Parts shortage and high prices drive up insurance payouts in Arkhangelsk

The average insurance company payout for a car accident has grown from 72,000 rubles in 2022 to 101,000 rubles (about $1,100 at current rates) — an increase of nearly 1.5 times. Behind these figures lies not just inflation, but the collapse of the spare parts market. As a result, getting a car repaired under compulsory motor third-party liability insurance (CMTPL, known in Russia as OSAGO) is just as difficult as it was three years ago: official insurer rates are far from reality, deliveries are unpredictable, and prices for original parts still cause shock. Fixing this systemic failure in the near future seems unlikely: a bill that would allow car owners to receive an additional payment if the insurance payout is insufficient for repairs has been stalled without progress.

In the more than three years the car market has endured since the departure of Western brands, the initial frenzy has largely subsided. Some, open to new experiences, have switched to Chinese cars; others, who remained loyal to Western brands, have mastered parallel import markets; and a third group, who preferred the «bird in the hand», are still driving their old cars.

The situation with the spare parts market is different. It«s not easy even with Chinese brands, despite the fact that several Chinese manufacturers have been successfully assembling cars in Russia for years now. For the brands that have become top sellers, »everything is quite good,« experts say. But with one caveat:

«There are still some items for which you have to wait up to three months for delivery. Parts for »European« and even »American« cars are also imported, but the wait is 1-1.5 months,» said Alexey Podshchekoldin, President of the Russian Public Association of Motorists (ROAD), in response to a question from Fontanka at a conference on the results of 2025.

The only nuance the expert left uncommented was the change in the cost of these very spare parts. And Fontanka even knows why: there are still no established prices on the spare parts market. Just as there are no trusted, verified suppliers.

«Component manufacturers do not want to enter a low market,» Podshchekoldin said with a shrug.

The Russian Union of Motor Insurers« Average

Therefore, spare parts for cars (if they are not from dealerships) are brought into Russia from anywhere they can be found across the vast expanses of the world, primarily China. The quality of the imported goods is so varied that it is difficult to figure it out on your own, and the cost of original parts makes car owners« hearts skip a beat. Insurers have it a bit easier in this regard — they have long been entering parts into their guides for calculating accident damage under OSAGO at average market prices, although even those have to be regularly indexed. However, they remain far from the real market.

In the past year, 2025, these very guides were updated twice. First on 19 September, with prices changing by an average of 0.2%, as noted by the Russian Union of Motor Insurers (RSA). A second adjustment followed on 19 December after a public review of the updated data and refinements. As noted by the RSA, compared to the previous version, prices increased by an average of 1%. Moreover, they emphasized, parts for Nissan, Renault, and Chevrolet rose in price by 4.5-6.6%; Toyota, Mercedes, and KIA are «within the general trend,» where the increase does not exceed 1.4%. Prices for parts for Chinese cars, however, continue to fall, with «the record holder being the Geely brand — a drop of more than 10%,» wrote the insurers.

The RSA explained to Fontanka that average prices for spare parts for Chinese cars overall decreased by 2.4% in the second half of 2025.

«The price decrease is caused by a saturation of the spare parts market for those brands that are just entering the domestic market and are already taking a noticeable place in it,» the association noted.

They also clarified that for the most popular and frequently repaired brands, where demand is consistently high, «parts suppliers have no reason to lower prices.» However, for the average car owner who gets into an accident, this «average drop» of 10% is unlikely to be noticeable. And here«s why.

Original Parts as a Luxury

Fontanka has been looking at spare parts prices for several years now. This time, we checked the base cost entered into the guides for a hood, driver«s airbag, front bumper, and front headlight (in short, the parts most likely to be damaged in a typical accident) for a Mercedes, a Belgee X70, and a Chery Tiggo.

It«s worth noting that in the case of Mercedes, prices did indeed fall, at least for the hood (by 26%, to 37,300 rubles, or about $400) and the bumper (by 41%, to 165,000 rubles, or about $1,800). Everything else in our »set« remained with the same price tags: the guide values the airbag at 150,000 rubles ($1,600), the headlight at 243,000 rubles ($2,600), and the radiator at 28,000 rubles ($300). Needless to say, market prices differ from the base prices in the guide by an order of magnitude when it comes to original parts, and in some cases (like the radiator), even analogues significantly outpace the base price. However, Russian motorists are eyeing original parts less and less often: few can afford them, and such parts are only significant while the warranty is valid.

