The Yearly Cost Of Auto Collision Repair In The United States

Posted on: 25 November 2015

In 2014, the United States National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) released a study that estimated the total cost of auto collision accidents and the resulting aftermath to be in excess of $1 trillion. The average auto liability claim costs around $3,232 to repair or replace property; the average cost to cover bodily injury is around $15,443. For collision claims, the average cost is around $3,144, while the avery comprehensive claim costs around $1,621. Insurance companies pick up the tab for about 50% of these costs, and individual parties cover about 26% of these costs. The rest are covered by federal, state and local entities, hospitals and other individuals. 

Vehicle Repair and Property Damage

A recent study by the United States Department of Transportation (DOT) breaks down the $1 trillion yearly cost of auto crashes into categories. The cost spent yearly on vehicle repair as a result of auto crashes is around $76 billion. Another $28 billion is the cost of congestion, added pollutants and other issues related to congestion and traffic resulting from auto crashes.

Personal Injury

In 2013 alone, 2.31 million people were injured in automobile crashes. This resulted in hefty payouts for insurance companies, individuals and government entities. The monetary cost of these injuries was $23 billion in medical costs alone. The cost of lost household productivity and lost productivity for employers was around $77 billion. A personal injury involves emergency medical care as well as follow-on care, such as outpatient visits, inpatient treatment, lengthy hospital stays, medications and physical therapy. There are also payouts for loss of income and other issues that an individual faces after a serious automobile accident. 

Death

There is no way to put a price on a life, so there is no accurate dollar figure for the cost of the lives lost. However, the same study shows that nearly 33,000 people lost their lives in automobile collisions in 2013. Each individual death costs about $1.4 million in payouts, whether paid by insurance companies, corporations, municipalities or private parties, such as uninsured motorists and those who take a life in the commission of a criminal act. While this amount cannot replace the lives lost, the fund help the family members left behind to be able to survive after the loss of income from losing a family member. While the number of fatalities is dropping, due to several factors, the cost to the economy and those left behind is enormous. 

For miore information on collision repair, talk to a professional like Fox And Fox.

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