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Statistics

Diminished value and total loss statistics

Police reported an estimated 6,180,241 crashes in the U.S. in 2024, and 4,467,244 of them (72.3%) damaged property without injuring anyone, according to NHTSA. In CCC Intelligent Solutions’ claims data, 23.5% of auto claims were total losses through the second quarter of 2026, a new high. From October 2020 to October 2026, repair prices rose 52.8% and used car prices 17.1%.

By Autoloss · Published · Data: NHTSA, CCC, BLS, NOAA and Oregon DFR, as listed with each figure

We found no government source that publishes a national figure for diminished value, the value a car loses because it has been damaged and repaired. This page collects the public figures that bear on diminished value and total loss claims, each with its period and source. We checked every figure against a second copy of its source, and the check is listed with it.

Key numbers

  • 4,467,244

    Property-damage-only crashes reported to police in 2024, 72.3% of all police-reported crashes

    NHTSA, Overview of Motor Vehicle Traffic Crashes in 2024

  • 23.5%

    Share of auto claims that were total losses through the second quarter of 2026, a new high in CCC’s data

    CCC Intelligent Solutions, Crash Course 2026 Mid-Year Update

  • +52.8%

    Motor vehicle repair prices, October 2020 to October 2026, against +17.1% for used cars and trucks

    BLS Consumer Price Index

  • 70,903

    Reports of hail 1 inch or larger in the U.S., 2016 to 2025

    NOAA NCEI, Storm Events Database

Crashes and property damage

NHTSA estimates police-reported crashes each year from a national sample of police crash reports (its Crash Report Sampling System) and counts fatal crashes in full. Crashes that are never reported to police are not included.

Total losses

CCC Intelligent Solutions, a claims software company, reports the share of auto claims in its data that end in a total loss. These are CCC’s figures, quoted as published. Our study of repair costs vs car values explains why the share has been rising.

Repair costs and car values

From the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index. An insurer totals a car when repair costs too much next to the car’s value, so these two prices pull in opposite directions. Details in repair costs vs car values since 2020.

Hail

From NOAA’s Storm Events Database. One inch, about the size of a quarter, is the size the National Weather Service treats as severe. See hail reports by state and county for every state and the counties hit most often.

  • 70,903Reports of hail 1 inch or larger in the 50 states and D.C. 2016 to 2025.

    Source: NOAA NCEI, Storm Events Database. Checked: Recounted from NOAA’s Storm Events search service.

  • 11,063Reports of hail 1 inch or larger in Texas, the most of any state. 2016 to 2025.

    Source: NOAA NCEI, Storm Events Database. Checked: Recounted from NOAA’s Storm Events search service.

  • 60.3%Share of those hail reports that fell in April, May or June. 2016 to 2025.

    Source: NOAA NCEI, Storm Events Database. Checked: Recounted from NOAA’s Storm Events search service.

Insurance complaints

From the Oregon Division of Financial Regulation’s yearly complaint report for auto insurers. See Oregon auto insurance complaints for every company with 10 or more complaints.

What these numbers mean for a claim

  • Most police-reported crashes damage property and injure no one. A car that has been damaged and repaired can be worth less than one that has not. Whether that loss can be claimed depends on who was at fault, your state and your policy; see diminished value claims.
  • More claims end in a total loss. When repair costs rise faster than car values, more damaged cars cross the line where an insurer totals them. If that happens, the settlement turns on what the car was worth before the crash; see total loss claims.
  • Hail claims run through your own policy. Hail damage is usually a comprehensive claim, and many policies do not pay for lost value; see hail damage and diminished value.

Method and limits

NHTSA figures are from Table 2 of its Research Note “Overview of Motor Vehicle Traffic Crashes in 2024” (DOT HS 813 791, April 2026). NHTSA defines property-damage-only crashes as those “in which there were no injuries to involved occupants or nonoccupants.” Crash counts other than fatal crashes are estimates from a sample, and NHTSA notes that the changes from 2023 to 2024 were not statistically significant. We checked them against NHTSA’s CRSS 2024 crash data file, where the crash weights add up to the same totals. The 2024 fatal count is from NHTSA’s Annual Report File and can be revised in its final file.

The other figures come from our own studies, which list their full method and limits, and were checked as noted next to each one. Oregon’s complaint comparison tool is updated nightly, so on the day we checked, its statewide total differed from the published report by one complaint. CCC’s figures cover the claims in CCC’s data, not every claim in the country.

Sources

Cite this study

Autoloss, “Diminished value and total loss statistics,” November 12, 2026, https://autoloss.com/research/diminished-value-total-loss-statistics/. Data: NHTSA; CCC Intelligent Solutions; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; NOAA NCEI; Oregon Division of Financial Regulation.

Download the data (CSV). Free to use with credit to Autoloss and a link to this page (CC BY 4.0).

Spotted an error? Tell us and we will correct it and note the change on this page.

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