The use of the collaborative economy.
Date: 2018-10-08
Institutions: Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs
Subjects: EU Member State, Internet, Internet site, data collection, economic development, economic indicator, economic model, organisation of work, sustainable development

Flash Eurobarometer 467 

Report 

The use of the collaborative economy 

Fieldwork 
April 2018 
Publication 
October 2018 

Survey requested by the European Commission,  
Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs 
and co-ordinated by the Directorate-General for Communication 

This document does not represent the point of view of the European Commission. 
The interpretations and opinions contained in it are solely those of the authors. 

Flash Eurobarometer 467 – TNS Political & Social 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Flash Eurobarometer 467 

Report 

The use of the collaborative economy 

April 2018 

Survey conducted by TNS Political & Social at the request of the European Commission, 
Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs 

Survey co-ordinated by the European Commission, Directorate-General for Communication 
(DG COMM “Media monitoring, media analysis and Eurobarometer” Unit) 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Project number 
Project title 

Linguistic version 
Catalogue number 
ISBN 

© European Union, 2018 

2018.5489 
Flash Eurobarometer 467 - April 2018 
“The use of the collaborative economy” 
Report 
EN 
ET-06-18-147-EN-N 
978-92-79-93950-1 
doi:10.2873/312120 

http://ec.europa.eu/commfrontoffice/publicopinion  

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The use of the collaborative economy 

April 2018 

TABLE OF CONTENTS 

INTRODUCTION 

KEY FINDINGS 

Flash Eurobarometer 467 

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2 

4 

7 

7 

7 

11 

23 

27 

27 

39 

51 

56 

62 

62 

62 

66 

I. USE OF SERVICES OFFERED VIA COLLABORATIVE PLATFORMS 

1  Using services offered via collaborative platforms 

a.  Frequency of use of services offered via collaborative platforms 

b.  Use of services offered via collaborative platforms by sector 

2  Overall feedback on services offered via collaborative platforms 

3  Advantages and disadvantages of using collaborative platforms as a user 

a.  Advantages of collaborative platforms compared with traditional channels 

b.  Disadvantages of collaborative platforms compared with traditional channels 

4  Reasons for not using services offered via collaborative platforms 

5 

Impact of collaborative platforms on the overall use of services 

II. PROVISION OF SERVICES VIA COLLABORATIVE PLATFORMS 

1  Offering services via collaborative platforms 

a.  Frequency of offering services via collaborative platforms 

b.  Offering services via collaborative platforms by sector 

2  Advantages and disadvantages of using collaborative platforms as a provider 69 

a.  Main reasons for offering services via collaborative platforms 

b.  Main problems encountered when providing services via collaborative platforms 

3  Non-providers’ attitudes towards collaborative platforms 

a.  Reasons for not offering services via collaborative platforms 

b.  Possibility of offering services via collaborative platforms 

c.  Frequency of use of traditional channels to offer services 

III. USER-PROVIDER PROFILING OF RESPONDENTS 

69 

73 

76 

76 

81 

84 

 87 

ANNEXES 

Technical specifications 

Questionnaire 

Tables  

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The use of the collaborative economy 

April 2018 

INTRODUCTION 

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Report 

The  collaborative  economy  has  experienced  rapid  growth  and  development  in  Europe  in  the  past 
years. It offers new opportunities leading to more choice and lower prices for consumers and allows 
citizens  and  entrepreneurs  to  offer  services  either  on  an  occasional  basis  or  professionally, 
contributing to growth and jobs in Europe. The rapid development of the collaborative economy in 
Europe  has  also  raised  questions,  inter  alia  as  regards  consumer  and  employee  rights  and  the 
application of existing legislation. 

In its Communication on “A European Agenda for Collaborative Economy”, issued in June 2016, the 
European Commission announced that it would continuously review developments in the European 
collaborative economy.1 This second Eurobarometer survey on the collaborative economy is part of 
this  review.  It  seeks  to  shed  light  on  citizens’  perceptions,  attitudes  and  practices  in  relation  to 
collaborative  platforms2  and  the  services  offered  via  those  platforms,  and  follows  a  first 
Eurobarometer survey on collaborative platforms that was conducted in March 20163. 

