EVs in vehicle finance and insurance shake-up
Dean Sheed (far right) and Michelle Herlihy at the Financial Services Federation’s conference alongside Oscar Ellison (far left), chief executive of car-sharing company YourDrive, and lawyer and leading driverless cars researcher Michael Cameron. Photo: RoOm Photographics
Electric vehicles, autonomous vehicles and car-sharing are set to disrupt how the finance and insurance sector operates, Drive Electric’s experts say.
The EV advocacy group’s board members Dean Sheed and Michelle Herlihy spoke on a panel at the Financial Services Federation’s conference this week, offering information and advice to the F&I sector about the new technologies.
Sheed urges the industry to learn more about EVs, AVs and car-sharing, which will eventually impact on vehicle ownership.
“Long-term, a change in the vehicle ownership model means finance and insurance companies will likely be providing more services to companies that own cars for hire, alongside individual owners,” says Sheed, who is also Audi NZ general manager.
“In terms of electric vehicles right now, what they can offer their customers is about to be enhanced at both ends of the market. In 2019 we’ll be on the cusp of a turning point with more models set to become available.
“The finance industry is an enabler for the trial and acceptance of EVs. It also has the biggest impact on uptake and generates good used cars in three years’ time.”
The new technologies provide challenges and opportunities that those in the finance and insurance sectors will have to get to grips with, says Herlihy, who is also NZ country leader for Custom Fleet.
“If current F&I providers don’t understand the model and the changing risk profile, someone else is going to step into that space.
“There are ways of pulling everything together that will include EVs, AVs and car-sharing.
“It’s about how to develop strategies to leverage the changes that are happening.”
Sheed is encouraging F&I leaders to engage with Drive Electric via its website, social media channels or by becoming members to support the growth of EVs in New Zealand, which has reached 10,248.
“At the moment we’re making pretty good progress increasing the number of EVs, but there’s a lot more work to do.
“In New Zealand we don’t have duties or tariffs on vehicles like other countries, so the government doesn’t have that lever to pull when influencing the market.
“They’re currently looking at alternatives that will help the country reach the government’s goal of 64,000 EVs on the road by 2021.”
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