13 October,2026 04:44 PM IST | New Delhi | mid-day online correspondent
Representational Image. File pic.
Credit information company TransUnion CIBIL's latest report on Tuesday said the average passenger vehicle loan amount increased 49 per cent in the last seven years, while the average repayment tenure also became longer according to news agency PTI.
The average passenger vehicle loan amount rose to Rs 8.2 lakh in the first half of 2026, an increase of 49 per cent from the corresponding period in 2019. The average repayment tenure also increased by five months to 62 months.
"Car ownership is increasingly being shaped by a combination of aspiration and affordability. Consumers are choosing higher-value and feature-rich vehicles, while larger loan amounts and longer tenures are helping make these purchases more manageable," TransUnion CIBIL MD and CEO Bhavesh Jain said.
The demand for sports utility vehicles (SUV) and feature-rich cars was visible in semi-urban and rural areas, with 51 per cent of borrowers taking loans for higher-value cars in the January-June period from these areas, according to the report Shifting Gears 2026- Credit Drives Today's Mobility'.
The active passenger vehicle borrower base expanded 1.7 times to reach 2.5 crore as of June 2026, from the 2019 level.
Delinquency in passenger vehicle loans, measured by balances overdue for more than 90 days, declined to 0.5 per cent from the year-ago-period benchmark of 1.45 per cent in June 2019, as per PTI.
Borrowers with established credit histories were increasingly participating in two-wheeler financing, according to the report. Their share rose to 43 per cent in the first half of 2026 from 27 per cent in the corresponding period of 2019, while first-time borrowers' share fell to 39 per cent, as per PTI.
The active borrower base in the two-wheeler segment surged to 3.3 crore from 1.7 crore in June 2019. Outstanding two-wheeler loan balances increased 3.2 times to Rs 1.76 lakh crore in June 2026, while the 90-day-plus delinquency rate declined to 1.4 per cent from 2.7 per cent.
Almost 64 per cent of two-wheeler loans in the first half of 2026 was from borrowers from semi-urban and rural areas. The report noted that 43 per cent of borrowers were aged 30 years or younger in the two-wheeler loan segment.
Rural originations among consumers upgrading from two-wheelers to cars grew at a compound annual growth rate of 15 per cent since 2019, as against 8 per cent for overall auto-loan originations.
Non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) accounted for the largest share of vehicle loans with 73 per cent of two-wheeler loans and 37 per cent of passenger vehicle loans.
(With inputs from PTI)
