Maturing EV fleet, rising sales help bring costs down, but trade tensions and tariffs threaten to reverse the trend

The cost gap between repairing electric vehicles and internal combustion engine (ICE)-powered cars in Canada has shrunk to its narrowest margin on record, according to new data from auto claims technology firm Mitchell.

The company’s study on the second quarter of 2026, called Plugged-In: EV Collision Insights, found the average repairable claim for a battery electric vehicle (BEV) in Canada came to $6,645, compared with $5,411 for an ICE vehicle — a difference of $1,234. 

That gap is the smallest Mitchell has recorded since it began tracking the metric and continues a steady narrowing over the past several quarters.

Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) cost $6,227 on average, while non-plug-in hybrids averaged $6,080.

Significant shift

The report says the shrinking premiums are a significant shift for the industry, as EVs generally have more complex systems than ICE vehicles and therefore have historically been more costly to repair. 

However, the report also cautions that trade tensions between Canada and the U.S. may reverse the trend given electric vehicles’ heavier reliance on manufacturer parts. 

The cost of U.S.-made parts could rise due to the ongoing tariff disputes. 

Mitchell found 84.74 per cent of parts on BEV repair estimates went toward OEM parts, compared with 61.44 per cent for ICE vehicles. Electric vehicles were also less likely to have damaged parts repaired rather than replaced outright: just 14.81 per cent of BEV parts were slated for repair, versus 16.6 per cent for ICE vehicles.

Diverging trends

Canada’s recent EV trends diverge from those south of the border. While BEV sales have softened in the U.S., Canada is moving in the opposite direction. New electric vehicle sales in Canada rose 21 per cent in the first four months of 2026 compared with the same period a year earlier, the report found. 

As a result, both BEVs and hybrids each accounted for more than five per cent of repairable claims in Canada last quarter, setting new highs. BEV claims volume climbed 12 per cent year-over-year, while hybrid claims jumped 28 per cent.

BEV repair claims in the U.S., however, have remained at 3.32 per cent since Q1 YEAR.

Regionally, British Columbia and Quebec posted the highest shares of BEV repairable claims among the North American markets Mitchell tracked, at 9.34 per cent and 9.19 per cent, respectively. 

This reflects those provinces’ higher rates of EV adoption.

Mitchell’s report is based on estimating data collected from collision repair shops and insurers across North America. The company said the findings point to a collision repair industry that will increasingly need to service a broader mix of electrified vehicles as hybrid and battery-electric models continue to gain ground on the road.