These professional standards for assessing vehicle damages have been established according to the best local and international practices, in order to unify the standards used in evaluating vehicle damages, ensuring consistency and neutrality in dealing with all cases, and thus avoiding significant discrepancies in evaluations that may affect the rights of the Aggrieved Persons.

These standards serve as a unified and binding professional reference for vehicle damage assessments, promoting professionalism and quality to achieve reliable evaluations of vehicle damages. Additionally, these standards provide clear and specific guidelines that represent a common reference for all parties involved, leading to more effective procedures in assessing vehicle damages and compensating the Aggrieved Persons.

These standards reflect the commitment of the Saudi Authority for Accredited Valuers to enhance the quality of professional performance in the practice of vehicle damage assessment, in accordance with the provisions of the Accredited Valuers System, the regulations governing the vehicle damage assessment branch, the mechanism for organizing the handling of insured vehicle wreckage, and the relevant regulations and decisions.

A- Establish a unified professional reference for certified appraisers engaged in vehicle damage assessment; to ensure the issuance of reliable evaluations that meet the professional requirements of these standards and satisfy the needs of the relevant parties.  

B- Develop specific and clear guidelines for vehicle damage assessment, including the professional requirements that must be considered to achieve professional and objective evaluations.

C- Enhance professionalism and improve the quality of performance in the field of vehicle damage assessment, and entrench sound professional practices; in line with best practices in this regard.

These standards must be applied when practicing the profession of vehicle damage assessment. The standards provide specific guidelines, including the classification of damages, the classification of vehicle wreckage, rules and calculations for repairs and replacement parts and their exceptions, as well as depreciation rates. Additionally, they include the estimation of the market value of damaged vehicles before and after the damage, and the market value of the vehicle after repairs affected by those damages. These standards represent a mandatory reference for both the certified appraiser and the assessment center.

The following terms are defined as indicated next to each, unless the context indicates otherwise:

• 1- Law: The Law of Accredited Valuers.

• 2- Authority: The Saudi Authority for Accredited Valuers.

• 3- Vehicle Damage Assessment Branch: The branch concerned with estimating the repair value of the damaged vehicle and assessing all costs or damages associated with it.

• 4- Standards: The professional standards for assessing vehicle damages.  

• 5- Accredited Valuer: A natural or legal person licensed to practice the profession in accordance with the law.

• 6- Vehicle: Any means of transport designed to operate on wheels or tracks, powered or towed by mechanical force, excluding trains.

• 7- Center: A vehicle damage assessment facility that meets the regulatory and professional requirements related to the practice of vehicle damage assessment.

• 8- Assessment Report: The document issued by the accredited valuer to their clients, including the assessment result and fulfilling the obligations of the accredited valuer as outlined in the provisions and rules governing the Vehicle Damage Assessment Branch.

• 9- Manufacturer (Manufacturing Entity): A company engaged in the manufacturing of vehicles and their accessories, setting standards for their repair to ensure the safety of passengers and the vehicle, and manufacturing or approving external entities to produce spare parts that comply with the quality standards approved by it.

• 10- Exterior Structure: This includes the facades, lights, front and rear bumpers, side wheel covers (fenders), front grille, doors and their accessories, hood, trunk, and roof of the vehicle, which do not negatively affect the safety level of the vehicle body due to damages incurred individually.  

• 11- Basic Structure: The metal frame on which the exterior structure and parts of the propulsion and suspension system are mounted, existing in vehicles in two types: the base separated from the passenger compartment, and the integrated with the passenger compartment.  

• 12- Proper Repair: The process of repairing the damage by referring to the manufacturer's recommendations or entities approved by it.

• 13- Heritage Vehicles: Vehicles that are over 30 years old, as determined by the relevant authorities.

• 14- Rare Vehicles: Defined according to the criteria set by the relevant authorities.

Vehicle damages are classified into four categories, which are:

• First: Minor Damages

• These refer to superficial damages to the vehicle's exterior structure that affect its appearance, such as scratches or dents on the surface of the vehicle's external components, and can be repaired in place using approved repair methods or replaced without the need for cutting or welding. These damages do not negatively affect the operational efficiency of the vehicle or the integrity of its basic structure.

• Second: Moderate Damages

• These refer to damages that have caused damage to parts belonging to the vehicle's exterior structure, such as fractures or complex dents, or that have caused damage to the support bridges within the component. They require replacement or repair by disassembling the parts only, without the need for cutting or welding, and do not negatively affect the operational efficiency of the vehicle or the integrity of its basic structure.

