Phoenix, Arizona – August 18, 2026 – The percentage of outstanding U.S. auto-loan balances that were 90 or more days delinquent stood at 5.49% in the second quarter of 2026, remaining near the 5.60% high reached in Q1 2026 within Federal Reserve Bank of New York data dating to 2003.
The figures are included in a new national statistics resource published by USBankruptcyHelp.com.
The new U.S. Auto Loan Delinquency and Default Indicators page provides current and historical data on auto-loan debt, serious delinquency, flows into delinquency and auto-loan originations. The resource uses data from the New York Fed Consumer Credit Panel / Equifax.
The Q2 2026 serious-delinquency share declined by 0.11 percentage points from 5.60% in Q1 2026, but remained approximately 0.50 percentage points above the Q2 2025 level of 4.99%.
“The fact that 90-plus-day auto-loan delinquency remains close to its highest level in more than two decades is worth paying attention to, but it is important to be precise about what the number means,” said Casey Yontz, JD, bankruptcy attorney and founder of USBankruptcyHelp.com. “It measures the percentage of outstanding auto-loan balances that are at least 90 days delinquent. It should not be described as a national formal-default rate.”
Outstanding U.S. auto-loan debt reached $1.713 trillion in Q2 2026, an increase of $28 billion from Q1 and $58 billion from a year earlier. The Q2 balance is the highest nominal observation in the New York Fed data included in the USBankruptcyHelp.com resource.
Auto-loan originations also increased during the quarter. Approximately $211 billion in new auto loans appeared on consumer credit reports in Q2, compared with about $182 billion in Q1 2026 and $188 billion in Q2 2025.
Other delinquency indicators showed more modest changes.
The annualized flow of auto-loan balances entering serious delinquency of 90 or more days was 3.00% in Q2 2026, compared with 2.97% in Q1 2026 and 2.93% one year earlier.
Flow into early delinquency of 30 or more days was 7.87%, up from 7.72% in Q1, but slightly below the approximately 7.96% level recorded in Q2 2025.
The New York Fed reports the early- and serious-delinquency flow measures as annualized shares of balances transitioning into delinquency. They are distinct from the 5.49% stock measure showing the percentage of outstanding auto-loan balances already 90 or more days past due.
“Auto-loan stress cannot be captured by one statistic,” Yontz said. “The percentage of balances already seriously delinquent, the flow of balances becoming delinquent and the amount of new credit being originated measure different things. Looking at them together with the historical data gives consumers and journalists a much clearer picture of what is happening.”
The new USBankruptcyHelp.com resource includes quarterly historical charts for:
- total U.S. auto-loan debt from 2003 Q1 through 2026 Q2;
- auto-loan balances 90 or more days delinquent;
- flows into early and serious auto-loan delinquency;
- recent serious-delinquency trends; and
- auto-loan originations from 2004 Q1 through 2026 Q2.
The page also explains the distinction between serious delinquency and formal default. The New York Fed data does not provide a single national count of auto loans formally declared in default by lenders. A loan that is 90 or more days past due is seriously delinquent and may indicate default-level financial distress, but the measure should not be interpreted as an exact national contractual-default rate.
The New York Fed’s auto-loan category includes both auto loans and vehicle leases reported to credit bureaus. Its 90-plus-day delinquency measure may also include charged-off balances that remain on consumer credit reports, which is one reason it should not be treated as equivalent to lender-reported delinquency or default rates.
The resource does not publish a national vehicle-repossession count because the New York Fed dataset does not provide a directly comparable quarterly national repossession series.
View the complete current statistics, historical charts, quarterly data and methodology at USBankruptcyHelp.com/auto-loan-delinquency-statistics.
About USBankruptcyHelp.com
US Bankruptcy Help is an attorney-led bankruptcy decision-support resource created to help individuals and families understand their options, identify risks, avoid common mistakes and decide what questions they need to answer before moving forward.
The website combines plain-English bankruptcy information with state-specific guides, calculators, estimators, comparison tools and public data resources. Its goal is to become one of the most useful bankruptcy decision-support resources on the web by helping readers move beyond general definitions and better understand how bankruptcy may apply to their income, property, debts and immediate financial concerns.
Bankruptcy content published by USBankruptcyHelp.com is written, reviewed or editorially supervised by experienced bankruptcy attorneys. The website is not a law firm, does not provide legal representation and does not offer legal advice. USBankruptcyHelp.com is not affiliated with or endorsed by the federal judiciary.
Media Contact
Company Name: USBankruptcyHelp.com
Contact Person: Casey Yontz
Email: Send Email
Phone: 480-619-8147
Address:4425 E. Agave Rd. Suite 110
City: Phoenix
State: AZ
Country: United States
Website: https://www.usbankruptcyhelp.com
Press Release Distributed by ABNewswire.com
To view the original version on ABNewswire visit: U.S. Auto Loan Delinquency 90+ Days Past Due Near 23-Year High as Debt Reaches $1.713 Trillion
Media gallery
