# Auto insurance rates are skyrocketing in part because repair costs are surging, because there aren’t enough mechanics **URL:** \ **Category:** General Discussion\ **Created:** [January 19, 2026, 9:51pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870 "2026-01-19T21:51:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Cavell](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/cavell/32/43396_2.png) [@Cavell](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Cavell)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2026, 2:41pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/41 "2026-01-22T14:41:29Z")
Auto body repair and mechanical breakdown are 2 different animals. My insurance don’t pay for new water pump. Even with carshield. ---
**Author:** ![davesmopar](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/davesmopar/32/41750_2.png) [@davesmopar](https://community.cartalk.com/u/davesmopar)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2026, 3:14pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/42 "2026-01-22T15:14:27Z")
> [@Cavell](#): > > Even with carshield. You have Carshield?? Is it any good/worth it?? just curious… ---
**Author:** ![Cavell](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/cavell/32/43396_2.png) [@Cavell](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Cavell)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2026, 3:19pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/43 "2026-01-22T15:19:25Z")
I keep getting ominous letters about the warranty on my car I sold 8 yrs ago. ---
**Author:** ![VDCdriver](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/vdcdriver/32/30_2.png) [@VDCdriver](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VDCdriver)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2026, 4:38pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/44 "2026-01-22T16:38:35Z")
![image](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/original/3X/5/7/57b15fdec963a8498e2bbf14f1bf9c0a2c8d84e9.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![LoudThunder](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/loudthunder/32/27769_2.png) [@LoudThunder](https://community.cartalk.com/u/LoudThunder)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2026, 5:27pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/45 "2026-01-22T17:27:16Z")
Every two or three weeks, for almost a year, I get a letter (in the mail…) warning me that the warranty on my 2021 Dodge Charger is about to run out. I have never had a Dodge Charger and the only new Dodge I ever bought new was in 2001, a Dodge Ram, other than that, the only other Dodge I ever owned was my '54 Dodge Meadowbrook bought used in 1965… Where is Liam when you need him? 🤣 ---
**Author:** ![davesmopar](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/davesmopar/32/41750_2.png) [@davesmopar](https://community.cartalk.com/u/davesmopar)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2026, 5:44pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/46 "2026-01-22T17:44:26Z")
For months when I 1st bought my truck (it was 10 months old with 12,130 miles on it) I was getting letters that my warranty was almost up, I thought yeah in dog years you idiots… 🤪 ---
**Author:** ![VDCdriver](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/vdcdriver/32/30_2.png) [@VDCdriver](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VDCdriver)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2026, 6:08pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/47 "2026-01-22T18:08:12Z")
I haven’t actually gotten one of those calls for quite a while, but the last time that I got one of those calls, I decided to torture the guy on the other end of the line for a couple of minutes. When he asked the make of my car, I told him that it was a “Rollscanhardly”. His response was, _Do you mean Rolls Royce?_, and my answer was… _No, it’s an old car that rolls down one hill, and it can hardly get up the next one._ He hung up on me. Imagine that! ---
**Author:** ![bing](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/bing/32/4619_2.png) [@bing](https://community.cartalk.com/u/bing)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2026, 6:18pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/48 "2026-01-22T18:18:49Z")
They quit calling me when I said thank heavens, my car just hit 500,000 miles and I’m desperate for a warranty. Click. Never heard from them again. They turned to daytime tv instead. So here’s my rule, never use a dentist that advertises on tv, or a lawyer, or a pain specialist, or a miracle drug. And don’t sell your house for cash unless you want to be homeless, and oh yeah read the fine print on that reverse mortgage document, ---
**Author:** ![weekend-warrior](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/weekend-warrior/32/26122_2.png) [@weekend-warrior](https://community.cartalk.com/u/weekend-warrior)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2026, 11:05pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/49 "2026-01-22T23:05:49Z")
A month ago, my 93-year-old mom got mail asking if she wanted to sell her car. My mom has not had a car for 40 years. about 8 years ago I found out she has been renewing her license all that time. I asked her why she was doing that? she said she wanted an ID card. I took her to motor vehicle to get a non-driver photo ID card. LOL ---
**Author:** ![ChrisTheTireWhisperer](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/christhetirewhisperer/32/34798_2.png) [@ChrisTheTireWhisperer](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ChrisTheTireWhisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2026, 4:57am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/54 "2026-01-23T04:57:07Z")
> [@LoudThunder](#): > > And President Donald Trump just signed an executive order on Tuesday > aiming to stop Wall Street investors from competing with individual homebuyers. > > I guess we’ll see where this goes… I was looking at apartment listings online for Waterbury in CT. Turns out one investor/mega-landlord owns half the rentls in that city. And they allow no pets. ---
