Length of rental for auto collisions down slightly

Auto insurers and their customers will be relieved to know the average length of vehicle rentals for collision-related claims across Canada has decreased, albeit gradually, from the same time last year, according to new data.  

The overall length of rental (LOR) for auto collision claims in 2023 Q4 was 16.4 days — a 0.6-day drop from the year previous (2022 Q4), rental car company Enterprise reported.  

“While this drop is not negligible, it still represents a significantly higher Q4 LOR,” Enterprise wrote in its Canada Length of Rental report.  

“The LOR results for the fourth quarter demonstrate impacts from supply chain disruptions, parts delays, collision repair backlogs, and technician shortages, though the decrease is encouraging.” 

Province by province, Ontario had the highest LOR at 18.1 days, although this is down 1.4 days from the same time last year (19.5).  

Alberta follows with LOR at 17.1 days, which was a 1.4-day increase over the same time last year (15.7 in 2022 Q4).  

Newfoundland and Labrador is the only other province with an increased LOR at 15.2, which is up from 14.3 days the year previous. Prince Edward Island (PEI) had the lowest LOR at 13.9 days.  

Nova Scotia had the highest decline, down 1.9 days, followed by Quebec with a 1.6-day decline. 

Prudent to note, LOR results differ slightly based on whether the replacement rentals were for drivable versus non-drivable cars.  

For vehicles damaged to the point of being non-drivable, LOR across Canada was 30.9 days; the same as 2022 Q4. For damaged but drivable vehicles, LOR was 12.6 days in Q4 2023, a slight (0.2-day) increase from 2022 Q4. For both scenarios, Ontario tops as the longest wait for all provinces.  

When it comes to parts procurement, alternative parts utilization (APU) percentage rose to 27.7%, up from 24.8% the previous year (2022 Q4), according to Ryan Mandell, director of claims performance for Mitchell International, per the report.  

“We are also seeing a greater frequency of repair operations than in 2022 Q4 (24.6% compared to 23.0%), suggesting that potentially when parts are not available, shops are more likely to repair the part than wait for an extended period of time for a replacement to become available.” 

Feature image by iStock.com/dima_sidelnikov