Car ownership and use

Car ownership

Icelandic figures indicate that the ownership of cars among men is significantly higher than among women, with women owning only 37% of registered cars in 2017. These numbers have remained stable, as a government report from 2022 states that 64% of car owners in Iceland are men, and 36% are women. It is interesting to note the gender breakdown of single car owners in Iceland for the same year, as around 29,000 single women were registered for a car while single men were registered for 62,000 cars. However, the total number of single women was higher, meaning that approximately 5,200 more single men were registered for a car than women across the country. This suggests that a large group of men is registered for more than one car. Around 29,000 single women (out of 57,932) were not registered for any vehicle in 2017.

Men in Iceland are also more likely to own heavier and larger vehicles than women. Larger and heavier vehicles emit more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere and therefore pollute more. A car registry survey conducted in 2018 showed that cars owned by Icelandic women were generally more fuel-efficient, and 43% of environmentally-friendly cars were registered to women. Cars owned by women also emit 11% less greenhouse gases on average than cars owned by men. The two main reasons for this could be greater environmental awareness and lower purchasing power for women due to lower wages. When it comes to choosing cars, women generally consider factors such as fuel economy, environmental impact, and safety, while men place more emphasis on power, appearance, and range.

Environmentally friendly cars

Despite men owning more cars and often having a higher purchasing power, women seem to be relatively more likely to want to own an electric car. This could be explained by an increased willingness of women to change their behavior in favor of the environment as well as being more willing to spend more on such things than men.

According to an environmental survey by Gallup in 2022, women in Iceland were only slightly more likely than men to want to buy an electric car (48% of women versus 44% of men), and 53% of them cited environmental concerns as their main reason for switching the car fleet, while that was the main reason for 33% of men in the survey. According to figures from the Icelandic Transport Authority from 2020, 58% of electric car and plug-in hybrid car owners were men, and 42% were women. This is interesting because women own fewer cars than men, and one reason why women own smaller and more fuel-efficient cars may be due to lower purchasing power than men. Until now, electric cars have been more expensive than cars powered by fossil fuels. It is therefore questionable whether women are generally more willing to spend more on environmentally friendly cars or whether such cars are becoming more accessible due to government tax incentives, for example. This should be investigated.

Although government tax incentives such as tax cuts on the purchase of environmentally friendly vehicles lower the overall price, there is every likelihood that low-income groups and marginalized communities cannot take advantage of these incentives, as they lack the purchasing power to buy or switch to more expensive cars. Therefore, it should be considered whether money from mutual funds is best used to subsidize transportation for those who have the most resources to buy or switch to more expensive cars—households with higher incomes and businesses. Carbon taxes on cars powered by fossil fuels will disproportionately affect low-income groups as these groups are more likely to own older, more polluting cars. Investments in public transport are generally lagging behind tax incentives for environmentally friendly cars. Low-income groups are therefore at a disadvantage when it comes to access to transport at reasonable prices.