- Insurance coverage claims recommend EVs are in various kinds of lower-speed crashes
- EVs usually tend to be rear-ended, much less prone to have front-end harm
- Combustion automobiles and EVs are full-loss totaled at about the identical charge
EVs are extra usually concerned in numerous sorts of collisions than internal-combustion vehicles, information from Mitchell Worldwide present, with one-pedal driving programs probably contributing to this.
Mitchell, which gives tech for the auto insurance coverage and collision restore industries, has beforehand reported that EV collision restore prices are larger than these for gasoline automobiles. Now the corporate is delving into the varieties of fender-benders EVs are usually concerned in versus internal-combustion vehicles.
In a press launch revealed Wednesday, the corporate mentioned its information exhibits that EVs usually tend to maintain rear-end harm than internal-combustion automobiles, with these collisions accounting for 35.9% of EV collisions and 27.5% of internal-combustion car collisions, respectively. Combustion vehicles have a better frequency of front-end collisions, at 31.5%, in comparison with 25.8% for EVs.
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Mitchell believes that is possible down to 2 fundamental elements. One is that EVs are usually newer, that means they’re extra prone to have the newest front-collision avoidance tech. The corporate additionally cited the “totally different braking dynamics” of EVs in one-pedal mode, which might trigger extra speedy deceleration that drivers in following vehicles aren’t ready for.
Whereas collisions involving a front-end impression are 40% costlier on common than these involving a rear-end impression, EVs nonetheless stay costlier to restore general, based on Mitchell. The corporate’s information exhibits that in Q3, insurance coverage claims for repairable automobiles within the U.S. averaged $5,560 for EVs, $5,229 for plug-in hybrids, $4,426 for delicate hybrids, and $4,741 for non-hybrid combustion automobiles.
That continues a development from Q2, when Mitchell discovered that EV collision-repair prices have been 20% larger than these for different automobiles. Excessive restore prices have been additionally among the many causes cited by Hertz for slowing its EV plans.
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The most recent report from Mitchell did present a touch about why this can be the case. Whereas about the identical proportion of components are repaired, BEV vs ICE, BEV repairs require 90% original-equipment producer (OEM) components, whereas ICE fashions require 64% OEM components. The remaining come from the aftermarket, possible at a decrease value than OEM components.
EVs and combustion automobiles are written off as a complete loss at about the identical charge—9.9% of all claims. The common market worth of EVs declared a complete loss is $32,718, pretty near the $31,070 common for 2021-or-newer combustion automobiles, which Mitchell judged to be most much like EVs in complexity and price to restore.
Excessive EV restore prices are well-documented, however we’re now additionally seeing hints that the totally different driving dynamics of EVs could play a task within the frequency of collisions. Along with Mitchell’s citing of one-pedal driving as a consider rear-end collisions, a report revealed final month discovered that EV drivers are extra prone to be at fault in crashes, and famous that drivers’ habits modified when switching to an EV.
