San Diego, California — December 13, 2016 — Mitchell has released its Industry Trends Report (ITR) for the fourth quarter of 2016. This edition features the Canadian Collision Summary, insight into Mitchell’s annual P&C Conference and total loss trends.
Mitchell’s P&C Conference took place in San Antonio, Texas. This year’s Conference provided executives the chance to discuss technology and social trends that are changing the way companies in the industry interact with one another and do business. Topics discussed include augmented reality and information security.
A special feature written by Nate Raskin, Senior Manager of APD Analytics, highlights total loss trends. One key indicator of the upward trend in market values is the price of wholesale used vehicles. A combination of factors including high employment levels and job stability has been contributing to higher used car retail values. While market changes are out of insurance companies’ control, there are steps insurers can take to better manage total loss accuracy, particularly as it relates to revision activity.
Looking to the Canadian numbers, the average paint and materials hourly rate rose to $36.19 per hour, compared to $35.33 per hour for the same period in 2015. OEM parts use in Q3 2016 increased slightly compared to Q3 2015. This increase was reflected in both remanufactured and recycled parts use, which both dropped in Q3 2016. Aftermarket part use, however, also showed an increase in Q3 2016, coming in at 14.63 percent of all parts.
