Revenue Recognition

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2022

Revenue Recognition [Abstract]

Revenue Recognition

REVENUE RECOGNITION

Disaggregation of Revenue

The significant majority of our revenue is from contracts with customers. Taxes assessed by governmental authorities that are directly imposed on revenue transactions are excluded from revenue. In the following tables, revenue is disaggregated by major lines of goods and services and timing of transfer of goods and services. We have determined that these categories depict how the nature, amount, timing, and uncertainty of our revenue and cash flows are affected by economic factors. The tables below also include a reconciliation of the disaggregated revenue to reportable segment revenue.

	Year Ended December 31, 2022
	Domestic		Import		Premium Luxury		Corporate and other(1)		Total
Major Goods/Service Lines
New vehicle	$	3,409.1	$	3,473.0	$	4,872.3	$	—	$	11,754.4
Used vehicle	3,022.3		2,652.7		3,499.8		487.0		9,661.8
Parts and service	1,092.7		1,050.9		1,448.6		508.4		4,100.6
Finance and insurance, net	460.3		494.1		453.8		29.1		1,437.3
Other	3.1		19.6		3.6		4.6		30.9
	$	7,987.5	$	7,690.3	$	10,278.1	$	1,029.1	$	26,985.0
Timing of Revenue Recognition
Goods and services transferred at a point in time	$	7,226.9	$	6,896.2	$	9,063.1	$	703.7	$	23,889.9
Goods and services transferred over time(2)	760.6		794.1		1,215.0		325.4		3,095.1
	$	7,987.5	$	7,690.3	$	10,278.1	$	1,029.1	$	26,985.0

	Year Ended December 31, 2021
	Domestic		Import		Premium Luxury		Corporate and other(1)		Total
Major Goods/Service Lines
New vehicle	$	3,601.8	$	3,969.8	$	4,510.1	$	—	$	12,081.7
Used vehicle	2,875.0		2,370.5		3,067.4		325.9		8,638.8
Parts and service	1,007.6		950.0		1,246.7		502.3		3,706.6
Finance and insurance, net	469.1		489.6		401.0		24.8		1,384.5
Other	6.4		18.6		4.7		2.7		32.4
	$	7,959.9	$	7,798.5	$	9,229.9	$	855.7	$	25,844.0
Timing of Revenue Recognition
Goods and services transferred at a point in time	$	7,260.7	$	7,079.0	$	8,197.6	$	535.6	$	23,072.9
Goods and services transferred over time(2)	699.2		719.5		1,032.3		320.1		2,771.1
	$	7,959.9	$	7,798.5	$	9,229.9	$	855.7	$	25,844.0

	Year Ended December 31, 2020
	Domestic		Import		Premium Luxury		Corporate and other(1)		Total
Major Goods/Service Lines
New vehicle	$	3,411.1	$	3,283.7	$	3,723.8	$	—	$	10,418.6
Used vehicle	1,781.4		1,516.5		2,125.9		177.5		5,601.3
Parts and service	891.5		811.3		1,058.1		496.5		3,257.4
Finance and insurance, net	370.5		361.7		294.7		32.4		1,059.3
Other	36.1		14.8		0.3		2.2		53.4
	$	6,490.6	$	5,988.0	$	7,202.8	$	708.6	$	20,390.0
Timing of Revenue Recognition
Goods and services transferred at a point in time	$	5,841.6	$	5,343.8	$	6,301.3	$	413.7	$	17,900.4
Goods and services transferred over time(2)	649.0		644.2		901.5		294.9		2,489.6
	$	6,490.6	$	5,988.0	$	7,202.8	$	708.6	$	20,390.0
(1) “Corporate and other” is comprised of our other businesses, including AutoNation USA used vehicle stores, collision centers, parts distribution centers, and auction operations.
(2) Represents revenue recognized during the period for automotive repair and maintenance services.

Performance Obligations and Significant Judgments and Estimates Related to Revenue Recognition

New and Used Vehicle

We sell new vehicles at our franchised dealerships and used vehicles at our franchised dealerships and AutoNation USA used vehicle stores. The transaction price for a vehicle sale is determined with the customer at the time of sale. Customers often trade in their own vehicle to apply toward the purchase of a retail new or used vehicle. The “trade-in” vehicle is a type of noncash consideration measured at fair value, based on external and internal market data for the specific vehicle, and applied as payment to the contract price for the purchased vehicle.