It«s not all straightforward with parts for the Chery Tiggo either: three items from our list did become cheaper (the bumper and radiator by 9%, and the hood by a whopping 34%), but the airbag and front headlight became more expensive (by 1% and 8% respectively). As with the »German« car, original parts for the »Chinese« car will cost from 2 to 4 times more. As will replacements (like the bumper).

Under the Magnifying Glass: Where«s the Promised Drop?

As for the record holder for price reduction, Geely, things didn«t quite add up from the start. Let»s clarify that we looked at parts for its Belarusian sibling, Belgee, but their part numbers in the guides completely match the Chinese ones.

So, no matter which component we took, we consistently found an increase in the base cost: the hood added 9%, the radiator 13%, and the headlight a full 33%. So where is the announced reduction? We won«t even talk about the market price — from the insurers» perspective, the market doesn«t look at the world.

Separately, we note that over the past year, some parts on the market have also noticeably increased in price. For example, the (original) hood and radiator for a Mercedes rose by 170% and 31% respectively, while the airbag and bumper became cheaper by 68% and 37%. For the Chery Tiggo, more items from our set became more expensive: the radiator went up by 9%, the hood by 17%, the bumper by 23%, and the airbag «grew» by 251%. Recall that Chery, under the Tenet brand, has been assembled at the plant in Kaluga for almost a year by AGR, and it would seem airbags should be plentiful and cheap, but no.

Money Instead of Repairs

Representatives of auto service stations confirm price pressure but link it not to market hype but to tax changes.

«In wholesale, everything is roughly unchanged, we expect a change in the exchange rate next year, that»s the only thing that can seriously affect prices for now. The retail level is already experiencing pressure from a 2% VAT passed on by wholesalers. For those who still work under the simplified tax system (STS), the minimum mandatory price increase is 7%, and for those who switched to the automated simplified system (AUSS), it«s another +2% (totaling 9%). The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) announced it is looking for those responsible for the price increases,» market players shared.

In fact, even insurers understand that assessing parts based on guides is far from the real state of affairs, and the payout amount is usually insufficient for the complete restoration of a wrecked car. Probably for this very reason, they don«t object, and for years now, have been compensating part of the accident damage to clients in cash, rather than through repairs. Thus, in the first 11 months of 2025, according to RSA data, 1.65 million cases were settled with cash payments, while only 103,700 (6.3%) were settled »in-kind« with repairs. In monetary terms, the ratio is as follows: 190.9 billion rubles ($2.1 billion) in cash versus 13.4 billion rubles ($145 million) in repairs (25%).

It is noteworthy that the average insurance payout amount is also increasing year by year. For the first 11 months of 2025, the average OSAGO payout amounted to 115,600 rubles ($1,250); for the same period in 2024, it barely exceeded 100,000 rubles. Compared to 2022, the average payout amount has grown (from 77,200 rubles) by 1.5 times. In 2025, insurers even discussed legally enshrining an amendment that would allow a car owner to receive an additional payment from the insurance company for repairs if the OSAGO payout does not cover it. However, for now, this initiative remains just a draft.

On the Brink of Reform

However, in response to a request from Fontanka, the RSA outlined a possible way out of this deadlock. The association stated that it expects to carry out a reform of the OSAGO compensation system as early as 2026. The essence is to make in-kind repair the priority, but flexible: if the insurance company finds a service station willing to do the work within the legal timeframes, the car will be sent there. If no such station is found, the car owner will first receive a cash payment (minus depreciation), organize the repair themselves, and then, by confirming its cost with documents, will be able to receive an additional payment from the insurer for that same depreciation.

«This is the strategic topic that will affect OSAGO in 2026,» emphasized the RSA. «It will make the in-kind compensation system convenient for citizens and limit the fraud associated precisely with cash payments.»

As conceived, the funds saved on fighting fraudsters will go towards compensating car owners. Thus, the regulator sees in the reform a chance not only to increase the convenience of the system but also to restore its financial stability.

It seems 2026 could become a turning point for millions of car owners. However, the success of the reform will directly depend on whether the market can provide predictable prices and deliveries. For now, it remains the weak link in this chain.

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