ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, February 8, 1996 TAG: 9602080076
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: C-6 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: WASHINGTON
SOURCE: Associated Press
Sports cars have the highest accident repair costs among 1993-95 vehicle models, with the Dodge Viper topping the list, according to an insurance industry study released Wednesday.
The Viper had the most costly collision losses on average of any of the more than 300 passenger models studied, according to the Highway Loss Data Institute, a research center backed by insurance companies.
Insurers paid $2,666 per claim for the average collision, while the Viper's average repair payments were nearly 10 times that amount - $26,000.
For the study, the institute tapped into its database of claims from the 15 largest auto insurers. The database contains more than 7 million insurance records representing two-thirds of insured vehicles.
If all the insured vehicles in the database for model years 1993-95 are averaged, the annual average insurance payment for damage loss to a vehicle is $205, according to the institute. The figure for the average Viper is about $1,200 - six times that amount.
``Losses for the Dodge Viper are the highest ever recorded by HLDI,'' said Kim Hazelbaker, the institute's senior vice president.
Jason Vines, a spokesman for Michigan-based Chrysler Corp., which makes the Viper, noted that the Viper also showed up in the study as having the fewest accident claims. ``This is a show car that people like to take out for special occasions,'' he said.
Ten of the 20 passenger models with the highest costs in collision damage were sports cars, seven were luxury models and three were small two-door cars.
The GMC Safari van with four-wheel drive had the least annual loss from collision damage - about $100, or less than half of all cars combined.
LENGTH: Short : 41 linesby CNB