The automotive admin app Caura has calling on garages to be more equal after a new study found that women typically pay five percent more for vehicle repairs.
This International Women’s Day, the company found that many women are still more apprehensive to take their car to a garage, with many being charged more than male motorists.
Janice Pang, Head of Vehicle Maintenance at Caura, noted that garages should be completely impartial when making quotes.
She explained: “Cars don’t judge their drivers, whether they’re male or female, so why should garages?
“A one percent increase in price [when looking at male versus female] in either gender swing is wrong, but when our research shows a five percent increase [on average] on like-for-like pricing, we were shocked by prejudice in pricing for women.”
To determine the difference in prices quoted to male and female drivers, Caura got in touch with 100 garages and asked for quotes to service the same car using the names ‘Edward’ and ‘Emma’.
Out of the 70 locations that responded, the average cost to service a car owned by a male motorist was £229, whereas a female driver would typically pay £241 for the same job.
The company noted that one garage in particular charged ‘Emma’ over three times more than ‘Edward’ to service their vehicle, with the female motorist charged £475.
Similarly, a recent YouGov survey of 4,000 men and women across the UK found that young people in particular feel that garages are not always a gender equal space, with 65 percent of respondents aged between 18 and 24 stating they are spaces mostly tailored for men.
The study also found that 46 percent of females taking part felt as if they are pressured to quickly make decisions on work done to their vehicle, with 45 percent stating they felt confused by it.
Nevertheless, some 83 percent of women drivers said that they have a good knowledge of motoring terms and the issues their vehicle could have, suggesting that many garages describe automotive faults in a deliberately confusing way to pressure customers.
Janice noted that motorists are able to get fairer quotes for servicing and repairs by using a number of apps or online websites, such as Caura.
She added: “When our users shop for vehicle maintenance in-app, the pricing is transparent and upfront which guarentees there is no bias.
“Furthermore, Caura also checks pricing for all additional repairs identified by a garage to ensure it is sensible for the type of work recommended. This ensures that costs are based solely on the vehicle’s needs and not influenced by the gender of the customer, promoting fairness and equality in every in-app interaction.”
