Many companies have adopted more pandemic-friendly work policies, including allowing employees to work from home. If it’s unlikely you’ll have to report to an office every day in the future, you might want to reconsider owning a car.
First, ask yourself whether you’d have access to another car if you were to sell your own? If not, are you comfortable using services like Uber, Bolt, inDriver or public transport? If you are, the next step is to think about how much your wheels are costing you.
The cost of your car
Owning a car isn’t cheap. It costs money even if you don’t use it. If you’re financing your car, you’ll have a debit order and an insurance premium going off each month. You’ll also need to consider fuel and maintenance costs, like replacing tyres or taking the car for a service.
Then, there’s depreciation. A car loses value the older it gets, even if you don’t drive it much. In some cases, if your vehicle is financed, you might find that you owe more in repayments than your car would be worth if you sold it!
The alternatives
Now that you know how much owning the car is costing you, you need to think about the cost of getting around without one.
Using services like Uber and Bolt can be expensive if you travel long distances every day. Luckily, most apps allow you to see what a trip will cost upfront, so you won’t get a fright at the other end. InDriver allows you to propose a fare, so it could work out cheaper in some cases. Total up your expected trips for the month and compare. If it’s less than your car repayments, insurance, and other monthly vehicle costs, selling your car could save you money.
Other considerations
The obvious benefit of owning a car is the convenience of being able to travel whenever and wherever you like. Having a car might also be safer than other options, such as public transport. A car canf also mean freedom and independence.
If your car is paid-up, you could sell it and invest the money you receive. That way, instead of holding onto an asset that depreciates, you’ll own one that could earn you a return. Alternatively, you could use the money from selling your car to settle other debt.
At the end of the day, owning a car is a personal decision. You’ll need to weigh up all costs and other considerations and make the choice that works best for you. Get out the calculator and do the sums — calculating how much your car is costing you is an interesting exercise, even if yours is staying snugly parked in the garage.
