Car Insurance Policies and OEM vs. Aftermarket Parts

August 3, 2009

If you're involved in a car accident, you might be surprised that most car insurance policies call for the use of aftermarket parts to be used when making repairs to damaged vehicles. Aftermarket parts are made by companies other than the original vehicle manufacture. On the other hand, OEM parts are the parts produced by the actual vehicle manufacturer. The reason many insurance companies require the use of aftermarket parts is quite simple--they are much less expensive.

Issues with Aftermarket Parts

Many people complain that aftermarket parts are inferior in quality to OEM parts, and sometimes have issues with them being used in damaged car repairs. Most states now have laws that address aftermarket parts and whether they can be used in damaged vehicles or not. However the majority of states do allow insurance companies to specify use of aftermarket parts rather than OEM parts. Nevertheless, most states require that insurance company give you the option of using OEM parts--if you pay the cost difference.

In years past, there have been were many issues with aftermarket parts that were considered to be cheap Chinese replacement parts or parts manufactured in substandard plants or factories. However, many of today's aftermarket parts are equivalent in quality, and sometimes better, than OEM parts. Regardless, many people still do not like aftermarket parts to be used in their vehicles--especially, newer vehicles.

Better State Consumer Laws

Some states like New Hampshire require that insurance companies use OEM parts in certain vehicles. For example, insurance companies in New Hampshire must use OEM parts for damaged vehicles that are less than 2 years old or have less than 30,000 miles on the odometer.

West Virginia has by far the strictest laws regarding an insurance company's use of aftermarket parts. The West Virginia law states that insurance companies must use OEM parts for vehicles less than 3 years old--unless the consumer specifically agrees to the use of aftermarket parts in writing. You should always check your state's laws with regard to the use of aftermarket or OEM parts.

Convincing Your Insurer to Use OEM Parts

Although most insurers prefer to use aftermarket parts, you may be able to convince your insurer to pay for the use of OEM parts. There are some situations where the insurance company will pay the additional cost to use OEM parts--if you can show that the aftermarket parts as specified in the insurance company's estimate are inferior to the OEM part alternative. The insurance company is required by law to use the better component. Therefore, if you are skeptical about an aftermarket parts quality or fitness, you should seek the advice of a qualified car body or collision experts in your area and ask if they will give you a written statement to that effect.

Almost all insurance companies will allow you to pay the difference to use OEM parts over aftermarket parts. Therefore if your insurance company will not pay to use OEM parts, or is not required to do so, this may be your only option.