Has the conversion bonus, which allows you to get rid of your old car for a newer, less polluting model, been diverted from its original mission? In any case, this is the question posed by the CNPA (National Council of the Automobile Professions), an employers' organization which represents garage owners and dealers, while a new version of the premium should come into force shortly.
Victim of its success, with more than 350,000 signed checks, 100,000 more than the previous year, and 820 million euros paid in 2019 (compared to 596 million euros initially planned), the conversion premium has been a victim of its success. Moreover, on August 1, 2019, the conditions for granting this state aid were already largely restricted. For the benefit of the wealthiest motorists?
High-end vehicles especially concerned
“Since that date, almost 95% of the vehicles acquired thanks to the premium have been electric, rechargeable hybrid or Crit'Air 1 classified vehicles, observes Francis Bartholomé, president of the CNPA. However, this share was only 5% the previous year. »A radical change in the profile of the vehicles affected by the bonus. In this 95%, the share of thermal remains certainly the majority, at 86%. But they are necessarily petrol engines, stamped Crit'Air 1, so vehicles not really entry-level. And above all, the electric sector is gaining ground, with a 13% share. Vehicles still on average 30% more expensive than their thermal equivalent. There remains the rechargeable hybrid, even more expensive, which with 0.7% share, still struggles to seduce.
The CNPA wonders about the reasons for this sudden turnaround: "We all know that the device costs much more than expected," says the boss of the companies in the distribution and automotive services. One can wonder, in the light of this radical change in the profile of the vehicles which benefit from it, if it was not intentionally diverted from its initial purpose, a device with social and environmental aims, to become an aid to urban households. most favored. "
Rather help with repairs?
Bringing together nearly 140,000 companies and 500,000 jobs, the employers' organization would like the public authorities to conduct "a more global reflection on the support mechanisms for the renewal of the car fleet". "The purchase of a new car could be only one of the means, perhaps more economical," emphasizes Francis Bartholomé. Aid could, for example, accompany repairs, in order to allow owners to keep their car, while making it less polluting. ”Contacted on several occasions, the Ministry of Ecological and Social Transition did not respond to our requests.
