Few ideas have done as much to shape the automotive market as the notion that millennials are abandoning cars. It might not be true anymore.
EY, the strategy and consulting division of Ernst & Young, has issued its 2020 Mobility Consumer Index, a survey of more than 3,300 consumers in nine countries, on the things they plan to buy in the next year. The big surprise – they’re car shopping.
Thirty-one percent of those who don’t own a car say they plan to buy one. Another 20 percent of those who already own a car say they are open to buying again. The reason? Both groups identified the COVID-19 pandemic as their motivation.
John Simlett, EY Global Future of Mobility Leader, explained, “The COVID-19 pandemic is reshaping the marketplace. Millennials leading the increase in car ownership globally would have been unthinkable a year ago, particularly in terms of buying non-electric vehicles. The industry should recognize that there is a new market out there that didn’t exist until very recently. But with more people buying cars and car usage expected to increase, this leaves policymakers with some difficult questions to answer: How to accommodate all these cars on our road? Aim for a more diverse mobility mix? How will this trend impact investment in public transportation? Is this sustainable, and if not, what needs to be done and by whom?”
Distrust of public transport appears to be driving the shift. A total of 69 percent of the respondents are abandoning public transport for their commute to work. Up to 61 percent said they are dropping its use for entertainment and leisure trips.
If you’re in the market for a new car because of the virus outbreak, be aware that shopping in this climate requires a different approach.
