Cars as a Service: Are Britons willing to subscribe to vehicles?

YouGov Profiles data shows that most people aren’t aware of vehicle subscription services – and that individual car ownership is high

Car subscription services like Evogo and Evezy ask drivers to pay a flat monthly fee to use a car. They have been proposed as a way for consumers to access a vehicle on their terms – without the long-term obligations associated with owning a vehicle outright. But is car ownership an area in particular need of disruption?

It is worth pointing out that nearly four in five Brits (78%) simply don’t know what a car subscription service is. Of those who are aware, a very small minority have actually used them: the most popular are Evogo (7% of aware drivers), Drover (5%), Evezy (5%), Flexigo (5%), and Care by Volvo (5%).

There are opportunities to raise awareness of of these services are, but providers should also be aware of their limitations in the minds of consumers. When drivers who are aware of car subscription providers are asked why they do not use them, a majority (41%) say they prefer to own their own car, a quarter (23%) say they have no interest in changing vehicles, 16% say it’s too expensive, and 6% say they do not understand how car subscription services work.

When it comes to the features they find particularly appealing, drivers are most likely to cite car maintenance (13%) - which, in this case, refers to the lack of car maintenance that they are personally required to undertake – the ability to swap vehicles at will (12%), and the insurance cover (10%). Every other feature polls below 10%, and a third say that no features appeal at all (33%).

The question for car subscription providers, then, is whether they can expand the attractiveness and value perception of these services, or what they can do to highlight those for British drivers.

Methodology

YouGov Profiles is based on continuously collected data and rolling surveys, rather than from a single limited questionnaire. Profiles data is nationally representative and weighted by age, gender, education, region, and race. Learn more about Profiles.

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