A new web-based app can help dealers determine whether they are eligible for federal assistance designed to help businesses weather the downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Dealership technology company DealerSocket, working with app development platform Quick Base and law firm Kirkland & Ellis, is offering dealerships an online tool to guide them through the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security, or CARES, Act and simplify their application if they qualify.
The program's developer is Quick Base, which, like DealerSocket, is majority-owned by private equity firm Vista Equity Partners. The Dealership Loan Navigator is free for all dealerships to use, regardless of whether they are DealerSocket customers, DealerSocket CEO Sejal Pietrzak told Automotive News.
"This is an incredible opportunity for us to be able to give [dealers] a simple and easy-to-use navigator to be able to walk through what is otherwise a very complex process," she said.
Dealers answer questions on the tool to learn whether they are eligible for CARES Act aid, including the Paycheck Protection Program through the U.S. Small Business Administration. The app produces a PDF document that dealers can take to their lenders to apply.
Kirkland & Ellis helped interpret eligibility for the programs, said Eric Olson, QuickBase's chief marketing officer. The law firm did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.
The tool is live and can be found here.
