In case you missed it in our November/December issue, here's a description of how the UK is dealing with the proliferation of emerging Chinese brands to ensure safe repairs.
Behind record sales, many Chinese brands face a quiet crisis of long repair delays, and insurer frustration. Dean Lander from Thatcham Research discusses how Vehicle Risk Rating has helped in the UK.
As Chinese car manufacturers surge in the Australasian market, issues with repair readiness and parts supply risk undermining their early success. Thatcham Research’s Vehicle Risk Rating (VRR) framework demonstrates how close collaboration between manufacturers, insurers and repairers can build trust, reduce repair delays, and strengthen market confidence.
Chinese brands have achieved remarkable sales growth across Australia and New Zealand by combining competitive pricing, advanced features, and modern design. However, behind the sales success lies a persistent problem: the aftermarket isn’t ready to support these vehicles.
Repairers across Australasia report ongoing delays in parts supply. Vehicles sit idle in workshops awaiting components, occupying valuable floor space and disrupting workflow. For insurers, prolonged cycle times inflate claim costs and frustrate customers. For vehicle owners, waiting months for repairs erodes confidence in the brand.
Repairable vehicles are being written off unnecessarily because replacement parts are unavailable or uneconomical. Headlight assemblies, bumpers, and electronic modules can represent such a large proportion of a vehicle’s market value that insurers are forced to declare total losses.
Missing ingredient
One major challenge is the lack of coordinated, data-driven intelligence about repair performance. Without solid data on repair costs, cycle times, and parts availability, it’s impossible for insurers and manufacturers to make informed decisions or anticipate emerging risks. Instead of proactive planning, the sector reacts to anecdotal issues. Insurers and repairers hear stories of supply delays, but without shared data, these remain isolated experiences rather than measurable industry trends.
Comprehensive data is vital for risk evaluation. Insurers need clear insights into repair cost distributions and timeframes to price policies accurately. Repairers require accessible OEM procedures and reliable technical support. Manufacturers need feedback about how design and supply chain decisions impact repairability in the real world.
A new framework
To address this, Thatcham Research developed the Vehicle Risk Rating (VRR) system – a comprehensive model assessing risk across five key categories: damage, repair, safety, security, and performance.
Safety examines both active and passive systems that protect occupants.
Security covers physical and digital protection from theft or tampering.
Damage is assessed through controlled low-speed crash testing.
Performance measures handling, acceleration and top speed.
Repair, the newest and most transformative category, evaluates the availability of parts, complexity of procedures, and accessibility of technical data.
This holistic framework provides clarity across the automotive ecosystem. Insurers can refine their risk assessments, manufacturers gain guidance on how design impacts repair outcomes, and repairers receive a structured understanding of vehicle-specific repairability.
XPENG G6
A recent partnership between Thatcham Research, XPENG’s UK distributor IM Group, and Steer Automotive Group illustrates how VRR drives practical improvement.
Using the VRR process, Thatcham conducted a low-speed impact test (15 km/h) on an XPENG G6 to assess repairability. Steer Automotive performed a complete repair, from vehicle damage assessment to final quality verification.
“We look at vehicle data and the aftermarket’s ability to repair it. As vehicles get more complex, this becomes harder. Early evaluation gives manufacturers time to resolve potential repair challenges before they affect customers,” said Thatcham’s Ben Townsend.
One issue identified during testing was the absence of hazard warning labels in the UK supply chain. Because the VRR flagged this early, IM Group was able to source the correct labels from China before repairs began, preventing delay and ensuring compliance.
Following the collaboration, XPENG agreed to publish its official repair methods on Thatcham’s escribe platform, giving subscribing repairers and insurers immediate access to approved procedures.
Repairability as a design principle
The VRR also influences how vehicles are designed. Traditionally, repairability was considered late in the development cycle, making changes expensive and impractical. Thatcham Research now works directly with manufacturers during early design stages through its consultancy program, ensuring that repair considerations are built in from the start.
A notable case involved a manufacturer that had welded a crash absorption component to the front subframe. Thatcham’s engineers identified that even minor impacts would require replacing the entire subframe. By redesigning it as a bolt-on component, the same crash performance was maintained while drastically reducing repair cost and complexity.
Such insights save manufacturers money, help insurers price risk more accurately, and give repairers a more practical product to work with.
Thatcham Research’s escribe platform now hosts approved repair procedures for a growing list of Chinese brands including MG, BYD, Chery, Omoda, Jaecoo, and XPENG. This success in the UK shows what can be achieved when manufacturers are proactive about sharing data. For the Australasian market, adapting similar frameworks would mean negotiating local licensing agreements and ensuring compliance with regional intellectual property law, but the benefits are clear.
In the Australasian market success requires collaboration on multiple fronts:
Manufacturers must commit to transparent data sharing, accessible repair procedures, and reliable parts logistics.
Insurers should partner with manufacturers early to align expectations around repair costs, timelines, and parts support.
Repairers need structured access to OEM data and training to maintain safety and efficiency.
Governments and regulators should enforce standards that protect consumers while supporting sustainable repair practices.
The UK’s experience shows that such collaboration works. In the absence of coordinated action, however, the consequences could be severe – rising write-offs, frustrated insurers, and eroded consumer trust. The Australasian market’s rapid EV adoption only amplifies these risks, as EV components are often more expensive and complex to replace.