Aussie motorists hit by spiralling costs

A majority of Australians are paying more to keep their cars on the road and as many as 90 per cent feel that running costs have increased during the last 12 months, according to a survey of motorists.

The survey, commissioned by car insurer, Bingle, and conducted by Newspoll, indicates most Australians are concerned by the escalating costs of owning and operating a car. As much as 60 per cent of respondents nominated running a car as a faster growing burden than other living expenses such as gas and electricity. Despite that, an overwhelming majority (92 per cent) considered a car to be a vital component of modern living. A smaller majority (70 per cent) declared they would never give up driving their car, whatever the running cost.

"Given our research found the average cost of running a car is $5556 per year, it's easy to see why people are already cutting back so they can stay on the road," said Melanie Vine, a spokesperson for Bingle. "The average Australian income is $67,000 per year before tax and $5556 represents a fair chunk of that, so it's not surprising that our research also found 75 per cent of Aussies think it's just too expensive. Servicing, tolls, the rising cost of petrol, rego, and insurance all add up pretty quickly over the year."

There were other interesting stats thrown out by the survey. Among them, 55 per cent of respondents claim to have reduced spending in other areas to compensate for the cost of vehicle ownership. Only 22 per cent of owners said they would sell the car if costs continued to escalate.

While the federal government has already guaranteed that fuel for cars will not be affected by the proposed carbon tax, the survey of vehicle owners is timely, with major cities around Australian considering the imposition of a congestion tax.

Picture courtesy Shell

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