IF THE Senate Bill 201 or the Proof of Parking Space Act will be passed into law, a car company said it would affect sales of the automotive industry as it will put on hold the buying appetite of consumers who don’t own a garage.
This is because Filipinos are quite used to buying cars even without ample space for parking, said Edward Joseph Francisco, Ford Philippines’ assistant vice president for communications.
“It’s generally going to affect the industry. So I think that is what is keeping the passage of the bill since lawmakers are studying all options,” he said. He noted this is another challenge the automotive industry will face after the passage of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (Train) Law in 2018.
Under the Train Law, the tax rate of brand new vehicles worth P600,000 and below was raised to four percent; those costing between P600,000 and P1 million at 10 percent; those priced between P1 million and P4 million at 20 percent; and those worth more than P4 million at 50 percent. It, however, gave tax exemptions for pick-up and electric vehicles. Hybrid vehicles were also taxed at half rates versus non-hybrid vehicles.
“The new auto excise tax dramatically impacted all the industry players, not just Ford. So I think they’re trying to temper in terms of consumer buying and purchase, since the law already affected demand, what more if there’s another law that prohibits you from buying a car if you don’t have a parking lot,”
Francisco said.
He added they’re seeing a “very flat growth” in 2019 because of the effects of the Train Law on automobiles.
“There’s a decline and it started to rise up, especially towards the last quarter where consumer spending is higher so we expect the demand to really go up at this quarter for the industry,” he said.
Consultations between lawmakers, regulators and industry players play a crucial role and are done regularly, acording to Francisco.
“We are governed by different groups that are being consulted every once in a while with regard to passage of bills because the government doesn’t want to lower consumer demand as it’s going to affect the economy,” he said.
Ford Philippines brought back to Cebu its Driving Skills for Life program to educate more drivers to become more safer and more responsible on the road.