Bangkok, Thailand – 23 March, 2021: Despite concerns about the Covid-19 pandemic affecting economy, almost two in three Thais (63%) plan to buy a car by October 2021, according to a survey by Carsome, Southeast Asia's largest integrated car e-commerce platform. Additionally, seven in ten people that plan to sell their car will do so within the same period of time, heralding a boost for the used car market in Thailand. The survey was conducted in October 2020 among 1,055 Thai consumers.
Compared to the pre-lockdown period, the number of Thai people who want to sell their cars increased by 15%, and among sellers, there was an 19% increase in the number of people that planned to sell their car using an online platform, highlighting the country’s acceleration towards a digital economy. After the lockdown three in five Thais (61%) indicated their preference in using an online platform due to the ease of selling.
“Our survey shows that the pandemic has changed attitudes towards how people buy and sell cars in Thailand. Increased comfort using online channels like Carsome to buy cars will help Thai drivers take more control over the sales process to enable a fast, convenient and hassle-free car sale. The preference of using online platforms has accelerated during the pandemic, and we expect this trend to continue in the future,” said Eric Cheng, Co-founder & Group CEO of Carsome.
The survey also discovered that Thais were highly likely to trust that car dealers or car inspection centers did their best to reduce potential contact with Covid-19 (94%), and in general Thai respondents showed the most developed understanding of potential Covid transmission risks in vehicles (94%) compared to Indonesians (90%) and Malaysians (85%) surveyed.
Across the region, driving habits saw significant changes during 2020, from owners regularly disinfecting the interior and exterior of their cars, wearing face masks while driving and placing hand sanitizer, tissues and a covered rubbish bin in their cars, to being less likely to use public transport and ride-hailing services to avoid potential exposure to the virus. During the year, over seven in ten Thais increased or maintained the use of their car and there was a 53% increase in the number of people that did not feel comfortable using public transport or ride-sharing services as a result of the pandemic.
“The reduced comfort level of sharing a vehicle, be it a car ride with strangers or on public transport, suggests more people may be in the market for a new or used car. Given the current economic situation, this points to an opportunity for growth in the used car market and we believe the value-added services we offer at Carsome along with the ease of selling, make our platform the ideal choice for Thai people,” added Eric.
Carsome is set to offer Thai customers a new way of buying cars through a trusted, convenient, and fast process in the coming months.
About Carsome
Carsome is Southeast Asia’s largest integrated car e-commerce platform. With operations across Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore, Carsome aims to digitize the region’s used car industry by reshaping and elevating the car buying and selling experience.
Carsome provides end-to-end solutions to consumers and used car dealers, from car inspection to ownership transfer to financing, promising a service that is trusted, convenient and efficient. Carsome currently transacts an annualized 70,000 cars totalling US$600 million in transacted value, and has more than 1,000 employees across all its offices.
For more information, please visit www.carsome.com.
