The Department of Transportation will raise the number of public- and private-sector workers from about 350 to nearly 1,100 by the end of the week. A department service center in Oklahoma City has the lead in processing the vouchers.
Dealers asked for the acceleration of voucher payments because they essentially face a $3,500 to $4,500 loss on each vehicle until they receive the reimbursement. This is money they need to cover the money they must borrow to put new cars on their lots. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says dealers can expect to wait about 10 days to be repaid, but incomplete or inaccurate paperwork can slow that process.
NHTSA initially expected to need only 30 new hires and 200 contract workers to process the program’s claims, but quickly decided to increase those numbers when dealers flooded the online reimbursement system following the program’s debut.