Car costs

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Itemized average total costs for the average American driver to own and operate an automobile. This yearly value, around US$6650, corresponds, according to AAA, to a small sedan. Automobile costs for USA.svg
Itemized average total costs for the average American driver to own and operate an automobile. This yearly value, around US$6650, corresponds, according to AAA, to a small sedan.

A car's internal costs are all the costs consumers pay to own and operate a car. [3] [4] [5] Normally these expenditures are divided into fixed or standing costs and variable or running costs. [6] Fixed costs are those which do not depend on the distance traveled by the vehicle and which the owner must pay to keep the vehicle ready for use on the road, like insurance or road taxes. Variable or running costs are those that depend on the use of the car, like fuel or tolls. [7]

Contents

Compared to other popular modes of passenger transportation, especially buses or trains, the car has a relatively high cost per passenger-distance traveled. [8] Motorists in the United Kingdom spend, on average, roughly 1/3 of their average net income to operate a car, [9] while motorists in Portugal spend approximately 1/2 of their net income. For the average car owner, depreciation constitutes about half the cost of running a car. [9] The typical motorist underestimates this fixed cost by a significant margin. [10]

The IRS considers that the average US automobile has a total cost of US$0.58/mile, around €0.32/km. [11] According to the American Automobile Association, the average driver of the average sedan spends totally approximately US$8,700 per year, or US$720 per month, to own and operate their vehicle. [2]

Fixed costs

Car acquisition

The car itself has a cost. The cost can be reduced by buying a reused car. But the reused car may have hidden defects, hidden problems, or be about to be out of norms. It is the most shallow and most immediate cost. But it can be delayed under a loan scheme.

Loan costs

Car finance comprises the different financial products which allows someone to acquire a car with any arrangement other than a single lump payment. When used, and for the purpose of assessing the private financial costs, one must consider only the interests paid by the car owner, as some part of the amount the owner pays each month for the finance is already embedded in the depreciations costs.

Depreciation

Normalized car depreciation for several models obtained from online retailer from US Car Depreciation for several models.png
Normalized car depreciation for several models obtained from online retailer from US

The yearly depreciation of a car is the amount its value decreases every year. Normally a car's value is correlated with the price it has on the market, but on average a car has a depreciation around 15–20% per year. [12] [13] Depending on market conditions, cars may depreciate 10–30% the first year. [14] Since 2021, however, cars have appreciated significantly the first year due to shortages of cars and up to five-year wait times for new cars.[ citation needed ]

Car taxes

Car taxes, road taxes, vehicle taxes or Vehicle Excise Duty are the amount of money car owners pay the government to allow the car to operate within that region or state. These taxes serve to maintain the road infrastructure or to compensate the negative externalities caused by the motor vehicles. These taxes may depend on engine displacement, vehicle weight, miles traveled, CO2 emissions, or the car value.

Insurance

Insurance serves to provide financial protection against physical damage and/or bodily injury resulting from traffic collisions and against liability that could also arise there-from.

Inspection

Vehicle inspection is a procedure mandated by law in which a vehicle is inspected to ensure that it conforms to regulations governing safety, emissions, or both.

Driving license

A driving license is often required to drive a car.

Cost of capital

The cost of capital, applied to a purchase of a car, is the amount of money the car owner could have obtained, if they, instead of buying the car, applied that amount of money to other worthy investment. The cost of capital is the rate of return that capital could be expected to earn in an alternative investment of equivalent risk. Considering by default the car has depreciation, and that such depreciation is already considered at a certain cost item, the cost of capital of owning a car, is then the income that the car owner could have obtained with the money spent on such car. One example could be a common standard interest rate in a deposit account. [15]

Running costs

Fuel

The fuel costs depend basically on four factors, namely the distance travelled by the car, the price paid for the fuel, the energy efficiency of the car and the type of driving. In Western countries, this cost normally is the second highest after depreciation.

Maintenance

The maintenance of a car can have the purpose to be a long term or a short term maintenance. This cost might be very irregular and somewhat unpredictable but tends to increase with the age of the car. On this item are included car parts that need to be replaced after a certain period of time (for example every two years) or with a specific number of travelled kilometres or miles, like tires or filters.

Repairs and improvements

Repairs costs are completely unpredictable because they depend on the number and severity of car collisions, like dents repairing for example.[ citation needed ] These costs also refer to spare parts substitution due to malfunctioning. On this cost item it might be included also the parts bought to improve the performance or the aesthetic of the vehicle.[ citation needed ]

Parking

The costs of parking include all the money the user needs to pay to park their car. This applies normally to car parking lots, like in offices, public buildings, shopping centres or in the downtown; but also on the public space (normally in the inner part of some city) using parking meters. This cost might be relatively predictable, if the user for example has a monthly contract with some parking lot company, or if he rents a private parking space.

