Currently reading: Volvo launches new car subscription service in UK
Care by Volvo now available nationwide, with servicing, road tax and maintenance included in monthly fee

Volvo has launched its Care by Volvo subscription service across the UK, claiming that the scheme offers a “genuine, flexible alternative” to buying a car.

The scheme has previously been trialled on a regional basis in the UK but will now be offered nationwide across Volvo’s full range of cars. 

The monthly subscription payment covers the car, scheduled servicing, ‘wear-and-tear’ maintenance, replacement tyres, roadside assistance, road fund payments, tax and 10GB of in-car wi-fi per month.

Monthly payments start from £559 for an entry-level Volvo XC40 T3 Momentum, with no deposit needed. Insurance can be added as an option, with Volvo offering new customers a 30-day trial.

Customers can sign up to the Care by Volvo scheme online or at one of the Swedish firm’s dealerships, and cars can also be delivered. Customers can give three months notice to either switch cars or withdraw from the scheme.

Conor Horne, Care by Volvo’s UK boss, said the package was designed to be “transparent, convenient and flexible”. 

He added: “It is a great way for people to access the car they want, avoiding the complexities and the long-term commitments associated with traditional car ownership.”

The trial version of the scheme included the ability for subscribers to swap cars for a short period, for example enabling them to borrow a bigger car for a family holiday. That option has been dropped from the full version, because Volvo said there was limited demand for it.

Horne said that he expected most of the take-up to come from new customers and that he didn't believe the subscription scheme would end traditional finance offerings. He compared it to the growth of ebooks, saying: "The Amazon Kindle didn't kill the book, it just complemented that market."

Horne added that the initial plan was for Care by Volvo to account for around 5% of its UK deliveries next year, although there's a belief that it could exceed that. Take-up in other countries has exceeded expectations following pandemic-induced lockdowns.

Earlier this year, Volvo UK boss Kristian Elvefors told Autocar that the coronavirus crisis had accelerated a shift to digital car sales platforms and would be likely to have a lasting impact.

“What we’ve done in terms of actions to tackle the coronavirus has essentially been two years’ worth of digital development in just eight weeks,” he said. “Despite the lockdown, we decided not to furlough many of our staff to make sure that we could keep a lot of people working on new developments that would help us keep customers interested and really help when it was time to restart.

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“These are trends that we’ll see going forward. We’ll definitely see more of our operations move online in the future. We’ve learned so much working digitally which is going to be game-changing.”

In July, Volvo reported a 14.2% year-on-year sales increase globally, recording growth in the European, US and Chinese markets. Its XC40, XC60 and XC90 SUVs were by far its best-selling models, claiming a combined 72.8% of the brand's sales for the month. 

The Care by Volvo name was previously used on a more conventional leasing scheme.

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James Attwood

James Attwood, digital editor
Title: Acting magazine editor

James is Autocar's acting magazine editor. Having served in that role since June 2023, he is in charge of the day-to-day running of the world's oldest car magazine, and regularly interviews some of the biggest names in the industry to secure news and features, such as his world exclusive look into production of Volkswagen currywurst. Really.

Before first joining Autocar in 2017, James spent more than a decade in motorsport journalist, working on Autosport, autosport.com, F1 Racing and Motorsport News, covering everything from club rallying to top-level international events. He also spent 18 months running Move Electric, Haymarket's e-mobility title, where he developed knowledge of the e-bike and e-scooter markets. 

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Tycoon 2 September 2020

Who has a spare £600/month

Who has a spare £600/month for an entry level car :s
xxxx 2 September 2020

Who

It will be the same person who is limited to just 500 miles a month otherwise the price is even more.  How did auto car over look that change

WinstonAlexanderson 2 September 2020

Chinese program

another scheme to put hard working British dealers out of business and sending the money directly to China.

No thank you. They should sue like the Americans did and get this banned.

xxxx 2 September 2020

Improved car rental at end of the day

Better than their first effort which was 629 a month for a minimum of 2 years, or 15k for xc40 for 2 years use, yikees, fell flat on it's face.  But at the end of the day it's just  a rental scheme costing 1.7k for 3 months and I'm not sure how insurance works out, short time policy will knock the price up to near 2k for 3 months me thinks.

Limited and will only ever be a niche product 

Peter Cavellini 2 September 2020

Just like.

 Just like a mobility scheme, it operates something similar, yes, there a down payment, but including insurance, everything associated with owning and running a car is covered.