EVs remain expensive to repair, although the gap is narrow compared to more recent ice models with similar complexity
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- According to Mitchell, the United States has recorded 38% additional complaints for electric vehicles in 2024 compared to 2023.
- On average, electric vehicles are more expensive to repair compared to ice, hybrids and PHEVs.
- Tesla models have represented more than 71% of total allegations of repairable electric vehicles throughout 2024.
While electric vehicles continue to gain ground on American roads, their accident demands are increasing with them. According to the supplier of collision management software, Mitchell, the United States has recorded 38% additional complaints for electric battery vehicles (BEV) in 2024 compared to 2023. This wave is not exactly shocking, given the growing popularity of fully electric cars. However, this underlines how much expensive these vehicles are to repair.
Growing EV collision complaints
The study revealed that electric vehicles represented 2.71% of all complaints in the United States in 2024, marking an increase of 38% compared to the previous year. In Canada, the percentage was slightly higher at 3.84%, reflecting a jump of 34% from one year to the next. These figures are another indication of the rapid growth in the adoption of electric vehicles across North America.
Plus: electric vehicles cost 20% more to repair after collisions than ice cars
In fact, according to the Argonne National Laboratory and Electric Automy, there are more than 100 different EV models sold in the United States and 75 in Canada, with dozens of other expected by the end of this year. It is clear that electric cars are there to stay, and they crash as often as their gourmet counterparts.
In terms of total loss frequency, electric vehicles increased 8% in 2023 to 10.2% in 2024. Mitchell Note that this 2% increase in radiation was consistent in all vehicle motorcycle groups in America, mainly due to a peak in catastrophic claims during the second half of 2024.
Tesla leads the complaint frequency pack
Unsurprisingly, the Tesla models dominate the statistics of the complaint EV. Model Y and model 3 have exceeded graphics in the United States, with complaint frequencies of 31.43% and 29.86% respectively. Together, these two models represented more than 60% of complaints for repairable electric vehicles damaged by collision in 2024.
When you take into account the S model (5.53%) and the X model (4.58%), Tesla’s share of the total rise of 71.4%. The only non-tesla Bev to break the first five was the Ford Mustang Mach-E, which saw a complaint frequency of 6.37%.
More: guess how much it costs to repair this R1T Rivian?
Tesla’s domination is not surprising, given the volume of the YS model and model 3 on the road. The more cars, the greater the probability of accidents and Tesla has more than its fair share of both.
What about repair costs?
Mitchell’s study also revealed the average repair costs of vehicles damaged by collision in 2024, highlighting the striking difference between electric vehicles and traditional internal combustion engines. Electric cars have proven to be the most expensive to repair, with an average severity of $ 6,236 in the United States, marking a decrease of 3% compared to 2023. For reference, ICE vehicles came to an average $ 5,066.
However, when we only look at new ice models ($ 6,127), their repair costs are starting to compete with those of electric cars. This is due to the increased complexity of more recent ice cars, which results in higher repair costs.
Average repair costs (2024)
There are, of course, aberrant values. Take Rivian, for example, where owners have frequently expressed the frustration of absurdly high repair costs for relatively minor damage – a subject that we have seen more than once on these pages.
More: quality and service nightmares from Rivian owner expose the pain of being a “beta tester”
Mitchell also stressed that EV values have decreased more quickly than other types of powertrain. This drop in value is linked to factors such as reduction in manufacturing costs, the age of these vehicles and consumer concerns about batteries, especially in the models used. Consequently, the average total market value of losses for electric vehicles fell considerably in 2024, falling to $ 33,346 in the United States (-22%) and $ 40,203 in Canada (-18.5%).
