LONDON: Halfords Plc, a British bicycle and car parts group, said the cost-of-living crisis is threatening Britain’s road safety as cash-strapped motorists keep cars running for longer.
The UK company said the average age of a vehicle on British roads is now 8.7 years, more than a year older than it was a decade ago.
In addition, while the average age of a car at scrappage is 13 years, the most recent industry data shows there are 8.4 million cars over 13 years old still running. That’s almost a quarter of all cars in the country.
"Based on what we’re seeing in our garages and taking into account continuing issues with the supply of new cars, we believe the average ages of cars will pass the nine year mark very soon and could even creep above 10 years before the cost-of-living crisis eases,” Graham Stapleton, chief executive officer of Halfords said in a statement today.
Older cars are more likely to develop faults, are more costly to maintain and are more polluting, he added.
However, vehicle reliability has improved in recent years, which means cars can run for longer than before.
Halfords offers a range of car services from MOT tests to tyre changes.
The company said it is introducing price cuts to help hard-pressed motorists and is offering free MOTs to its workforce of more than 10,000 employees.
Stapleton made the comments as Halfords reported more than 30% total revenue growth in the 20 weeks to Aug 19, compared to the same period last year.
The company said it’s on track to generate underlying pretax profit of between £65 million and £75 million (between RM338mil and RM390mil).
