Car Subscription Services Grow in Popularity
Subscription services like Netflix and Spotify have become very popular in recent years. Now, a growing number of companies are offering subscriptions for something most people usually own: cars.
Most of the companies charge a monthly rate for the use of a vehicle, as well as insurance and other costs.
Steve Barnes uses a car subscription service in Atlanta, Georgia. He started using the service in 2016 so he could use many types of vehicles. He says for some activities with his children, he chooses a large SUV. But when he wants to go out with friends, he chooses a Tesla or some other type of sports car. He pays $1,400 a month for his subscription.
Still, he has no desire to own a car. He says his subscription has allowed him to drive many different vehicles that would cost more than $1 million to own.
Some of the world’s biggest carmakers are currently offering subscriptions for vehicles. One of them is Ford. The company signed a deal last year with subscription service Canvas. Monthly subscriptions start at $379 for small cars and go up to $1,125 for large SUVs. But these subscriptions limit drivers to 800 kilometers per month. For another $100, customers can get unlimited travel.
In the company's first 16 months in California, Canvas has attracted thousands of new customers in the San Francisco and Los Angeles areas.
