Report Overview

This report presents override and margin benchmarks from DealerInt's Q1 2026 Dealer Profit Index. Data spans 382 dealerships across US regions. Metrics include override rate, margin loss percentage, and recovery rate after implementing structured capture.

Key Findings

Average override rate: 4.8% across all segments
Franchise vs independent: Franchise 4.0–4.5%; Independent 5.2–6.1%
Margin loss: Average 3.6% of gross attributed to overrides
Recovery rate: 19.9% average within one quarter of structured capture
Sample size: 382 dealerships

Regional Breakdown

Region	Franchise Override %	Independent Override %	Sample
US-Northeast	4.2	5.8	70
US-Southeast	4.5	6.1	93
US-Midwest	3.9	5.2	83
US-Southwest	4.3	5.7	62
US-West	4.0	5.5	74

Southeast independents show the highest override rates. Midwest franchise the lowest. Recovery rates vary 16–24%.

Segment Analysis

Independent dealers consistently show higher override rates and margin loss. Factors: smaller teams, less formal policy, competitive markets. Structured capture yields larger relative improvement for independents.

Methodology

Data from DealerInt customers who consented to anonymized benchmarking. Override rate = overrides / transactions. Margin loss estimated from override volume and average giveback. Recovery = prevented loss + recovered margin in first 90 days.

Implications

Override visibility is a margin lever. Average 19.9% recovery in 90 days.
Regional and segment variation matters. Benchmark against peers.
Structured reason capture is the foundation. Freeform notes don't aggregate.
Policy + visibility drives improvement. Data enables targeted action.

Full Data

Download Dealer Profit Index data (CSV/JSON). Updated quarterly.