checked in yet or is checking in too infrequently for the agent to be able to address it with urgency. It also reduces the chance that you have to burn time troubleshooting, when you should be locating and recovering.
Many recovery problems look like recovery problems, but they could have been identified earlier and are actually a device management problem.
If a device is offline, installed improperly, the battery is low, or there are repeated notifications showing issues, recoveries can be slower and get more expensive. There are several reports specifically inside PassTime’s OASIS platform that you can regularly check to avoid these issues in your workflow.
The goal isn’t to stare at dashboards all day, every day, but to set a regular cadence of checking in on your devices, and therefore your assets, to make sure you catch any issues early, while they are easy to address.
An example of a practical approach to use might look something like:
The bottom line is that this regular cadence of checking in on issues and red flags allows you to address them before a recovery becomes necessary, so that if it does become necessary, you’re ready.
Reports can help you see problematic trends, and notifications can help you see in real time things that might need your attention.
If you have these alerts available for wired devices for things like power loss or tamper, these are not simply “nice-to-have” messages. These are clear indicators that an asset might need your attention.
When these alerts are routed to the right people, with a clear internal procedure, you can often reduce the time between an event and the action that follows. This reduces the odds of a vehicle disappearing for days, which could lead to an asset being lost.
In many dealerships and BHPH operations, improving recoveries isn’t necessarily about paying for more. It’s often about using what you already have with intention. With features like Recovery Assist, Encore’s Power Modes, and a steady rhythm of checking, reporting, and responding to notifications, you can get a handle on preventing device issues from ruining recoveries before they even start.
When recoveries are a regular part of your risk management reality, the strongest advantage is consistency. The dealers who build a recovery-ready process do not just recover more vehicles, they also protect time, reduce friction with repo partners, and keep costs from creeping upwards over time.
