The way in which cars are designed should be changed to reduce repair costs faced by drivers and insurers, according to Thatcham Research.
The insurance industry-backed automotive research body has made the call alongside 18 similar organisations from around the world at the annual RCAR conference.
They argue that most repair costs paid out by insurers are caused by low-speed collisions, and that cooperation between insurers and manufacturers can reduce the frequency and cost of these claims.
Alongside the widespread deployment of autonomous emergency braking for low-speed manoeuvres, which they say could reduce claims by up to 15% worldwide, RCAR members say that crash performance and repairability should be systematically considered at an early stage of vehicle development. They say RCAR low-speed crash tests are an established standard for reducing damage in parking and rear-end collisions, and dedicated procedures have been developed to prevent EV battery damage.
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The organisations have also called for transparent repair information and standardised procedures, with repair-friendly vehicle design and the use of quality-assured recycled and aftermarket components meaning more parts can be repaired rather than replaced.
Vehicle repair payments rising
In the UK, £1.9 billion of the £2.9 billion paid out by vehicle insurers in the first quarter of 2026 was for vehicle repairs – a 3% quarterly increase – while the cost of the average damage claim rose by 8% to £3,699.
Jonathan Hewett, chief executive at Thatcham Research, said: “Most drivers will never be involved in a high-speed crash, but almost all of us will at some point have a scrape in a car park, a nudge at a junction or a clip on a roundabout.
“Those everyday incidents account for a very large share of what insurers pay out, and how much each one costs depends to a great extent on how the vehicle was designed.”
According to Thatcham Research, there is already evidence of manufacturers paying more attention to repairability, with research it commissioned, conducted by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), showing that 51% of UK-based vehicle manufacturers now reported repairability as a greater focus than traditional customer priorities such as performance, comfort and styling. It added that its own research showed new cars were sustaining less damage in low-speed crash testing.
Hewett said: “A car that is quicker and cheaper to repair is cheaper to insure and cheaper to own, and that is a competitive advantage for any manufacturer that gets it right.
“But there is a long way to go. Repair costs remain high and, while the average is moving in the right direction, the gap between the best and worst performers is still far too wide.
“When we replicate the same everyday low-speed RCAR collision in our test facility, one vehicle can take seven hours to repair while a comparable model needs 47. In another recent test, two family SUVs from the same market segment required vastly different levels of repair, with one needing 59 replacement parts following a low-speed RCAR impact and the other just 13.
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“We are also seeing increasing levels of hidden damage that may not be apparent without dismantling the vehicle, adding cost, complexity and uncertainty to insurance claims.
“These are exactly the kinds of challenges that greater collaboration and knowledge sharing through RCAR can help the industry address.”