Car Ownership Falling But Mileage & Car Accidents Increasing

Research has revealed that vehicle ownership will reduce in the medium term, but utilisation will be higher and car accidents are increasing. Auto dealers and consumers are more closely aligned on the future of mobility than many industry experts may imagine with both expecting significant reductions in personal vehicle ownership. In fact, dealers are predicting an even sharper decline in ownership than consumers in the next five years (28 percent versus 18 percent). However, while most of the dealers surveyed recognise this eventual reality, only 1-in-10 dealers see mobility as a threat to their current business, according to the 2018 Cox Automotive Evolution of Mobility Study: A Dealer’s Perspective.

Not unlike any industry undergoing transformation, consumer acceptance over time is often the key driver. While still in its infancy, mobility is no different. In the next 10 years, nearly half (47 percent) of dealers see consumers owning or leasing fewer vehicles per household as a direct result of the increasing number of mobility options and the introduction of autonomous vehicles to the mass market. Ride-hailing (87 percent) is predicted by dealers to see the most growth, followed by car subscriptions (82 percent), car-sharing (81 percent) and autonomous vehicles (81 percent).

There was however a recent counter-argument to the widely accepted benefits of Uber and other ride-sharing schemes, it was revealed that these services are responsible for a sharp rise in car accidents including fatalities. The report states that the rise of ride-sharing services has increased traffic deaths by 2% to 3% in the US alone since 2011, equivalent to as many as 1,100 fatalities a year, according to a new study from the University of Chicago and Rice University. They also way that ride-sharing is responsible for a congestion increase because drivers spend 40% to 60% of their time searching for passengers, a practice known as “deadheading.” On average, drivers travelled an extra 2.8 miles between fares.  See the full story at https://www.technologyreview.com/…/uber-and-lyft-are-behin…/

Meanwhile, dealers challenged by declining new-car sales and margin compression, 45 percent say they see new shared mobility models as new revenue streams. Three out of four dealers see a benefit in offering these shared services at their dealerships, with 40 percent viewing mobility as an opportunity to appeal to a new consumer base. Almost 3-in-5 dealers (59 percent) also believe fixed operations will play a more important role with vehicles used for ride-hailing and car-sharing logging more miles and requiring more service.

Any hesitancies by the dealers surveyed toward these new mobility solutions are due to the uncertainty surrounding operations rather than rejection of the models themselves. This includes knowledge of how to set these services up, outside support to get these services off the ground and the overall cost benefit.

“Dealers are approaching the evolving mobility landscape with their eyes wide open,” said Joe George, president of Cox Automotive Mobility. “While traditional car ownership isn’t going away anytime soon, we’re focused on enabling dealers with innovative consumer mobility and shared fleet service solutions to keep their businesses relevant.”

 

Originally printed at https://www.nationalcollisionrepairer.com.au/decline-predicted-in-vehicle-ownership-in-the-us/?utm_source=The+National+Collision+Repairer+E-Newsletter&utm_campaign=5779596e99-E_NEWSLETTER_CAMPAIGN_2018_OCTOBER_29&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_01bfeaeb33-5779596e99-169236685&ct=t(E_NEWSLETTER_CAMPAIGN_2018_OCTOBER_29)&mc_cid=5779596e99&mc_eid=3d2fb294a1

  1. Ken
    | Reply

    Hope for the panel and paint trade then. But we hear that job numbers are way down for most shops in the areas were insurance companies have started their own Gemini panel shops. Too bad if your on the North Shore or South Auckland or Christchurch!

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