VADA Live S2:E11 | "CSI stands for Customer Supplies Income." (Bob Atwood, NADA Academy)

VADA Live S2:E11 | "CSI stands for Customer Supplies Income." (Bob Atwood, NADA Academy)

From VADA Live by Virginia Automobile Dealers Association

April 15, 2026 · 31 min · Season 2 · Episode 11

About this episode

In this episode, Dan Carrigan interviews Bob Atwood about legal liabilities in service drives and strategies to improve dealership profitability.

What happens when a customer declines a tire replacement on a Multi-Point Inspection, gets into an accident, and takes the dealership to court? In this episode of VADA Live, host Dan Carrigan sits down with automotive legend and NADA Academy instructor Bob Atwood. With 60 years of experience in the auto industry and a background in law, Bob delivers a masterclass on the legal liabilities hiding in your service drive and the operational basics required to maximize Fixed Ops profitability. In this episode: The Liability of the MPI — Why failing to check off items on a Multi-Point Inspection can hold a dealership legally liable for a customer's accident, and why you should use the word "deferred" instead of "declined". Redefining CSI — Bob argues that CSI doesn't just stand for Customer Satisfaction Index; it stands for "Customer Supplies Income". The 5-Year Defection — Seven out of 10 customers defect from the dealership in year five. Bob explains how failing to build a relationship during the warranty period destroys long-term retention. Growing Service Revenue — Dealerships currently capture only 14% of after-sales revenue. Bob shares a simple strategy to win that business back…

People in this episode

Host: Dan Carrigan

Guest: Bob Atwood

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: NADA Academy, Virginia Automobile Dealers Association

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