CCC Crash Course Report examines how the increasing age of vehicles and vehicle complexity are driving higher collision repair costs and total loss trends.
CCC Intelligent Solutions (NASDAQ: CCCS) today released its latest Crash Course report that highlights changes in the U.S. vehicle landscape and their effects on auto claims and collision repair. The Crash Course Q1 2025 Report identifies several converging trends reshaping the industry.
“Today’s U.S. vehicle fleet — referred to in the report as the ‘car parc’ — is undergoing a transformation that’s anything but cyclical,” said Kyle Krumlauf, director of industry analytics at CCC and co-author of Crash Course. “We’re seeing the convergence of several structural shifts including longer vehicle life, increasingly complex and tech-driven repairs, cost inflation, changing ownership models and rising consumer expectations. It’s this intersection — not any single trend — that marks a true inflection point for the auto claims and repair economy.”
The report reveals vehicles on U.S. roads now average 12.7 years old, expected to reach 13 years by 2026. Vehicles aged 7 years or older represent an increasing share of repairs, up 9 percentage points since 2019. This trend stems from high vehicle costs, interest rates, and supply constraints.
Electric and hybrid vehicles present unique repair challenges. EVs require nearly 4 more labor hours per repair than internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, with 30 percent higher labor costs. While EVs average fewer parts replacements (22 versus 16 for ICE vehicles), these parts are typically more expensive. Hybrid vehicles currently have the highest parts costs overall.
Labor rates continued to be a driver of year-over-year repair cost increases. The 4.5% average increase in 2024 reflects a slowing rate of increase compared to the 7.5% year-over-year increase in 2023.
Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) contribute to rising repair complexity and expenses. Hybrids show the highest calibration frequency and cost, with features like automatic emergency braking and blind spot monitoring now present in over half of all vehicles.
Total loss frequency remains high, with over 70 percent of total loss valuations in 2024 involving vehicles seven years or older. This trend is driven by used vehicle depreciation and growing repair costs, especially for EVs and ADAS-equipped vehicles.