When we sell a new or used vehicle, we typically transfer control at a point in time upon delivery of the vehicle to the customer, which is generally at time of sale, as the customer is able to direct the use of, and obtain substantially all of the benefits from, the vehicle at such time. We do not directly finance our customers’ vehicle purchases or leases. We offer indirect financing on certain vehicles we sell, and income from such financing is reflected in our AutoNation Finance results within Other (Income) Expense, Net in our Consolidated Statements of Income. In many cases, we arrange third-party financing for the retail sale or lease of vehicles to our customers in exchange for a fee paid to us by the third-party financial institution. We receive payment directly from the customer at the time of sale, from the third-party financial institution (referred to as contracts-in-transit or vehicle receivables, which are part of our receivables from contracts with customers), or from our captive finance company within a short period of time following the sale. We establish provisions, which are not significant, for estimated returns and warranties on the basis of both historical information and current trends.

We also offer auction services at our AutoNation-branded automotive auctions, revenue from which is included within Used Vehicle wholesale revenue. The transaction price for auction services is based on an established pricing schedule and determined with the customer at the time of sale, and payment is due upon completion of service. We satisfy our performance obligations related to auction services at the point in time that control transfers to the customer, which is when the service is completed.

Parts and Service

We sell parts and automotive services related to customer-paid repairs and maintenance, repairs and maintenance under manufacturer warranties and extended service contracts, and collision-related repairs. We also sell parts through our wholesale and retail counter channels.

Each automotive repair and maintenance service is a single performance obligation that includes both the parts and labor associated with the service. Payment for automotive service work is typically due upon completion of the service, which is generally completed within a short period of time from contract inception. The transaction price for automotive repair and maintenance services is based on the parts used, the number of labor hours applied, and standardized hourly labor rates. We satisfy our performance obligations, transfer control, and recognize revenue over time for automotive repair and maintenance services because we are creating an asset with no alternative use and we have an enforceable right to payment for performance completed to date. We use an input method to recognize revenue and measure progress based on labor hours expended relative to the total labor hours expected to be expended to satisfy the performance obligation. We have determined labor hours expended to be the relevant measure of work performed to complete the automotive repair or maintenance service for the customer. As a practical expedient, since automotive repair and maintenance service contracts have an original duration of one year or less, we do not consider the time value of money, and we do not disclose estimated revenue expected to be recognized in the future for performance obligations that are unsatisfied (or partially unsatisfied) at the end of the reporting period or when we expect to recognize such revenue.

The transaction price for wholesale and retail counter parts sales is determined at the time of sale based on the quantity and price of each product purchased. Payment is typically due at time of sale, or within a short period of time following the sale. We establish provisions, which are not significant, for estimated parts returns based on historical information and current trends. Delivery methods of wholesale and retail counter parts vary; however, we generally consider control of wholesale and retail counter parts to transfer when the products are shipped, which typically occurs the same day as or within a few days of the sale.

Finance and Insurance

We sell and receive a commission on the following types of finance and insurance products: extended service contracts, maintenance programs, guaranteed auto protection (known as “GAP,” this protection covers the shortfall between a customer’s loan balance and insurance payoff in the event of a casualty), “tire and wheel” protection, and theft protection products, among others. We offer products that are sold and administered by independent third parties, including the vehicle manufacturers’ captive finance subsidiaries.

Pursuant to our arrangements with these third-party providers, we sell the products on a commission basis, and, for certain products, we also participate in future profit pursuant to retrospective commission arrangements with the issuers of those contracts through the life of the related contracts. For retrospective commission arrangements, we are paid annually based on the annual performance of the issuers’ product portfolio. For the majority of finance and insurance product sales, our performance obligation is to arrange for the provision of goods or services by another party. Our performance obligation is satisfied when this arrangement is made, which is when the finance and insurance product is delivered to the end-customer, generally at the time of the vehicle sale. As agent, we recognize revenue in the amount of any fee or commission to which we expect to be entitled, which is the net amount of consideration that we retain after paying the third-party provider the consideration received in exchange for the goods or services to be fulfilled by that party.

The retrospective commission we earn on each product sold is a form of variable consideration that is subject to constraint due to it being highly susceptible to factors outside our influence and control. Our agreements with the third-party administrators generally provide for an annual retrospective commission payout based on the product portfolio performance for that year. We estimate variable consideration related to retrospective commissions and perform a constraint analysis using the expected value method based on the historical performance of the product portfolios and current trends to estimate the amount of retrospective commissions to which we expect we will be entitled. At each reporting period, we reassess our expectations about the amount of retrospective commission variable consideration to which we expect to be entitled and recognize revenue when we no longer believe a significant revenue reversal is probable.

Additionally, we may be charged back for commissions related to finance and insurance products in the event of early termination, default, or prepayment of the contracts by end-customers (“chargebacks”). An estimated refund liability for chargebacks against the revenue recognized from sales of finance and insurance products is recorded in the period in which the related revenue is recognized and is based primarily on our historical chargeback experience. We update our measurement of the chargeback liability at each reporting date for changes in expectations about the amount of chargebacks. See Note 11 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for more information regarding chargeback liabilities.

