System and method for assessing and managing financial transactions

Abstract

A method and system is provided which can analyze customer data, including information about current products and agreements of the customer. The customer data can be used to predict various unknown parameters, including product usage data. The customer data and predicted data can be used to generate various alert conditions. For example, an alert can be generated when a product's predicted usage data for a future time indicates that usage terms of a related agreement will be exceeded. Also for example, an alert can be generated when a replacement product or agreement can be provided to a customer at an attractive price. An interactive deal sheet for an alert can be generated. The interactive deal sheet can allow a user to view various replacement products and agreements, and to perform additional calculations and comparisons based on inputted parameters.

1 . A warranty alert generation system comprising:
 at least one computer-readable medium storing a plurality of software modules, wherein each of the software modules comprises computer-executable instructions; and   computer hardware comprising at least one computer processor in communication with the computer-readable medium and configured to execute the software modules to generate and transmit a warranty alert to a product dealer to indicate that the product dealer can supplement a first product warranty of a customer with a second product warranty, wherein the software module comprises:   a warranty availability module configured to:
 access at least one data repository that stores warranty information comprising associations between warranties and products, warranty price information, warranty term information, and warranty eligibility information and 
 determine, based at least on warranty information, a warranty that is available to the customer; 
   an information retrieval module configured to retrieve, from at least one data repository accessible via a computer network, customer information, first warranty terms, including at least one use-based term, for a first warranty that the customer has for a product, product information, and second warranty information for a second warranty that the warranty availability module determines is available to the customer for the product;   a product-use evaluation module configured to access at least one data repository that stores customer product-use information and to determine, based on at least the product-use information for a customer and a product and a use-based term for a warranty for the product, if the use-based term is likely to be exceeded;   a warranty alert generation and transmission module configured, when it is determined that a warranty is available to a customer for a product and the customer's use of the product is likely to exceed a product-use term of a customer's current warranty for the product; and   an alert management module configured to provide the dealer access to a plurality of warranty alerts generated for the dealer and to allow the dealer to perform a plurality of management operations on the alerts, wherein the management operations are adapted to facilitate the dealer's providing of a supplemental warranty to a customer and comprise sorting the warranty alerts, searching for and viewing a portion of the warranty alerts, and assigning a status to a warranty alert;   wherein the information retrieval module, product-use evaluation module, and warranty availability module are configured to in real-time determine a warranty that is available to the customer for the product if the product-use evaluation module determines that the customer's use of the product is likely to exceed the product-use term of the customer's current warranty for the product.   
     
     
         2 . A method of estimating the a value of a measure of use of a product by a customer comprising the steps of:
 obtaining information about a product associated with a customer;   obtaining information about a measure of the customer's use of the product at a point in time;   extrapolating from the measure of use and the product-customer information to predict what the value of a measure of the customer's use of the product will be at a date in the future.   
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the product-customer information includes a date of first association of the customer and product and the extrapolation step comprises the steps of:
 creating a best fit function between the date of first association and a usage measure value of 0 and the point-in time and the usage measure value at the point in time; and   applying the best fit function to a second date to obtain the estimated value of the measure of use on the second date.   
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 3 , further comprising the step of obtaining an estimated use rate for the product and customer from a data repository and wherein the extrapolating step comprising applying the obtained estimated use rate for the amount of time between the point in time and a second point in time and adding that result to the measure of the customer's use rate at the point in time. 
     
     
         5 . A financial terms alert generation system comprising:
 an information retrieval module configured to retrieve, from at least one source accessible via a computer network, financing information, customer information, product information, and product use information, wherein the financing information comprising information about the product-use terms of the customer's present financial arrangement and potential future financial arrangements;   a financial terms comparison module configured to perform at least one calculation based on the retrieved information, the calculation configured to determine, for at least one customer, whether the customer is able to enter into a new financial arrangement on terms favorable to the customer, wherein the calculation includes a determination of the usage fee due under the present financial arrangement; and   an alert transmission module configured to transmit an alert to a dealer in cases in which the financial terms comparison module determines that a customer is able to enter into a new financial arrangement on terms favorable to the customer, the alert configured to identify to the dealer the customer that is able to enter into a new financial arrangement on terms favorable to the customer and to identify to the dealer the terms of the new financial arrangement.   
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 5 , wherein the financial terms comparison module is further configured to perform multiple calculations based on the retrieved information regarding multiple customers in order to determine which of the customers is able to enter into a new financial arrangement on terms favorable to the customer, and wherein the alert transmission module is configured to transmit an alert to a dealer for each customer that is able to enter into a new financial arrangement on terms favorable to the customer. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 6 , wherein the financial terms comparison module is configured to perform the multiple calculations regarding multiple customers periodically and wherein the alert transmission module is configured to transmit alerts for each customer that has been newly identified by the financial terms comparison module as able to enter into a new financial arrangement on terms favorable to the customer. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 6 , wherein the information retrieval module is configured to determine when retrieved information has changed since a previous retrieval of information, and wherein the financial terms comparison module is configured to perform multiple calculations regarding those customers for which the changed information may affect whether the customers are able to enter into a new financial arrangement on terms favorable to the customer. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 5 , wherein the financial terms comparison module is configured to perform a calculation for an identified customer in real time such that, in the event that the financial terms comparison module determines that the customer is able to enter into a new financial arrangement on terms favorable to the customer, the alert transmission module can transmit an alert regarding the customer's ability to enter into a new financial arrangement on terms favorable to the customer in real time. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein the financial terms comparison module is configured to perform the calculation for an identified customer when the identified customer enters a dealership, such that if the identified customer is able to enter into a new financial arrangement on terms favorable to the customer, the alert can be transmitted to the dealer in real time such that the dealer can be informed of the identified customer's ability to enter into a new financial arrangement on terms favorable to the customer while the customer is still in the dealership. 
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 5 , wherein a customer is deemed able to enter into a new financial arrangement on terms favorable to the customer in circumstances in which the customer is able to enter into a new financial arrangement to lease or purchase a product comparable to a product currently owned or leased by the customer and in which the customer while paying no more than what the customer currently pays for the product currently owned or leased, including use-based fees. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 5 , wherein a customer is deemed able to enter into a new financial arrangement on terms favorable to the customer in circumstances in which the customer is able to enter into a new financial arrangement to lease or purchase a product comparable to a product currently owned or leased by the customer and in which the customer pays no more than a threshold value over than what the customer currently pays for the product currently owned or leased, including use-based fees. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 12 , wherein the threshold value is ten percent of what the customer currently pays. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 12 , wherein the threshold value is a predetermined payment amount. 
     