The first chapter of this report provides an overview of the European Union citizens’ awareness and 
frequency of use of collaborative platforms, their assessment of the advantages and disadvantages 
of using such platforms, and the impact of these platforms on their behaviour with respect to the 
purchasing of services. The second chapter focuses on the use of collaborative platforms to provide 
services  in  EU  countries,  focusing  on  the  frequency  with  which  providers  offer  services  via  these 
channels, their reasons for doing so, and the reasons why some service providers do not use these 
channels. Finally, the third chapter examines the profiles of respondents as users, providers, or both 
users and providers of services via collaborative platforms. 

This  survey  was  carried  out  by  TNS  Political  &  Social  network  in  the  28  Member  States  of  the 
European Union between the 23rd and the 30th April 2018. Some 26,544 respondents from different 
social and demographic groups were interviewed via telephone (landline and mobile phone) in their 
mother  tongue  on  behalf  of  the  European  Commission,  Directorate-General for  Internal  Market, 
Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs. The methodology used is that of Eurobarometer surveys as 
carried out by the Directorate-General for Communication (“Media monitoring, media analysis and 
Eurobarometer” Unit)4. 

1 COM(2016) 356 final. For more information: http://ec.europa.eu/growth/single-market/services/collaborative-economy_en. According to 
this Communication, collaborative economy involves three categories of actors: services providers, users of services and intermediaries 
that connect – via an online platform – providers and users and that facilitate transactions between them (‘collaborative platforms’). 
2 Collaborative platforms are specialist internet-based websites or apps that provide an open marketplace where consumers can connect 
with  people  offering  services.  Collaborative  platforms  are  at  the  centre  of  the  collaborative  economy  as  they  enable  transactions 
between people providing and people using a service. They are used for a wide range of services ranging from renting accommodation 
and car sharing to small household jobs. 
3 http://ec.europa.eu/commfrontoffice/publicopinion/index.cfm/Survey/getSurveyDetail/instruments/FLASH/surveyKy/2112   
4 http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/index_en.htm  

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Note: In this report, countries are referred to by their official abbreviation. The abbreviations used in 
this report correspond to: 

Belgium 
Czech Republic 
Bulgaria 
Denmark  
Germany 
Estonia 
Greece 
Spain 
France 
Croatia 
Ireland 
Italy 
Republic of Cyprus 
Lithuania 

BE 
CZ 
BG 
DK 
DE 
EE 
EL 
ES 
FR 
HR 
IE 
IT 
CY* 
LT 

Latvia 
Luxembourg  
Hungary 
Malta 
The Netherlands 
Austria 
Poland 
Portugal  
Romania 
Slovenia 
Slovakia 
Finland 
Sweden 
United Kingdom 

LV 
LU 
HU 
MT 
NL 
AT 
PL 
PT 
RO 
SI 
SK 
FI 
SE 
UK  

*Cyprus  as  a  whole  is  one  of  the  28  European  Union  Member  States.  However,  the  ‘acquis 
communautaire’  has  been  suspended  in  the  part  of  the  country  which  is  not  controlled  by  the 
government of the Republic of Cyprus. For practical reasons, only the interviews carried out in the 
part of the country controlled by the government of the Republic of Cyprus are included in the ‘CY’ 
category and in the EU28 average. 

We wish to thank the people throughout the European Union 

who have given their time to take part in this survey. 

Without their active participation, this study would not have been possible. 

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Nearly a quarter of Europeans have used services offered via collaborative platforms, 
mostly in the accommodation and transport sectors 

§ 

Just  under  a  quarter  (23%)  of  respondents  have  used  services  offered  via  collaborative 
platforms, but very few use such services on a regular basis i.e. at least once per month (4%). 

§  Apart from the potential impact that the different wording of the question used might have 
had on the results observed in 2016 in the previous Eurobarometer survey on this topic, the 
present survey indicates an increase in the proportion of those who used services offered via 
collaborative platforms (23% now compared to 17% in 2016). 

