Around one-in-10 considering buying their next car online, although almost half believe they can get the same deal from a retailer.
Around one-in-10 car buyers are considering purchasing their next vehicle entirely online, according to What Car?’s latest market research. What Car’s weekly survey of 1181 in-market consumers found 49.9% would be comfortable buying their next car entirely online, although just 9.3% plan to do so. The majority (72.8%) are planning to buy via a mix of online research and direct shopping with
dealers.
The research also asked people whether the current semiconductor chip shortage has made them more likely to consider buying a car online, with 35.3% believing online shopping may help them find available stock more easily.
While significant, the response rate is similar to the same question asked in October 2021, suggesting the semiconductor shortage hasn’t significantly changed consumer attitudes in the past seven months regarding online buying.
However, a majority of buyers believe online retailers do not offer better deals than traditional dealerships, with 48.7% of respondents saying they believe they could get the same deal on a car whether buying in person or online, and 29.2% believe buying direct from a dealer would result in a better deal. Only around a fifth (22.1%) said buying online was likely to result in them getting the best price on their next car.