     
         15 . A method of providing alerts regarding customers that are able to enter into new financial arrangements on terms favorable to the customers, the method comprising:
 retrieving financing, customer, and product information;   comparing, for each of a plurality of customers, the customer's current financial terms for a financial arrangement related to a first product currently owned or leased by the customer with potential financial terms related to a second product comparable to the first product that would be available to the customer under a new financial arrangement in order to determine whether the new financial arrangement has terms favorable to the customer;   generating, for each customer for which the comparing shows that the new financial arrangement has terms favorable to the customer, an alert comprising information identifying the customer and indicating the terms favorable to the customer under the new arrangement; and   transmitting the alerts to at least one dealer.   
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the financing, customer, and product information is retrieved periodically from at least one source of information accessible via a computer network. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the alerts are transmitted to the dealer by email. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the alerts are configured to be read by a dealer terminal configured for managing the alerts, wherein managing the alerts includes at least one of assigning an alert to a user for handling, associating a task with an alert, and assigning a status to an alert. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the new financial arrangement is deemed to have terms favorable to the customer if, under the potential financial terms the customer would pay no more than the customer currently pays under the customer's current financial terms. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the new financial arrangement is deemed to have terms favorable to the customer if, under the potential financial terms the customer would pay no more than a threshold value over what the customer currently pays under the customer's current financial terms. 
     
     
         21 . In a financial terms alert generation system having access to financing, customer, and product information, a method of generating updated alerts based on changes to the financing information, the method comprising:
 receiving a modified financial variable;   comparing, for each of a plurality of customers, the customer's current financial terms for a financial arrangement related to a first product currently owned or leased by the customer with potential financial terms related to a second product comparable to the first product that would be available to the customer under a new financial arrangement, taking into account the modified financial variable, in order to determine whether the new financial arrangement has terms favorable to the customer;   generating, for each customer for which the comparing shows that the new financial arrangement has terms favorable to the customer, an alert comprising information identifying the customer and indicating the terms favorable to the customer under the new arrangement; and   transmitting the alerts to at least one dealer.   
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 21 , wherein the modified financial variable is received via a manual data entry module, and wherein the modified financial variable at least temporarily takes the place of a modified financial variable that has been retrieved automatically from at least one information source accessible via a computer network. 
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 21 , wherein the modified financial variable comprises a financial incentive offered by a dealer. 
     
     
         24 . A method of generating an alert, in real-time, regarding whether an identified customer can enter into a new financial arrangement having terms favorable to the customer, the method comprising:
 receiving an identification of a customer;   retrieving, in real-time, financial information regarding a current financial arrangement of the customer identified by the identification, wherein the current financial arrangement relates to a first product currently owned or leased by the identified customer;   comparing current financial terms of the current financial arrangement with potential financial terms related to a second product comparable to the first product that would be available to the identified customer under a new financial arrangement in order to determine whether the new financial arrangement has terms favorable to the identified customer;   generating an alert comprising information identifying terms favorable to the identified customer under the new financial arrangement if the comparing shows that the new financial arrangement has terms favorable to the identified customer; and   transmitting the alert in real-time to at least one dealer.   
     
     
         25 . The method of  claim 23 , further comprising presenting a deal to the identified customer, the deal including the favorable terms of the new financial arrangement. 
     
     
         26 . The method of  claim 24 , wherein the method is performed when the identified customer enters a dealership, and wherein the real-time generation and transmission of the alert allows the dealer to receive the alert while the identified customer is still in the dealership.