What is said to be the rising car travel costs is forcing changes in buying and drinking habits in Great Britain, if you can believe MoneySupermarket.com. One third of right-hand drive motorists could not live without their car as costs rise, says the web comparison-shopping site.
Moreover, 70% of motorists would make cutbacks of some sort to keep their beloved or cursed car on the road. These cost cuts allegedly include spending less on clothes and shoes (34%) reducing the amount they spend on their social life (33%), buying less alcohol and cigarettes (28%), going to the pub less often (26%), and reducing their spend on holiday breaks (26%).
The research also found 31% of drivers would find life “tricky” without a car, and more than half of motorists (53%) think a car is an extension of its owner’s personality, no surprise here for industry marketing execs.
“The cost of motoring is an increasingly hot topic, and with the price of fuel recently hitting record highs, it continues to put additional pressures on household finances,” said Pete Harrison, a car insurance adviser at MoneySupermarket.com. “It’s no surprise whatsoever Brits are making cutbacks to keep their cars on the road – many drivers, especially in rural areas, depend heavily on their cars on a daily basis to get them from A to B, and if the cost of motoring continues to rise as we have seen previously, these cutbacks may become a very significant reality.”
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
