How DealerApproved ratings work
DealerApproved is designed to separate product facts, dealer experience and vendor participation. A product does not receive a public score simply because it exists in the catalog.
Who runs DealerApproved?
DealerApproved is an independent dealership-technology research and community platform. Vendor participation, claimed profiles and future commercial relationships do not determine independent dealer ratings, review visibility or moderation outcomes.
How reviewer verification works
DealerApproved separates public identity from professional verification. A dealer professional may remain professionally anonymous in public while DealerApproved privately verifies qualifying account and professional signals. Only qualifying verified reviews count toward aggregate ratings.
Where information comes from
DealerApproved keeps three evidence lanes distinct: independent product research, vendor-supplied information that is labeled as such, and dealership-user experiences. When evidence is insufficient, the platform should say so rather than infer a rating or claim.
Qualifying dealer reviews
DealerApproved scores use qualifying verified professional reviews. General Chatter, editorial questions, vendor updates, issues and fixes do not count as ratings.
Minimum evidence threshold
A public aggregate score is withheld until a product has at least 5 qualifying verified reviews. Before that threshold, DealerApproved shows a pending or not-yet-rated state rather than a misleading numeric zero.
Overall, Buy Again and Resolution
Overall summarizes the qualifying review score data collected for the product. Buy Again reflects qualifying reviewers’ willingness to choose the product again. Resolution reflects supported issue-resolution data where DealerApproved has enough evidence to display it. DealerApproved does not manufacture a score when the underlying evidence is missing.
Professional anonymity
Dealer professionals may contribute using DealerApproved’s professional-anonymity controls. Public identity protection does not turn an unverified contribution into a verified review; verification and public identity are separate concepts.
Moderation and conflicts
Reviews and community content may be moderated for authenticity, abuse, privacy, duplication and policy compliance. Vendors may respond or provide official information, but vendor participation does not control independent dealer ratings or moderation outcomes.
Commercial independence
Payment, sponsorship, advertising or any other commercial relationship cannot buy, improve, suppress, alter or remove independent ratings or reviews. Paid promotional placement, if used, must be clearly labeled and remain separate from independent ratings, reviews and moderation.
Questions about methodology? Contact DealerApproved support.