EtchGuard International has announced the addition of EtchTrace to www.etchguard.com. With EtchTrace, law enforcement agencies anywhere in the world can inquire about a suspected stolen vehicle.

According to Gerard Marino, company president and founder, “Until EtchTrace, vehicle registrations were controlled pretty much by the language and/or country they were registered in. Outside of this immediate area, and especially in a foreign language, it can be very difficult to determine if a vehicle was stolen or abandoned.

“Now, a vehicle stolen in California that has been brought to the Pacific Rim can be traced back to its rightful owner just as easily as if it was recovered in California," Marino said. "Using the power of the Web and EtchTrace, we’ve actually created the first and only worldwide vehicle registration database. Since we can translate from and to virtually any language, the language barrier is finally gone.”

EtchGuard International, based in the United States, offers two types of glass etching programs to auto dealerships. EtchGuard uses a pre-assigned alpha-numeric code. VinTech uses the factory assigned Vehicle Identification Number (VIN). According to Marino, either program is ideal for an auto dealer’s F&I department as they are extremely inexpensive but have a very high-perceived value and recognized need.

“Its not unusual to see a 90 percent penetration rate adding tens of thousands of dollars to the F&I department’s bottom line each and every month," Marino said. "In the U.S., many insurance companies even offer a rate discount for etched vehicles, making this as easy a sale as anyone could imagine.”

For more information on EtchGuard, visit www.etchguard.com.