Car Ownership Will Disappear In 5 Years' Time - Killed by Car-sharing And Ride-Hailing Services

Car ownership is in a decline, and it just might die a natural death in just five years' time. No one would want to pay the high cost of maintaining his own vehicle, not when there are other cheaper alternatives, like car-sharing and ride-sharing services, not to mention self-driving automobiles.

This prediction comes from Greg Bauer whose credentials in leading automotive companies like Tesla, Daimler, and BMV make him a credible expert on the subject. Bauer, who is now poised to launch the car financing start-up called Fair, says that recent ride-hailing platforms like Uber have made a lot of harrassed drivers realize that there are options to owning a vehicle. Maintenance is getting costly, and finding a parking space in the busy city can add to their stress. In the near future, it might be more economical to instead pay for a subscription service that will let you tap into a network where owners 'share' their cars. The business model would be similar to that of AirBnb.

In his interview with The Business Insider, Bauer adds that automated self-driving cars have become another argument against owning and paying for the upkeeps of personally-owned vehicles.

The car-sharing platform is also threatening to throw a wrench into the machinery run by the traditional rental company. This USA Today article points out that some of them can lease their car to a user for a tenth the price usually paid to rentals. Unlike rentals, insurance is also covered. And in cases of a freak accident, like a pebble hurling and destroying the windshield, no recriminations and long arguments happen. The ride-sharing platform just charges the user a small amount for the damages.

The giants of the automobile industry are getting into the act. GM will be constructing self-driving cars by the first quarter of 2017. It also bought the autonomous-car start up Cruise Automation. Toyota invested $10 million in the car-sharing service, Getaround. Uber, the pioneer that introduced ride-hailing, announced it will get into the self-driving business.

Bauer's predictions of the death of car ownership in five years may sound like a stretch to some. But it seems that the bigger players themselves are preparing for this possibility.