Tolls

A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private roadway for which a fee (or toll) is assessed for passage. Normally this applies to motorways, bridges and tunnels but it might also apply, like in some cities such as London or Stockholm, to gain access to the city-centre. This cost might be predictable if the user passes the tolled roadway, a defined number of times per month.

Fines

A traffic fine or traffic ticket is a notice issued by a law enforcement official to a motorist accusing violation of traffic laws. Traffic tickets generally come in two forms, citing a moving violation, such as exceeding the speed limit, or a non-moving violation, such as a parking violation. These tickets almost always imply the payment of a certain quantity of money.

Car washes

The cost of car wash varies according to the frequency users clean their car, and with the price of each cleaning. In many countries in Europe, cleaning a car in a driveway may be Illegal.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toll road</span> Roadway for which a fee (or toll) is assessed for passage

A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road for which a fee is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically implemented to help recoup the costs of road construction and maintenance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Congestion pricing</span> System of surcharging users of public goods

Congestion pricing or congestion charges is a system of surcharging users of public goods that are subject to congestion through excess demand, such as through higher peak charges for use of bus services, electricity, metros, railways, telephones, and road pricing to reduce traffic congestion; airlines and shipping companies may be charged higher fees for slots at airports and through canals at busy times. Advocates claim this pricing strategy regulates demand, making it possible to manage congestion without increasing supply.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parking</span> Act of stopping and disengaging a vehicle and usually leaving it unoccupied

Parking is the act of stopping and disengaging a vehicle and usually leaving it unoccupied. Parking on one or both sides of a road is often permitted, though sometimes with restrictions. Some buildings have parking facilities for use of the buildings' users. Countries and local governments have rules for design and use of parking spaces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Area Licensing Scheme</span> Traffic congestion pricing scheme in Singapore

The Singapore Area Licensing Scheme (ALS) was a road pricing scheme introduced in Singapore from 1975 to 1998 that charged drivers who were entering downtown Singapore. This was the first urban traffic congestion pricing scheme to be successfully implemented in the world. This scheme affected all roads entering a 6-square-kilometre area in the Central Business District (CBD) called the "Restricted Zone" (RZ), later increased to 7.25 square kilometres to include areas that later became commercial in nature. The scheme was later replaced in 1998 by the Electronic Road Pricing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Depreciation</span> Decrease in asset values, or the allocation of cost thereof

In accountancy, depreciation is a term that refers to two aspects of the same concept: first, an actual reduction in the fair value of an asset, such as the decrease in value of factory equipment each year as it is used and wears, and second, the allocation in accounting statements of the original cost of the assets to periods in which the assets are used.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Societal impacts of cars</span> Overview of the effects of cars on various societies

Since the start of the twentieth century, the role of cars has become highly important, though controversial. They are used throughout the world and have become the most popular mode of transport in many of the more developed countries. In developing countries cars are fewer and the effects of the car on society are less visible, however they are nonetheless significant. The spread of cars built upon earlier changes in transport brought by railways and bicycles. They introduced sweeping changes in employment patterns, social interactions, infrastructure and the distribution of goods.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electronic toll collection</span> Wireless system to automatically collect the usage fee or toll charged to vehicles

Electronic toll collection (ETC) is a wireless system to automatically collect the usage fee or toll charged to vehicles using toll roads, HOV lanes, toll bridges, and toll tunnels. It is a faster alternative which is replacing toll booths, where vehicles must stop and the driver manually pays the toll with cash or a card. In most systems, vehicles using the system are equipped with an automated radio transponder device. When the vehicle passes a roadside toll reader device, a radio signal from the reader triggers the transponder, which transmits back an identifying number which registers the vehicle's use of the road, and an electronic payment system charges the user the toll.

Imputed rent is the rental price an individual would pay for an asset they own. The concept applies to any capital good, but it is most commonly used in housing markets to measure the rent homeowners would pay for a housing unit equivalent to the one they own. Imputing housing rent is necessary to measure economic activity in national accounts. Because asset owners do not pay rent, owners' imputed rent must be measured indirectly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vehicle insurance</span> Insurance for road vehicles

Vehicle insurance is insurance for cars, trucks, motorcycles, and other road vehicles. Its primary use is to provide financial protection against physical damage or bodily injury resulting from traffic collisions and against liability that could also arise from incidents in a vehicle. Vehicle insurance may additionally offer financial protection against theft of the vehicle, and against damage to the vehicle sustained from events other than traffic collisions, such as vandalism, weather or natural disasters, and damage sustained by colliding with stationary objects. The specific terms of vehicle insurance vary with legal regulations in each region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Traffic ticket</span> Type of notice issued by a law enforcement official

A traffic ticket is a notice issued by a law enforcement official to a motorist or other road user, indicating that the user has violated traffic laws. Traffic tickets generally come in two forms, citing a moving violation, such as exceeding the speed limit, or a non-moving violation, such as a parking violation, with the ticket also being referred to as a parking citation, or parking ticket.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I-Pass</span>

I-Pass is the electronic toll collection system utilized by the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority (ISTHA) on its toll highways that launched on November 18, 1993, with the opening of Interstate 355. It uses the same transponder as the E-ZPass system used in the Northeastern US, the Chicago Skyway, and the Indiana Toll Road, along with the Indiana State Road 912 Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal bridge.