**Author:** ![davesmopar](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/davesmopar/32/41750_2.png) [@davesmopar](https://community.cartalk.com/u/davesmopar)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2026, 2:02pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/55 "2026-01-23T14:02:28Z")
> [@bing](#): > > And don’t sell your house for cash unless you want to be homeless Genuinely curious about why you would be homeless if you sold your home for cash?? Yes I know they pay you 50K to 100K less than market value (roughly), I get offers all the time from investors on the 2 property’s, but how would it make you homeless?? Again, just genuinely curious… ---
**Author:** ![davesmopar](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/davesmopar/32/41750_2.png) [@davesmopar](https://community.cartalk.com/u/davesmopar)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2026, 2:12pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/56 "2026-01-23T14:12:31Z")
> [@ChrisTheTireWhisperer](#): > > And they allow no pets. As a pet owner, mainly big dogs and or Pitt Bulls, that would never work for us… As the son of a (small time) real estate broker and at times landlord, I have seen 1st hand what animals can do to a rental property, it can be VERY costly to repair a home between renters… So I can 100% respect a landlord not allowing pets… But again as a pet lover I pretty much plan on always having a pet around… ---
**Author:** ![MikeInNH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a587f6/32.png) [@MikeInNH](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MikeInNH)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2026, 3:24pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/57 "2026-01-23T15:24:53Z")
> [@bing](#): > > Yeah. A few years ago there was an investment firm buying up houses in Florida. It’s happening all over the country and still is happening. 23% of all home sales last year in the Boston area were by investors. It’s 18% nationwide. ---
**Author:** ![Julie-Lent-Managing-Editor](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/julie-lent-managing-editor/32/26447_2.png) [@Julie-Lent-Managing-Editor](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Julie-Lent-Managing-Editor)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2026, 4:14pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/58 "2026-01-23T16:14:33Z")
This is general reminder that bringing politics into the forum is unwise. Thanks for your understanding. ---
**Author:** ![MikeInNH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a587f6/32.png) [@MikeInNH](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MikeInNH)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2026, 5:44pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/59 "2026-01-23T17:44:54Z")
> [@LoudThunder](#): > > And President Donald Trump just signed an executive order on Tuesday aiming to stop Wall Street investors from competing with individual homebuyers. Most of the investors are NOT big Wall Street corporations. Most are smaller investors with all assets under $20 million. I know a group of investors. They’re a group of Engineers who pooled their money to buy real estate. They own several single-family homes and a couple of apartment buildings. 15 years ago, I owned 3 duplexes and a triple decker. Real Estate is a great investment. I never saw the money into buying single family homes though. ---
**Author:** ![LoudThunder](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/loudthunder/32/27769_2.png) [@LoudThunder](https://community.cartalk.com/u/LoudThunder)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2026, 7:59pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/60 "2026-01-23T19:59:45Z")
> [@MikeInNH](#): > > Most of the investors are NOT big Wall Street corporations. Most are smaller investors with all assets under $20 million. One of the loopholes I mentioned, where their Net Value does not meet the $100 million threshold… Your engineer friends are merely taking advantage of the threshold for the investment opportunity… But I would not put it past the “Large Investors” to create a gaggle of small subsidiaries, shell companies, or ■■■■■ corporations to get around the threshold… ---
**Author:** ![sophiasmithastri\_196134](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/sophiasmithastri_196134/32/46620_2.png) [@sophiasmithastri\_196134](https://community.cartalk.com/u/sophiasmithastri_196134)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2026, 3:07pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/61 "2026-01-24T15:07:20Z")
My renewal jumped a lot this year, and my agent blamed parts delays and higher labor rates. I also noticed body shops booking weeks out, so even small claims take longer and cost more. I raised my deductible and kept collision only on my newer car. It lowered the hit a bit. ---
**Author:** ![jtsanders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c2a13f/32.png) [@jtsanders](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jtsanders)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2026, 6:41pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/62 "2026-01-24T18:41:53Z")
Every little bit helps lower insurance costs. Welcome to the forum. Stop back, we’d like to hear from you again. ---
**Author:** ![bing](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/bing/32/4619_2.png) [@bing](https://community.cartalk.com/u/bing)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2026, 7:16pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/63 "2026-01-24T19:16:58Z")
I had very slight increases in my insurance from State Farm. But we are retired, hav3 all insurance with them and are in a small city. Plus being a mutual company, profits and losses are shared. ### Heading ---
**Author:** ![VDCdriver](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/vdcdriver/32/30_2.png) [@VDCdriver](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VDCdriver)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2026, 7:30pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870/64 "2026-01-24T19:30:54Z")
> [@bing](#): > > I had very slight increases in my insurance from State Farm. But we are retired, hav3 all insurance with them and are in a small city. Plus being a mutual company, profits and losses are shared. Ditto My premium increases were below the rate increases that were talked about in the news media, and because my company is also a mutual insurance company, I get annual rebates from them. [Previous page](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870.md?page=2) [Next page](https://community.cartalk.com/t/auto-insurance-rates-are-skyrocketing-in-part-because-repair-costs-are-surging-because-there-aren-t-enough-mechanics/204870.md?page=4)