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Car ownership is the ownership of a car. Car ownership typically requires far fewer permits than driving that car on public roads (i.e. driver's license, car insurance, etc.). [1]
Levels of ownership have risen significantly since automobiles were pioneered in the 19th century. The United States was the first country in which mass ownership became common and 60% of families owned a car in 1929. By the 21st century in the United States, there was, on average, a vehicle for every person of driving age and more vehicles than people with driving licenses. This level of ownership was so great that, in 2010, the total number of vehicles dropped significantly for the first time, falling by four million to 247 million. [2]
In the United Kingdom, only 14% of households had access to a car in 1951. [3] By 1971, this had increased to 45%, and by 2001, it was at 75% (with many households having more than one car). [3]
Overall, across the world, levels of ownership increased fourfold between 1950 and 1999. [4]
A car is typically a major purchase and so there are a variety of financial schemes to facilitate the purchase. These include hire purchase, company cars, trade-in and leasing. Other forms of provision which centralise the ownership as a service include rental, car sharing and vehicle hire.
In some countries, there are additional regulations that must be fulfilled before purchasing or leasing a car. For example, in Japan, due to the high population density and limited space, a prospective owner must first provide proof of a space to park the car in question (proof-of-parking). [5] [6] [7] [8]
In the Philippines and India, there is also interest in introducing proof-of-parking. [9] [10]
In Singapore, there are additional requirements in the form of Certificate of Entitlement which only allows the vehicle's owner to own the vehicle for 10 years. (Prospective) owners of heavy vehicles in Singapore must first provide proof of a space to park the heavy vehicle in question under the Vehicle Parking Certificate Scheme. [11]
In Japan, the proof-of-parking regulation, combined with high taxing, has caused a class of cars known as kei cars (kei jidōsha) to develop. These small cars, limited in dimension (3.40x1.48x2.00m length, width and height) and engine displacement (660 cc or 0.66 L) are popular due to tax discounts on the excise tax (3% instead of 5% for normal vehicles), the weight tax (30% cheaper), and the insurance cost is also more than 10% lower and the annual road tax, calculated on the engine size. [12]
In the United States, vehicle ownership is documented on a certificate of title. [13] In the United States, each state's Department of Motor Vehicles or Registry of Motor Vehicles issues such documents when a vehicle is registered. Title deeds vary by design but always include vehicle-specific information at the front of the document (such as: year, make, model, VIN, color, etc.) and several boxes for transaction information at the back where information about change of ownership is recorded (such as sale date, odometer reading, seller and buyer names and signatures, etc.). In-state vehicle sales are recorded at the back of the title as long as there are unused reassignment boxes. If a vehicle is sold out-of-state, the new owner must apply for a new title at their local DMV office. [14]
In Spain a second-hand vehicle ownership transfer is done at the DGT office or Tráfico as it's known locally. Transfer tax must be paid using a Modelo 620 form. This must be done within 30 days after signing the contract of sale for the vehicle and must be done by the buyer.
In the United States, the Manufacturer’s Certificate of Origin (MCO), also known as Manufacturer's Statement of Origin (MSO) is the ownership document issued by the vehicle manufacturer that assigns ownership of a new vehicle to a franchise car dealership until said vehicle is registered and titled. [15] This document is similar to the title deed in content, but is to be used among licensed car dealers only.
In the developed world, the number of cars per 100 people is generally between 30 and 50, with a few countries (such as Canada and New Zealand) over this. In China there are 15 cars per 100 people, and very poor countries such as Somalia have less than one car per thousand people.
In 2007, the expectation was that the rate of car ownership would be increasing almost everywhere, and rise very rapidly indeed in countries such as China and India. [16] About ten years later, however, there is a trend from car ownership towards shared mobility, [17] [18] [19] as countries try to reduce congestion and pollution caused by traffic in cities. [20] [21] [22] For example, in Singapore, due to the Certificate of Entitlement quota system, the growth on the car population in the country has remained at zero percent since 2017. [23] As the price of a Certificate of Entitlement fluctuates with market demand, [24] the price of a Cat A certificate (for cars with engines of 1,600cc and below) hit a record high of S$106,000 (US$77,380) in October 2023. [25] Additional taxes are also added to the car purchase price depending on the market value of the car when it was imported. [26] This has resulted in Singapore being the most expensive place in the world to own a car, [27] [28] and has resulted in car ownership rates dropping to about 33% in 2023, a decrease from 40% in 2013. [29]
Transportation in Singapore is predominantly land-based, with a comprehensive network of roads making many parts of the city-state, including islands such as Sentosa and Jurong Island, accessible. The road network is complemented by a robust rail system consisting of the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) and the Light Rail Transit (LRT), which cover the length and width of Singapore and serve a few neighbourhoods respectively. The main island of Singapore is also connected to other islands via ferryboat services. Furthermore, the city-state maintains strong international connections through two bridges linking it to Malaysia – the Causeway and the Second Link – and the Singapore Changi Airport, a major aviation hub in Asia.
