China's auto dealers association has begun revising the national standard for used-car appraisal, aiming to close long-standing gaps in how accident-damaged and electric vehicles are assessed, according to the industry body and the outlet First Electric (D1EV).
The China Automobile Dealers Association (CADA) held a workshop in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, on September 15 to discuss amendments to the Technical Specification for Appraisal and Evaluation of Used Vehicles, a national standard that has been in force since 2013. The revised draft is expected to be completed by the end of this year, with full implementation planned for next year.
The revision comes as new-energy vehicles rapidly gain market share and new use cases such as used-car exports and court-ordered vehicle disposal emerge. The current standard has been criticized for outdated rules on accident classification and for lacking specific guidance on evaluating electrified vehicles.
Five key changes
The update will focus on five areas: rebuilding the logic and grading system for accident-damage determination, adding specific standards for flood-damaged and fire-damaged vehicles, introducing assessment content for the three core EV systems (battery, motor, and electronic control), streamlining the appraisal process, and broadening the standard's applicability.
For collision-damaged vehicles, the revised standard will drop the old quantitative approach that classified severity by damage dimensions in centimeters. Instead, it will consider the extent of damage, the nature of the affected components, repair methods, and safety performance test results after repair.
Flood-damaged vehicles will be identified based on distinctive signs such as continuous horizontal waterline erosion and layered corrosion from prolonged submersion. They will be classified into two risk levels: low-risk and high-risk.
For new-energy vehicles, the appraisal will use a structure of common items plus powertrain-specific items. Battery health indicators will reference existing national standards, and the battery's safety status will be disclosed separately from its health status.
Stricter personnel rules
The revised standard also tightens requirements for appraisal personnel. Appraisers must be full-time employees of the appraisal firm, with social insurance contributions matching their employer, and a continuous education tracking system will be established to prevent license misuse.
During the workshop, representatives from automakers, internet platforms, used-car markets, appraisal agencies, and the judicial system provided feedback on odometer tampering checks, water damage determination, accident grading, EV testing, digital reports, and terminology unification. They also offered suggestions for special cases such as court-ordered vehicle disposal.
CADA said this was the second in a series of regional consultation meetings. After the standard is published, the association will update supporting technical interpretation documents, organize industry-wide training, and establish a cross-field expert committee to handle disputes and publish typical case guidance.
