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Market Analysis

Access comprehensive industry reports offering insights into trends, market dynamics, and forecasts that shape the collision repair industry's future.

Technician kneeling beside a damaged gray sedan, holding a red tablet while inspecting the front wheel well area. The car’s hood is open and its windshield is cracked.

Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Prices Up 5.8% as Auto Insurance Index Edges Up

Body work prices rose 6.0% over the year, and August body labor rates were 6.8% above year-ago levels.
Lisa McArdle
Wholesale Used-Vehicle Values Fall Below Year-Ago Levels for First Time in 2026

Wholesale Used-Vehicle Values Fall Below Year-Ago Levels for First Time in 2026

Cox Automotive cut its year-end Manheim index forecast to a 0.2% gain after third-quarter depreciation outpaced seasonal norms.
Lisa McArdle
A man in a black cap and blue work shirt leans over the open hood of a car, holding a tablet and tapping its screen, with garage equipment blurred in the background.

Insurer Group Ties Rising Repair Costs to ADAS, Parts, and Repair Data Access

APCIA white paper finds vehicle damage claim severity rose 42.3% since 2020 as claim frequency rose 1.
Lisa McArdle
Rear view of traffic on a multilane freeway on a sunny day, with a silver sedan at the left edge, a dark pickup truck with a mesh rear window guard, a gray SUV with a rear-mounted rack at the right, and a line of cars and a truck carrying stacked cages ahead, with trees, an overpass, and a green highway sign in the distance.

AAA: Newer Vehicles Logged 39% of U.S. Driving Trips in 2025 as Hybrid Share Grew

AAA Foundation survey data shows late-model vehicles gaining trip share for a second straight year.
Lisa McArdle
A technician in plaid shirt, blue overalls, and white gloves uses an orbital sander on a gray vehicle panel mounted on a stand in a repair shop.

Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Prices Up 5.2% Over the Year as Auto Insurance Index Falls 5.1%

The federal price index for auto insurance declined for a fourth straight month in August, while repair prices kept climbing.
Lisa McArdle
A view from a vehicle's driver's seat shows an instrument cluster reading "Autonomous Driving" as detection boxes outline surrounding vehicles on a highway.

Cox Automotive: Share of Consumers Owning Level 2 or 3 Vehicles Nearly Triples in a Decade

About a third of consumers now own a Level 2 or Level 3 vehicle, up from 12% in 2016.
Lisa McArdle
Blurred interior of a large vehicle repair garage with a high ceiling, overhead lights, and upper windows. A red SUV and a white vehicle sit on blue lifts at left, a gray pickup truck and several dark sedans are parked in a row across the shop floor, and an open bay door at right shows green trees outside.

Share of Dealerships With On-Site Body Shops Falls to 31.9% in First Half of 2026

Dealership body shop sales edged up to $3.94 billion while average sales per repair order climbed to $1,264.
Lisa McArdle
Woman's hand holding a charging plug inserted into the charging port of a dark gray car, with a blue glass office building in the background.

EVs Reach 2.6% of U.S. Vehicles on the Road as New Sales Trail Year-Ago Levels

Alliance data shows the EV fleet growing while Mitchell reports mild hybrid claims at a record share.
Lisa McArdle
CARSTAR Parent Driven Brands Approves $100 Million Stock Buyback, Sets New Debt Target

CARSTAR Parent Driven Brands Approves $100 Million Stock Buyback, Sets New Debt Target

Updated capital allocation plan follows the company's August rejection of an $18-per-share buyout bid from ADW Capital Management.
Lisa McArdle
A dark gray BMW sedan with a crushed, torn-open front end and a deployed airbag sits on a roadway, with a police vehicle parked behind it.

AAA: New Vehicle Ownership Costs Hit $12,863 as Affordability Pressure Reshapes Auto Claims

New AAA ownership-cost data lands as industry figures point to record total loss frequency and fewer small repairable claims.
Lisa McArdle

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