Uber buys Australian car-sharing tech start up Car Next Door

Local car sharing tech start-up Car Next Door has been snapped up by Uber as the US rideshare group looks to bolster its offering around the country.

Local car-sharing service Car Next Door, led by Will Davies, has been snapped up by US rideshareing giant Uber for an undisclosed sum.

US rideshare giant Uber has made its first acquisition in Australia, snapping up tech start-up Car Next Door which offers vehicle rentals on an hourly or daily basis around the country.

The deal gives Uber access to a major car sharing platform with operations in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Cairns, Perth, Canberra, Adelaide, Hobart, Launceston and Newcastle.

The Car Next Door acquisition also gives the sharing business, which is understood to be cash positive, access to Uber’s deep pockets and the company’s burgeoning customer numbers.

The deal is now final and Car Next Door will report to Uber Australia but will retain its existing management team.

Implementation of the deal is set to be hammered out in the coming months, but Uber customers are expected to get access to Car Next Door’s rental options through the main Uber app.

Uber declined to reveal how much it paid for Car Next Door.

Uber Australia and New Zealand general manager Dom Taylor said 2022 marked 10 years of operations for Car Next Door and Uber in Australia.

“A lot has changed in that time but one thing has stayed constant: a shared vision that we need to make transport not just safe, convenient, and affordable – but also sustainable,” he said.

“Over the last decade, Uber has created shared rides options like Uber Pool, invested $800m globally to drive electric vehicle uptake, and integrated micromobility, and public transport options into the Uber app.”

“What our app users haven’t had though, is the option for those mid-range and longer-distance trips. This deal will change that, and mean that the Uber platform can be a reliable and convenient alternative to the choice to own a car.”

The move to buy Car Next Door also marks Uber’s first acquisition in Australia, in a deal that had been hammered out over much of 2021.

Uber was advised in-house on terms of the deal, while Car Next Door took its legal advice from Addisons and its mergers and acquisitions advice from advisory and accounting giant Deloitte.

Mr Taylor said the deal showed the trust from Uber’s senior management for the role Australia would play in the business “and how much trust they have in us testing car share”.

“(Australia) has been very much at the front end of a lot of the major innovations that have driven Uber’s growth,” he said.

Car Next Door chief executive and co-founder Will Davies said the deal with Uber would allow the business to scale up its size and scope.

“We’re hearing from more and more people that they no longer feel the need to own a car, because getting transport on demand saves them money and hassle,” he said.

“In the 10 years since Uber and we launched in Australia, attitudes to car ownership have really started to shift. We see this deal as a big step towards making car-free or car-light living accessible to more people in more places and freeing up space for people, not parking.”