Auto industry financing increases for those with below-average credit

According to a recent Experian Automotive report, consumers who has less-than-stellar credit scores are having finding it easier to obtain auto loans. The study revealed that consumers with non-prime credit or worse made up a total of 22 percent of the market for new car financing- higher than the 18 percent it accounted for a year prior. In addition, the research firm stated that auto loan payments 30 days overdue or more fell to 2.59 percent during a three-month time frame that ended in June. The number was lower than the 2.89 percent who were late for an extended period the year before. "Even with a tepid economic recovery in the first half of the year, automotive lenders were willing to increase their level of risk," said Melinda Zabritski, director of automotive credit for Experian Automotive. "This was good news for automotive manufacturers, as nearly half of all consumers fall into non-prime, subprime and deep subprime risk categories." The auto industry has been reeling from a near collapse in 2008, when the government stepped up and gave emergency loans to a number of different U.S. based companies.