Will auto damage appraisers be replaced by AI?
Updated
Auto damage appraisers score 48 of 100 for AI exposure. The largest share of their task time, 55%, is work AI speeds up while they stay in charge. AI can take over 30% outright, and 15% stays with people.
- 30% AI can do it
- 55% AI helps
- 15% Needs a person
Moderate exposure
Higher than 70% of the 923 occupations we scored.
Task by task
We graded 7 tasks, listed here from most to least exposed. AI can do 2 of them today, speeds up 4 and leaves 1 to people.
| Task | AI exposure |
|---|---|
| Prepare insurance forms to indicate repair cost estimates and recommendations. Form filling from estimate data is routine document work. | 70% AI can do it |
| Estimate parts and labor to repair damage, using standard automotive labor and parts cost manuals and knowledge of automotive repair. Parts and labor lookup and totals are largely software driven. | 60% AI can do it |
| Determine salvage value on total-loss vehicle. Salvage valuation uses database pricing with some judgement on condition. | 50% AI helps |
| Evaluate practicality of repair as opposed to payment of market value of vehicle before accident. Compares repair cost to market value; judgement stays with appraiser. | 45% AI helps |
| Arrange to have damage appraised by another appraiser to resolve disagreement with shop on repair cost. Scheduling and correspondence can be drafted; the dispute is human. | 35% AI helps |
| Review repair cost estimates with automobile repair shop to secure agreement on cost of repairs. Negotiation with shop staff requires live human back and forth. | 25% AI helps |
| Examine damaged vehicle to determine extent of structural, body, mechanical, electrical, or interior damage. Physical inspection of the vehicle needs someone on site. | 12% Needs a person |
How auto damage appraisers compare
All occupations (923)
Business and financial operations (48)
Pay and outlook in the US
- Median pay
- $78,240 a year, May 2025
- People employed
- 11,560 in the US, May 2025
- Projected change in jobs
- -8.7% from 2024 to 2034
Skills to build
- Inspect vehicles on site for structural and hidden damage
- Use disassembler software to find hidden collision damage
- Negotiate line-item repair costs with shop estimators
- Hold I-CAR or ASE collision repair certification
- Check total-loss decisions against pre-accident market value in Excel
Safer roles nearby
5 related occupations with lower scores.
Questions about auto damage appraisers and AI
Will AI replace auto damage appraisers?
Partly. About 4 in 10 working hours go to tasks AI can already do, mostly preparing insurance forms and estimating parts and labor. What stays with people is the physical inspection of the vehicle and the cost talks with repair shops, which need someone on site and live back and forth.
Will AI replace auto damage appraisers?
Partly. About 4 in 10 working hours go to tasks AI can already do, mostly preparing insurance forms and estimating parts and labor. Forms are filled from estimate data, and parts and labor totals come from standard cost manuals, so software handles the lookup and arithmetic. What stays with people is the physical inspection of the vehicle and the cost talks with repair shops.
Which tasks stay human for auto damage appraisers?
Physical inspection of the damaged vehicle is the least exposed task, with exposure 12. Someone has to be on site to find structural, body, mechanical, electrical and interior damage. Negotiating repair costs with shop staff also stays human, with exposure 25, since it needs live back and forth between two people.
Which tasks stay human for auto damage appraisers?
Examining the damaged vehicle stays human, with exposure 12, because someone must be on site to find structural, body, mechanical, electrical and interior damage. Reviewing repair costs with shop staff also stays human, with exposure 25, since it needs live back and forth between two people. Together these tasks sit in the 15% of task weight that stays with people.
Related jobs
Next steps for auto damage appraisers
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