A pickup truck or pickup is a light or medium duty truck that has an enclosed cabin, and a back end made up of a cargo bed that is enclosed by three low walls with no roof. In Australia and New Zealand, both pickups and coupé utilities are called utes, short for utility vehicle. In South Africa, people of all language groups use the term bakkie; a diminutive of Afrikaans: bak, meaning bowl or container.
Kei car is the smallest category of Japanese expressway-legal motor vehicles. The term kei is a shortening of kei-jidōsha,, which translates to English as “light vehicle”.
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.
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.
The Land Transport Authority (LTA) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Transport of the Government of Singapore.
The Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) system is an electronic toll collection scheme adopted in Singapore to manage traffic by way of road pricing, and as a usage-based taxation mechanism to complement the purchase-based Certificate of Entitlement system. There are a total of 93 ERP gantries being built and located throughout the country, along expressways and roads leading towards the Central Area. As of July 2024, only 19 ERP gantries are in operation and are all in expressways where congestion continues to be severe.
Carsharing or car sharing or car clubs (UK) is a model of car rental where people rent cars for short periods of time, often by the hour. It differs from traditional car rental in that the owners of the cars are often private individuals themselves, and the car sharing facilitator is generally distinct from the car owner. Car sharing is part of a larger trend of shared mobility.
The Certificate of Entitlement (COE) are classes of categories as part of a quota license for owning a vehicle in Singapore. The licence is obtained from a successful winning bid in an open bid uniform price auction which grants the legal right of the holder to register, own and use a vehicle in Singapore for an initial period of 10 years. When demand is high, the cost of a COE can exceed the value of the car itself. The COE system was implemented in 1990 to regulate the number of vehicles on the road and control traffic congestion, especially in a land-constrained country such as Singapore.
"Five Cs of Singapore" — namely, cash, car, credit card, condominium and country club — is a phrase used in Singapore to refer to materialism. It was first coined as a popular observational joke during the 1990s about the aspirations of some Singaporeans that exhibits materialistic tendencies by constantly seeking to obtain material possessions in an effort to impress others.
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.
Vehicle registration plates in Singapore are administered and issued by the Land Transport Authority. All vehicles in Singapore are required to display front and back plates bearing its registration number. Purchasers of vehicles have the option to bid for a vehicle registration number or get a vehicle registration number automatically assigned. Vehicle registration numbers can be retained on new or old vehicles owned by the same person, with a validity of 1 year or with extensions of 6 months thereafter. Vehicle owners are also able to replace and bid for a new registration number for existing vehicles.
Autopass Card is a stored-value smart card that allows paying VEP fees, toll charges and ERP fees in Singapore. The card is sold only to foreign motorists. As vehicle information is encoded in the card, it is not transferable between vehicles. It can also act as a NETS CashCard or NETS FlashPay card for all NETS retail transactions and paying carparks that use the Electronic Parking System.
Motor vehicle registration is the registration of a motor vehicle with a government authority, either compulsory or otherwise. The purpose of motor vehicle registration is to establish a link between a vehicle and an owner or user of the vehicle. While almost all motor vehicles are uniquely identified by a vehicle identification number, only registered vehicles display a vehicle registration plate and carry a vehicle registration certificate. Motor vehicle registration is different from motor vehicle licensing and roadworthiness certification.
Vehicle inspection is a procedure mandated by national or subnational governments in many countries, in which a vehicle is inspected to ensure that it conforms to regulations governing safety, emissions, or both. Inspection can be required at various times, e.g., periodically or on the transfer of title to a vehicle. If required periodically, it is often termed periodic motor vehicle inspection; typical intervals are every two years and every year. When a vehicle passes inspection, often a sticker is placed on the vehicle's windshield or registration plate to simplify later controls, but in some countries—such as the Netherlands since 1994—this is no longer necessary. Most US inspection decals/stickers display the month's number and the year.
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.
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.
A microvan is a van or minivan which is within the Japanese kei car classification or similar, and is smaller than a mini MPV. In China, these vehicles are nicknamed miàn bāo chē because of their shape. Similarly, in several Hispanic American countries, these vehicles are called pan de molde, which means "bread loaf". In Indonesia, it is commonly called a minibus due to their tall roof, perceived as resembling a miniature bus; the term is also used generally to refer to any type of three-row MPVs.
Japanese used vehicle exporting is a grey market international trade involving the export of used cars and other vehicles from Japan to other markets around the world since the 1980s.
Government incentives for plug-in electric vehicles have been established around the world to support policy-driven adoption of plug-in electric vehicles. These incentives mainly take the form of purchase rebates, tax exemptions and tax credits, and additional perks that range from access to bus lanes to waivers on fees. The amount of the financial incentives may depend on vehicle battery size or all-electric range. Often hybrid electric vehicles are included. Some countries extend the benefits to fuel cell vehicles, and electric vehicle conversions.
Under the Vehicle Parking Certificate (VPC) scheme, heavy vehicles in Singapore must have a parking space licensed by LTA. During the registration of a new heavy vehicle, road tax renewal, transfer of ownership or conversion, the heavy vehicle owner must show proof that they have a designated parking space.
Media related to Automobile ownership at Wikimedia Commons| Authority control databases: National |
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