J.D. Power and Associates Reports: Credit Solutions Recognized for Excellence in Satisfying Call Center Customers WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif.: 11 June 2007 — Credit Solutions call center operations has exhibited a strong commitment to providing "An Outstanding Customer Service Experience" as recognized under the J.D. Power and Associates Certified Call Center Program. "Meeting the needs of customers is critical in running a successful call center operation, and feedback from Credit Solutions' customers is clear evidence of the company's commitment to providing a satisfying call center experience," said Jonathan Brookner, director of the call center certification program at J.D. Power and Associates. The Credit Solutions call center operations in Dallas, Texas, handled more than 1 million telephone, e-mail and fax inquiries from customers in 2006. To become certified, the call center operations successfully passed a detailed audit of their recruiting, training, employee incentives, management roles and responsibilities, and quality assurance capabilities. As part of its evaluation, J.D. Power and Associates conducted a random survey of Credit Solutions' customers who recently contacted its call centers. For certification status, a call center must also perform within the top 20 percent of customer service scores, which is based on benchmarks established in J.D. Power and Associates' cross-industry customer satisfaction research. The criteria used include evaluation of: courtesy; knowledge; concern for the customer; usefulness of the information provided; convenience of operating hours; ease of reaching a representative and timely resolution. "While customers of Credit Solutions note high levels of satisfaction with the overall call center experience, they are particularly pleased with the hours of operation, the timely resolution of their problems and the ease of getting through to a representative," said Brookner. The Call Center Certification Program was launched by J.D. Power and Associates in 2004 to evaluate overall customer satisfaction with call centers and to help call centers in various industries increase their efficiency and effectiveness by establishing best practices for handling service calls. There are more than 75,000 call centers in North America and an estimated 125,000 worldwide that help customers with product and service questions across a multitude of industries, ranging from credit cards, financial services, investment services, utilities, service warranty and insurance to telecommunications, healthcare and office products.