Inventory is climbing. Prices are dipping. Mileage is rising — and the underwriting math behind the market is starting to shift.
Florida’s used-car inventory climbed by almost 100,000 units between early August and late October, according to ASC Warranty Proprietary territory data. Average days on lot remain high at 85 to 98 days, and roughly 32 percent of all used inventory now qualifies as high mileage (75,000 miles +).
At the same time, list prices dropped from ≈ $41,600 to $40,800. Dealers are carrying more cars, priced lower, and running older — a classic setup for reinsurance strain.
As high mileage VINs grow, the potential profit in a dealer’s reinsurance pool declines. Without robust data on vehicle claim history, dealers are running blind as to which high mileage VINs can stay in their pool and which need to be protected elsewhere.
“ASC Warranty is proud to introduce a new service offering for reinsurance plan participants called RISC™ — the Reinsurance Inventory Spot Check,” says Greg Rueter, VP Sales at ASC Warranty. “After 40 years providing Vehicle Service Contracts, ASC Warranty has the data to create a win / win. Dealers protect their reinsurance pool and CSI while ASC sells more contracts.”
RISC™ provides dealers a clear, data-driven picture of exposure across their reinsurance pools. It blends real-time market metrics from their lot, like vehicle age and mileage mix, with historical make and model claim performance — helping dealers rebalance before profitability erodes.
Bond rates and reinsurance premiums often move on different timelines. While federal rates have begun to ease, underwriters are still holding pricing because they’re absorbing higher claim severity across the market.
Recent industry data underscores why.
- CCC Intelligent Solutions reports a 3.7% year-over-year increase in total cost of repair (TCOR) through the first half of 2024, driven largely by aging vehicles and more complex components.¹
- LexisNexis Risk Solutions found bodily-injury claim severity up 9.2% and property-damage severity up 2.5% year-over-year in its 2025 U.S. Auto Insurance Trends Report.²
- Even SambaSafety notes that rising severity stems from “older vehicles, more fault-prone parts, and shifting total-loss thresholds.”³
When repair and claim costs rise, carriers and reinsurers must build in extra margin to preserve solvency.
For Florida dealers sitting on older inventory, that translates to steady or rising reinsurance rates even as the Fed loosens monetary policy.
The macro economy may be softening, but the underlying risk cost curve is still firm.
Risk management in 2025 doesn’t live in a spreadsheet.
It lives in your partnerships — with underwriters, data providers, and reinsurance experts who can see the full picture.
At Ashton, we help our clients navigate the entire surety and underwriting lifecycle:
- Understanding liability and compliance risk on every bond.
- Partnering with programs like ASC Warranty’s RISC™ to make data actionable.
- Ensuring that your coverage, cash flow, and inventory risk all stay in sync.
When the market moves, having the right partners means you can move with confidence — not react after the fact.