Road tax, known by various names around the world, is a tax which has to be paid on, or included with, a motorised vehicle to use it on a public road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Motoring taxation in the United Kingdom</span>

Motoring taxation in the United Kingdom consists primarily of vehicle excise duty, which is levied on vehicles registered in the UK, and hydrocarbon oil duty, which is levied on the fuel used by motor vehicles. VED and fuel tax raised approximately £32 billion in 2009, a further £4 billion was raised from the value added tax on fuel purchases. Motoring-related taxes for fiscal year 2011/12, including fuel duties and VED, are estimated to amount to more than £38 billion, representing almost 7% of total UK taxation.

Compared to other popular modes of passenger transportation, the car has a relatively high cost per person-distance traveled. The income elasticity for cars ranges from very elastic in poor countries, to inelastic in rich nations. The advantages of car usage include on-demand and door-to-door travel, and are not easily substituted by cheaper alternative modes of transport, with the present level and type of auto specific infrastructure in the countries with high auto usage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Driving in Singapore</span> Overview of driving in Singapore

In Singapore, cars and other vehicles drive on the left side of the road, as in neighbouring Malaysia, due to its British colonial history. As a result, most vehicles are right-hand drive. However, exemptions have been made to allow foreign vehicles and construction machineries to utilise the road space of Singapore. As such, vehicles with left hand drive configurations are required to either be driven with a sign indicating "LEFT-HAND-DRIVE" or towed.

Vehicle leasing is the leasing of a motor vehicle for a fixed period of time at an agreed amount of money for the lease. It is commonly offered by dealers as an alternative to vehicle purchase but is widely used by businesses as a method of acquiring vehicles for business, without the usually needed cash outlay. The key difference in a lease is that after the primary term the vehicle has to either be returned to the leasing company or purchased for the residual value.

The Smeed Report was a study into alternative methods of charging for road use, commissioned by the UK government between 1962 and 1964 led by R. J. Smeed. The report stopped short of an unqualified recommendation for road pricing but supported congestion pricing for busy road networks.

A vehicle miles traveled tax, also frequently referred to as a VMT tax, VMT fee, mileage-based fee, or road user charge, is a policy of charging motorists based on how many miles they have traveled.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gothenburg congestion tax</span> Congestion tax in Gothenburg, Sweden

The Gothenburg congestion tax, also referred to as the Gothenburg congestion charge, is a congestion pricing system implemented as a tax levied on most vehicles entering and exiting central Gothenburg, Sweden, including some main roads passing by the city. The congestion tax was introduced on 1 January 2013, with the Stockholm congestion tax as a model.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Effects of cars</span> Impacts of car use

The externalities of automobiles, similar to other economic externalities, represent the measurable costs imposed on those who do not own the vehicle, in contrast to the costs borne by the vehicle owner. These externalities include factors such as air pollution, noise, traffic congestion, and road maintenance costs, which affect the broader community and environment. Additionally, these externalities contribute to social injustice, as disadvantaged communities often bear a disproportionate share of these negative impacts. According to Harvard University, the main externalities of driving are local and global pollution, oil dependence, traffic congestion and traffic collisions; while according to a meta-study conducted by the Delft University these externalities are congestion and scarcity costs, accident costs, air pollution costs, noise costs, climate change costs, costs for nature and landscape, costs for water pollution, costs for soil pollution and costs of energy dependency.

References

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  7. The Automobile Association. "Car running costs 2013/14". theaa.com.
  8. Diesendorf, Mark, "The Effect of Land Costs on the Economics of Urban Transportation Systems" (PDF), Proceedings of Third International Conference on Traffic and Transportation Studies (ICTTS2002), pp. 1422–1429, ISBN   978-0-7844-0630-4, archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-07-19, retrieved 2008-04-15
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  10. Meek, James (2004-12-20). "The slow and the furious". The Guardian . London.
  11. IRS (December 14, 2018). "IRS issues standard mileage rates for 2019".
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  13. John Fuller (24 August 2009). "What is car depreciation?".
  14. Lee, Thomas (4 October 2016). "Buy These 12 Cars Used, Not New Based on Study of 14 Million Cars" . Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  15. "Car running costs, Your guide to how we calculate car running costs". The Automobile Association. 7 July 2014.