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How Germany Washes in 2024: Insights into the Latest Trends and Developments in the Car Wash Industry

The car wash industry in Germany has experienced some interesting developments in recent years. Despite economic challenges, such as high inflation, the latest customer surveys reveal that trust in automatic car washes remains strong. In this post, we take a closer look at the current trends and provide an overview of the key findings from the 2024 customer survey.

High Customer Satisfaction Despite Rising Prices

Inflation over the past two years has driven up purchase prices in the car wash industry, forcing many operators to adjust their prices. However, despite these price increases, customers rated the price-performance ratio at 4.55 out of 5 stars—the highest score since 2020. This shows that customers are willing to pay for quality and have strong trust in automatic car washes.

Customer satisfaction regarding price-performance ratio.

The Return of Frequent Washers

An especially interesting trend this year is the increase in so-called “frequent washers”—customers who wash their cars every week. This group is particularly important to car wash operators, as they invest a lot of time and money in maintaining their vehicles. In the current survey, 19.6% of respondents stated that they wash their cars weekly, a significant increase compared to 2022, when the percentage was at a historic low of just 12%.

Visualization of frequent washers’ habits.

Differences in Car Age and Washing Frequency

This year’s analysis has, for the first time, examined the relationship between the age of vehicles and washing frequency. It was found that in automatic car washes, the washing frequency decreases as the age of the vehicle increases. In contrast, the data shows that at self-service (SB) wash stations, older vehicles are washed more frequently. This may indicate that older vehicles are often washed by owners who prefer to maintain their cars themselves.

Customer Loyalty Remains Strong

Another key finding from the survey concerns customer loyalty. The percentage of loyal customers has decreased slightly by 2.7 percentage points compared to the last survey but remains high at 82.3%. It is noteworthy that even new car wash facilities receive good ratings, despite having a loyal customer base of less than 75%.

Trends in customer loyalty.

Younger Cars in Car Washes

While the average age of registered cars in Germany is 10.7 years, according to the Federal Motor Transport Authority, the average age of cars washed in car wash facilities is about 7 years. Interestingly, vehicles older than 12 years play almost no role in car washes and tunnel washes, but they are still frequently seen at self-service car wash stations.

Age distribution of vehicles in car washes and self-service wash stations.

Conclusion

The results of the 2024 customer survey show that the car wash industry in Germany is on a positive path. Despite price increases and economic challenges, customer satisfaction remains high, and there is a positive trend among frequent washers. Even though customer loyalty has slightly decreased, it remains at a high level, which is a good sign for the future of the industry.

For more details and the full survey results, please visit the website www.carwashblog.de or download the complete report.

This post is based on the latest data from the 2024 customer survey by carwashinfo.