Collaborate, the ASX-listed company behind peer-to-peer car rental platform DriveMyCar, will be launching Carly — Australia’s first flexible car subscription.

Carly is an alternative to buying, leasing, or borrowing money to buy a car. It will offer access to a range of new and used vehicles from more than 20 automotive brands and include insurance, registration, and maintenance packaged into a single monthly payment with no long term commitments.

Carly will provide flexibility that many drivers are now seeking by removing  the long term financial commitment required to buy or finance a vehicle — removing the need to lock into long-term debt.

Subscribers will be able to start and stop their subscription and switch cars as their needs change. This could be a short term switch to a vehicle more suitable for a holiday, a longer term switch to cater for increasing family size, or pausing a subscription due to an extended holiday.

Carly can deliver the car to the subscriber’s address at the commencement of the subscription and whenever the car is switched.

Research indicates that younger generations have a higher propensity to consider subscribing to vehicles as they value the flexibility of access to a vehicle over the long term commitment required by ownership or financing.

Overall, new-vehicle sales across Australia declined 14.9% in December 2018 versus December 2017, indicating that Australians are re-considering the long term financial commitment involved in the outright purchase of a vehicle.

A range of automotive subscription products have already been launched in overseas markets, with a number of companies gaining traction in their respective markets supported by automotive manufacturers and venture capitalists.

The announcement of the Carly subscription service is consistent with Collaborate’s focus on facilitating the shift from ownership to access within the mobility industry in Australia. 

Carly will draw upon the fleet of vehicles provided by automotive manufacturers, leasing companies, and automotive dealers to the DriveMyCar marketplace. DriveMyCar has previously announced supply agreements with Subaru, Peugeot, Interleasing, Orix, Custom Fleet, and a range of automotive dealers including Cricks Tweed.  

Carly represents a complementary demand channel to DriveMyCar, which will continue to focus on vehicle rental propositions in the private, corporate, rideshare, and accident replacement markets. The Carly service leverages the existing systems and process of DriveMyCar and has been developed within the existing resources of the Collaborate group.

From today, consumers are able to register their interest online and receive a $200 upgrade to be used towards their first vehicle subscription when Carly launches to the public in March 2019.