• Third: Major Damages

• These are damages that affect the operational efficiency of the vehicle and prevent it from being driven safely, but can be repaired without exceeding the threshold of economic total loss. These damages include the following:

  • 1- Those requiring repair of the exterior structure or replacement of the damaged parts, which necessitate welding and heating operations, or damages that cause harm to more than one part due to the extent of the impact.

  • 2- Those that cause the airbag system to deploy.

  • 3- Those that affect the fuel tank or its surroundings.

  • 4- Those requiring mechanical or electrical work, including programming operations.

  • 5- Those that cause damage to the underside of the vehicle.

  • 6- Those affecting the high-voltage electrical system, engine area, transmission, cooling and air conditioning system, or alternative fuel systems or hybrid and electric vehicles.

• Fourth: Severe Damages

• These are damages that affect the operational efficiency of the vehicle and lead to its destruction in a way that prevents it from being driven safely. The vehicle cannot be returned to the road due to significant damage to its basic structure that exceeds the allowable limit for each vehicle according to the manufacturer's recommendations. Alternatively, the repair costs exceed (50%) of its market value before the damage occurred, and it is classified as an economic total loss according to the second criterion of this document.

Vehicle wreckage is classified into two categories as follows:

First: Technical Wreckage

Vehicles are classified as technical wreckage if they cannot be repaired in a technical condition that ensures the safety of their passengers or road users. Technical wreckage includes two types:

• 1- Total Technical Wreckage:

• Vehicles are classified as total wreckage if they have been subjected to any of the following:

  • A- Damage that affects all parts of the vehicle, such as total fire and total submersion.

  • B- Partial fire that caused the main structure to be exposed to high temperatures that altered its physical specifications, or damage to the propulsion system or electrical system.

  • C- Partial submersion that caused damage to the propulsion system or electrical system, with the presence of water inside the passenger compartment affecting the vehicle's control systems.

• Accordingly, the vehicle must be considered as being in a state of total technical wreckage, and no part of it may be reused as spare parts.  

• 2- Structural Technical Wreckage:

• This refers to a vehicle that has sustained significant damage to its main structure and cannot be repaired properly according to the manufacturer's requirements.

• Accordingly, the vehicle must be considered in a state of structural technical wreckage; however, undamaged parts of the outer structure or mechanical or electrical components may be utilized, and none of the parts related to the main structure may be used at all.

Second: Economic Wreckage

This refers to a damaged vehicle that can be repaired, but the cost of repairing it - including labor and spare parts - exceeds (50%) of the market value of the vehicle before the damage.

First: Repair Cases

Except for the cases mentioned in item (Second) of this standard, the certified appraiser must measure the extent of the damage and its complexity, and determine the necessary steps for proper repair based on their expertise, to estimate the average value of repair operation wages.

Second: Spare Parts Replacement Cases

The damaged spare part must be replaced in the following cases:

• 1- Impact on the safety and protection systems in the vehicle.

• 2- If repairing the part affects the safety and protection systems in the vehicle.

• 3- The part that cannot be restored to perform its original function according to the manufacturer's requirements.

• 4- If repairing the part affects its dimensions.

The replacement wages for each damaged spare part are calculated based on the average value of general wages.

Third: Calculation of Average General Wages and Supporting Operations:

When calculating repair or replacement wages, the details of those operations must be taken into account in addition to any supporting operations (if any), including but not limited to:

• 1- Electrical work.

• 2- Inspection and programming operations. Body measurements.

• 3- Painting work.

• 4- Calibration and weighing work.

The pricing of original spare parts is based on the chassis number affixed to the vehicle, in accordance with their prices in the local market after applying the discount given to individual consumers (if any), taking into account the depreciation rates on the part that needs to be replaced - in a manner that does not conflict with the fifth standard - as follows:

• First: No depreciation discount

• No depreciation discount is applied to the price of the damaged part that needs to be replaced if there is no prior damage to any part of it, or if it has been previously repaired properly.

• Second: Depreciation discount of 25%

• A depreciation discount of 25% of the price of the original part is applied if there is minor prior damage of (25%) or less of the dimensions of the part that needs to be replaced, and it has not been repaired properly.