We also sell a vehicle maintenance program (the Vehicle Care Program or “VCP”) where we act as the principal in the sale since we have the primary responsibility to provide the specified services to the customer under the VCP contract. When a VCP product is sold in conjunction with the sale of a vehicle to the same customer, the stand-alone selling prices of each product are based on observable selling prices. Under a VCP contract, a customer purchases a specific number of maintenance services to be redeemed at an AutoNation location over a five-year term from the date of purchase. We satisfy our performance obligations and recognize revenue as maintenance services are rendered, since the customer benefits when we have completed the maintenance service. Although payment is due from the customer at the time of sale and services are rendered at points in time during a five-year contract term, these contracts do not contain a significant financing component as the transfer of services is at the discretion of the customer. The following table includes estimated revenue expected to be recognized in the future related to VCP performance obligations that are unsatisfied (or partially unsatisfied) at the end of the reporting period.

	Revenue Expected to Be Recognized by Period
	Total		Next 12 Months		13 - 36 Months		37 - 60 Months
Revenue expected to be recognized on VCP contracts sold as of period end	$	101.4	$	34.8	$	48.6	$	18.0

We also recognize revenue, net of estimated chargebacks, for commissions earned by us for the transfer of financial assets when we arrange installment loans and leases with third-party lenders in connection with customer vehicle purchases.

Other Revenue

The majority of our other revenue is generated from the sale of vehicles to fleet/rental car companies that are specifically ordered for such companies (“fleet” sales). Revenue recognition for fleet sales is very similar to the recognition of revenue for new vehicles, described above.

Contract Assets and Liabilities

When the timing of our provision of goods or services is different from the timing of payments made by our customers, we recognize either a contract asset (performance precedes contractual due date) or a contract liability (customer payment precedes performance). Contract assets primarily relate to our right to consideration for work in process not yet billed at the reporting date associated with automotive repair and maintenance services, as well as our estimate of variable consideration that has been included in the transaction price for certain finance and insurance products (retrospective commissions). These contract assets are reclassified to receivables when the right to consideration becomes unconditional. Contract liabilities primarily relate to upfront payments received from customers for the sale of VCP contracts.

Our receivables from contracts with customers are included in Receivables, net, our current contract asset is included with Other Current Assets, our long-term contract asset is included with Other Assets, our current contract liability is included with Other Current Liabilities, and our long-term contract liability is included with Other Liabilities in our Consolidated Balance Sheets.

The following table provides the balances at December 31 of our receivables from contracts with customers and our current and long-term contract assets and contract liabilities:

	2022		2021		2020
Receivables from contracts with customers, net	$	634.5	$	539.9	$	595.0
Contract Asset (Current)	$	27.7	$	30.4	$	25.7
Contract Asset (Long-Term)	$	8.6	$	14.2	$	10.2
Contract Liability (Current)	$	41.8	$	33.6	$	32.5
Contract Liability (Long-Term)	$	66.6	$	60.5	$	56.0

The change in the balances of our contract assets and contract liabilities primarily result from the timing differences between our performance and the customer’s payment, as well as changes in the estimated transaction price related to variable consideration that was constrained for performance obligations satisfied in previous periods. The following table presents revenue recognized during the year from amounts included in the contract liability balance at the beginning of the period and performance obligations satisfied in previous periods:

	2022		2021		2020
Amounts included in contract liability at the beginning of the period	$	33.6	$	32.1	$	31.0
Performance obligations satisfied in previous periods	$	2.1	$	19.4	$	19.0

Other significant changes include contract assets reclassified to receivables of $30.5 million during 2022 and $25.0 million in 2021.

Contract Costs

For sales commissions incurred related to sales of vehicles and sales of finance and insurance products for which we act as agent, we have elected as a practical expedient to not capitalize the incremental costs to obtain those contracts since they are point-of-sale transactions and the amortization period would be immediate.

Sales commissions and third-party administrator fees incurred related to sales of VCP products are capitalized since these payments are directly related to sales achieved during a time period and would not have been incurred if the contract had not been obtained. Since the capitalized costs are related to services that are transferred during a five-year contract term, we amortize the assets over the contract term of five years consistent with the pattern of transfer of the service to which the assets relate. We had capitalized costs incurred to obtain or fulfill a VCP contract with a customer of $10.1 million as of December 31, 2022 and $9.4 million at December 31, 2021. We amortized $3.8 million and $3.8 million of these capitalized costs during 2022 and 2021, respectively.