Greater than 9 million autos pushed in Britain at present have clocked over 100,000 miles. That’s nearly one in 4 of the 40.3million registered on our roads. Which means what many people may take into account “excessive mileage” – with 100,000 miles sufficient to circumnavigate the globe 4 instances – is now very a lot the norm.
And it’s not as a result of we’re spending extra time on the wheel. Fairly the opposite, with the typical annual mileage for a automobile in Britain falling from 7,559 in 2010 to 7,090 in 2019, after which to six,533 when the pandemic struck in 2020, says yearly MOT knowledge.
Searching for solutions as to why we’re preserving our motors for longer and racking up extra miles in them is Co-op Insurance coverage, which despatched a Freedom of Info request to the Driver and Car Requirements Company, after noticing that the typical age of automobiles it covers has risen in recent times.
The insurer says that seven in ten of its motor insurance policies in 2018 had been for automobiles aged six to 10 years outdated. By the primary quarter of this yr, that had risen to eight in ten – or 4 in 5.
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On the reverse finish of the spectrum, 10 per cent of all its motor insurance coverage insurance policies in 2018 had been for autos as much as two years outdated – a determine that dropped to simply 4 per cent within the opening three months of this yr.
In the meantime, knowledge from the commerce affiliation, the Society of Motor Producers and Merchants (SMMT), reveals the typical age of a UK automobile is now 8.4 years, the best since information started. In a sector closely pushed by a substitute tradition of automobile finance (round 4 in 5 new automobiles are acquired this manner), why are we now preserving them for longer?
Paul Evans, head of motor insurance policies at Co-op Insurance coverage, mentioned: “It appears like Brits are taking a ‘make-do and mend’ strategy to automobile possession as the price of residing, and working a automobile, continues to rocket.
“Whereas we all know that elements, availability points and the pandemic, amongst different elements, have hit the brand new automobile market badly, many individuals simply aren’t able to splash pointless money on a brand-new automobile. It makes extra monetary sense to maintain their current automobile going for so long as doable, or to purchase a used automobile.”
The RAC says it has additionally witnessed a “huge downward shift” within the variety of drivers anticipating to vary their autos within the brief time period. In its newest Report on Motoring, 47 per cent of drivers polled plan to vary their automobile over the subsequent three years, down from 57 per cent when motorists had been requested the identical query in 2019.
The elements making us dangle onto our automobiles
Scarcity of recent automobiles
The availability crunch within the new automobile sector is having a huge impact. The semiconductor scarcity – and up to date extra difficulties sourcing parts generally made in Russia and Ukraine – has triggered extreme manufacturing issues for automobile producers, which means there are fewer new motors for individuals to get their palms on.
Mike Hawes, SMMT chief govt, says the scarcity of recent automobiles is definitely impacting how lengthy persons are preserving their present autos, whereas motorists holding on to older, dirtier automobiles might delay the UK’s bid to hit its targets for decreasing air air pollution ranges.
Increased used automobile costs
The scarcity of recent autos has had a knock-on impact on the second-hand market, with elevated demand sending used automobile costs skyrocketing within the final two years. In keeping with on-line market, Auto Dealer, the typical secondhand motor is at the moment round a 3rd costlier than it was a yr in the past, pricing many individuals out of fixing their automobiles.
The price of residing disaster
With the price of residing disaster taking grip, changing a automobile is clearly changing into much less of a precedence for cash-strapped drivers. And a latest report from the Motor Ombudsman says it’s rising more and more involved that motorists are even contemplating reducing their spending on upkeep to save cash.
It discovered an increase within the variety of drivers who’re contemplating delaying or cancelling their automobile’s service this yr – one thing that won’t solely devalue a motor however may also enhance its potential security threat.
A altering notion of what’s ‘excessive mileage’
Enhancements to parts and consistency of construct high quality imply newer motors are way more able to masking six-figure mileage than they had been generations in the past. A latest report by LeaseLoco revealed that a whole lot of autos on Britain’s roads have clocked up over three quarters of one million miles.
DVSA knowledge shared with the automobile leasing firm final October confirmed there have been 5,897 motors with greater than 400,000 miles on their odometers, and a pair of,676 past 500,000 miles.
