Collision repair shops are waiting longer for parts, insurers are writing off more vehicles and drivers are increasingly choosing to “keep the dent and pay the rent” instead of filing smaller claims, according to PartsTrader’s newly released Spring 2026 Collision Industry Trends Report.
The report paints a collision repair market under pressure from rising OEM parts prices, weather-related supply disruptions, tariffs and increasingly expensive vehicle technology.
In the report, Greg Horn, chief industry relations officer at PartsTrader (pictured) wrote that new OEM parts are experiencing the highest inflation among all major collision part categories. “New OEM and recycled parts have seen the largest increases in cost.”
According to the report, new OEM parts posted a 4.3% inflation rate following the implementation of tariffs in 2025, while aftermarket inflation remained below 1% for much of the period.
Horn wrote that approximately 44% of OEM collision parts are manufactured outside the U.S., exposing them to tariff-related pricing pressure.
Recycled parts prices are also rising sharply because they are often priced relative to OEM list prices. “Recycled parts have seen nearly identical inflationary rates,” Horn wrote.
The report also found delivery times remain elevated across the collision supply chain. Median delivery times for all part categories reached 7.4 days in January before easing slightly to 7.1 days in February following severe winter storms across parts of the U.S.
OEM parts showed the longest delays at 9 delivery days in January and 8.7 days in February. Aftermarket parts averaged roughly 3 days, including 3.1 days in January and 2.9 days in March.
The report also examined what repairers quoted compared with what they ultimately purchased through the PartsTrader marketplace. OEM parts represented 52.15% of purchased parts, or 18,280 parts. Aftermarket parts accounted for 20.93%, or 7,337 parts, while price-matched parts represented 18.52%, or 6,493 parts. Recycled parts accounted for 6.8%, or 2,382 parts.
Horn argued that rising repair costs, expensive ADAS calibrations and insurer severity pressures are combining to push more damaged vehicles toward total loss status instead of repair.
The report estimated U.S. new vehicle sales reached nearly 16.3 million units in 2025, bringing more ADAS-equipped vehicles into the market each year. Horn also predicted claims volume could soften in 2026 as higher premiums and deductibles discourage consumers from submitting smaller claims.
“Customer-pay jobs did increase in 2025 and will likely continue to increase in 2026,” Horn wrote.
