Nearly half of all drivers find switching cars stressful 鈥 and 44% worry about getting the right price
September 11, 2023 by carwow staff
Car changing is a big deal
- New carwow data reveals top car switching pain points, with 鈥榞etting ripped off鈥 and 鈥榤aking the wrong decision鈥 topping the list
- Nearly half of drivers find the process of buying or switching cars stressful, and cite 鈥榞etting a fair price鈥 as their top priority when shopping for a new car
- In light of the findings, and to coincide with the latest plate change, carwow launches new campaign fronted by automotive expert Mat Watson, highlighting the top car switching stresses
4 September 2023: New research by online car marketplace, carwow 鈥 exploring people鈥檚 views on switching cars 鈥 finds that nearly half (47%) of all motorists find selling a car stressful, while two in five (41%) feel the same about buying a car*.
With the government鈥檚 2030 ban on new petrol and diesel cars and the expansion of several clean air zones across the country, many people could be considering switching their car much earlier than planned, bringing to the fore car switching stresses for a number of motorists.
In a study conducted by carwow earlier this year**, the majority (58%) said getting a fair price is the most important thing to them when changing cars. Perhaps surprisingly, this was ranked even more highly than getting a car that works for everyday family life (43%). It also ranked more important than upgrading to a better model (37%).
The main concerns people face in the process also reflect the top priority of price point, with nearly two in five (38%) people feeling concerned about being ripped off and one in three (36%) worried about facing hidden costs. More than two in five (43%) also admit they were concerned about making the wrong decision.
When thinking back to their last car buying experience, nearly two in three (63%) disliked something about the process 鈥 from not feeling certain they were getting a good price (16%) to the length of the process and having to negotiate (15%).
Sally Foote, UK Managing Director at carwow, said: 鈥淚t鈥檚 a shame to see that so many people feel so stressed about buying or selling their car. Changing cars is one of the biggest financial commitments people can make outside of buying a home, but it should be exciting and full of possibility! Instead, motorists worry about hours of negotiations, wasted time and feeling ripped off.
鈥淲e think there鈥檚 a lot getting in the way of feeling 鈥榳ow鈥 about the typical experience motorists have, whether that鈥檚 timewasters, no show鈥檈rs, tyre-kickers, jargon-users, the up-sellers, 鈥淪orry it鈥檚 already sold鈥 or the 鈥渉ow about I give you 拢3k less鈥 negotiators.
鈥淎t carwow, we鈥檙e here to make the experience of changing your car pain free. September is often a big month for car buyers and sellers due to the plate change and we want to reassure motorists that there is another way 鈥 where they can have a huge breadth of choice and great prices on a new car, as well benefit from a simple and quick sale of their old car to our trusted dealer partners as well.鈥
Today, carwow launches Only Wow, a marketing campaign coinciding with the latest plate change, highlighting some well-known frustrations drivers have when changing cars 鈥 presented in a humorous and ridiculous way by Mat Watson 鈥 host of carwow鈥檚 YouTube channel which has an impressive 8.3 million subscribers.
ENDS
About carwow
莲花直播 exists to give everyone car-confidence. With 3.5 million monthly users, we are a leading online car marketplace that sits uniquely in between customers, automotive brands and car dealers. Because we don鈥檛 hold any stock, we don鈥檛 mind which car consumers buy or sell, we鈥檙e here to help them make the right choice for them.
Since it was founded in 2013, carwow has:
- Launched its 鈥楽ell My Car鈥 service where consumers can easily list their cars at a great price, while letting dealers buy used-car stock directly from the platform
- Raised $157m from some of the most prestigious technology, marketplace and automotive investors, including Balderton Capital, Accel, Vitruvian Partners, Episode and Samos
- Become one of the most influential names in consumer car media with the biggest automotive channel on YouTube with +8 million subscribers, fronted by Mat Watson
- Created an award-winning service that customers love, with a 4.7 rating on Trustpilot from over 40,000 reviews
- Opened offices in the UK, Germany, Spain and Portugal with a combined team of 370 people
For more information visit www.carwow.co.uk
* Censuswide study commissioned by carwow survey of 3,035 car owners between the age of 17-75 between 20.07.2023 鈥 21.08.2023
**聽Censuswide study commissioned by carwow of 1,308 UK drivers who own a car aged 17+ between 13.02.23 to 15.02.23