• Third: Depreciation discount of 50%

• A depreciation discount of 50% of the price of the original part is applied if there is prior damage to the same part greater than (25%) and less than (50%) of the dimensions of the part that needs to be replaced, and it has not been repaired properly.

• Fourth: Depreciation discount of 75%

• A depreciation discount of 75% of the price of the original part is applied in the following cases:

  • 1. A depreciation discount of 75% of the price of the original part is applied in the following cases:

    • A- In the case of proving damage to the parts with photos and their presence at the time of the accident, and they were not brought due to the circumstances of the accident (highways - moving vehicles by the competent authorities - and so on), in this case, the price of the part is calculated according to what is stated in the fourth standard based on the available data about the condition of the part.

    • B- In the case of proving damage to the parts with photos and their presence at the time of the accident, and it is evident to the accredited evaluator that they were dismantled and not brought to the inspection area, in this case, the value of the parts along with their accessories and installation fees is not included in the evaluation report.

  • 2- If the damaged part is not original.

  • 3- The existence of prior damage of (50%) or greater than the dimensions of the part that needs to be replaced and it has not been repaired properly.

1- Repair or replacement labor costs and spare parts prices will not be calculated if the certified appraiser determines during the inspection that no repairs or changes have been made to the damages accounted for in previous reports on the vehicle.

2- If a certified appraiser previously issued a report indicating that a repair was made on the part, and the new damage requires its replacement while the previous repair was unsound, in this case, the labor costs will be deducted from the new evaluation report, and only the price of the part will be calculated.

3- In the case of an old damage that requires replacing the damaged part, and the new damage is minor; only the labor costs will be calculated based on the dimensions of the new damage.

4- If the price of the part was previously calculated in a prior evaluation report issued by a certified appraiser, and the aggrieved person opted for its repair, in this case, the repair costs will be calculated in the new evaluation report only without changing the part.

5- Non-original parts with previous unsound repairs will have only the repair costs calculated without changing the part.

6- Regarding accessories and additions from outside the manufacturer - as long as it does not conflict with technical requirements and the regulations of the relevant authorities - the aggrieved person is required to provide a tax invoice for the value of the accessories and additions and any warranty provided, if available, and their value will be calculated not to exceed the value of the original part and according to the percentage of the warranty provided, if available, unless their lifespan exceeds what is determined by the service provider. If the aggrieved person does not provide the aforementioned tax invoice, the value of the damaged part will be calculated at (25%) of the value of the original part according to the vehicle's chassis number for matching parts, and for accessories and additions not matching the chassis number, they will be calculated at their minimum price limit.

7- If the price of a safety-related part was previously calculated in earlier reports and was not changed, and the new damage caused significant damages due to the failure to change the previous parts, in this case, (50%) of the value of the additional spare parts and labor costs will be calculated without considering the condition of the parts.

First: Estimation of the Market Value of the Vehicle

1- The market value of the vehicle is estimated before and after the damage incurred, and the difference between them is calculated.

2- It is required to refer the vehicle for market value estimation that one of the following conditions applies:

• A- If the damages to the vehicle fall under any of the classifications of wreckage.

• B- If the vehicle falls under the definition of heritage and rare vehicles.

• C- If spare parts for the vehicle are not available in the local market.

• D- If there is no agent for the vehicle in the local market.

• E- If the age of the vehicle exceeds 10 years and it needs replacement of spare parts, except for vehicles that can have their damages repaired.

• F- Cases that require estimation of their market value by the authority or judicial entities, provided that the certified appraiser clarifies in their report submitted to the authority or judicial entity - as applicable - the previous estimates for the same damage incurred on the vehicle subject to the estimation of the decrease in market value (depreciation); to be considered in case compensation for (depreciation) is deemed appropriate, preventing the duplication of compensation for the same damage.

Second: Decrease in Market Value (Depreciation)

It is the decrease in the market value of the vehicle before or after its repair - as applicable - as a result of the damage incurred, and this decrease is calculated - only upon request from the authority or a judicial entity - based on the difference between the market value of the vehicle before the damage and its market value after the damage or assuming proper repair (as applicable).

The certified appraiser must clarify in their report submitted to the authority or judicial entity - as applicable - the previous estimates for the same damage incurred on the vehicle subject to the estimation of the decrease in market value (depreciation); to be considered in case compensation for (depreciation) is deemed appropriate, preventing the duplication of compensation for the same damage.