• 

• 

However, there is a significant variation between Member States, ranging from 40% in 
Latvia to 17% in Portugal. 

Younger respondents, those with the highest levels of education, those who live in large 
towns, and employees and the self-employed are the most likely to use services offered 
via collaborative platforms. 

§  Among  those  who  have  used  collaborative  platforms  to  access  services,  over  half  have 
accessed  services  in  the  accommodation  (57%) and  transport  (51%)  sectors,  but  few  have 
accessed professional services (9%) or collaborative finance (8%). 

A large majority of those who have used collaborative services would recommend them 
to others 

§  Among those who have used services offered via collaborative platforms, nearly nine in ten 
(88%) would recommend those services, and less than one in ten (7%) would not recommend 
them. 

The most frequently mentioned advantage of collaborative platforms is a convenient 
access to services, while the main disadvantage is the lack of clarity about who is 
responsible in case of problems  

§  A majority of users mention convenient access to services (73%), availability of user ratings 
and reviews (60%), the fact that services are cheaper or free (59%), and the wider choice of 
services  (56%)  as  advantages  of  using  collaborative  platforms  compared  to  traditional 
channels.  The  opportunity  to  interact  with  interesting  people  (34%)  and  the  possibility  to 
exchange  services  without  paying  for  them  (31%)  are  less  often  mentioned  advantages  of 
services offered via collaborative platforms. 

§ 

Just under half (49%) see lack of clarity about who is responsible in the event of a problem 
as  the  biggest  disadvantage.  More  than  one  third  also  mention  misleading  ratings  and 
reviews  from  other  users  (38%),  misuse  of  personal  data  (37%)  and  less  trust  in  the 
providers  of  services  (34%).  The  least  mentioned  disadvantages  are  the  fact  that  services 
offered  are  not  as  expected  (24%)  and  problems  with  online  booking  process  or  payments 
(22%). 

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§  While  only  2%  of  users  spontaneously  say  there  are  no  advantages  of  using  collaborative 
platforms  compared  with  traditional  channels,  15%  spontaneously  say  there  are  no 
disadvantages. 

§  On average,  each user mentions around three advantages and two disadvantages of using 

collaborative platforms compared with traditional channels. 

The most common reasons for not using collaborative platforms are not knowing what 
they are, or having preference for traditional channels 

§ 

Just over a third of those who do not use collaborative platforms do not use them because 
they do not know what they are (36%) or because they prefer services offered via traditional 
channels (34%). While there is considerable variation at the country level, one of these two 
reasons is the most frequently mentioned in all countries. 

•  Women, older respondents, and those with lower levels of education are more likely to 
be unaware of these services, while those with higher levels of education are more likely 
to  have  concerns  about trusting these  services  or  sharing  their  personal  data on these 
platforms. 

Six in ten of the users of services offered via collaborative platforms use these services 
on top of their habitual usage of services offered via traditional channels or as 
newcomers to the market 

§  For six in ten (60%) of the users of services offered via collaborative platforms, the use of 
these services did not impact the extent to which they continued using services offered via 
traditional channels.  

•  More  specifically,  one  third  (33%)  of  the  users  of  collaborative  platforms  say  they 
continue  to  use  services  offered  via  traditional  channels  to  approximately  the  same 
extent, but they now additionally use these same services via collaborative platforms; at 
the same time, just over a quarter (27%) say that they only started using these services 
when they became available via collaborative platforms. 

§  On the other hand, around one third (32%) of the users of collaborative platforms, say that 
the use of services via collaborative platforms has replaced the use of services via traditional 
channels to at least some extent.  

•  More  specifically,  a  fifth  of  the  users  of  collaborative  platforms  (20%)  have  to  some 
extent  replaced  services  they  used  via  traditional  channels  with  services  offered  via 
collaborative platforms, while just over one in ten (12%) have completely replaced some 
kinds of services and now use these services only via collaborative platforms. 

Very few Europeans have offered services via collaborative platforms 

§  Only  6%  of  Europeans  have  offered  services  via  collaborative  platforms,  with  3%  having 
offered them once or a few times, 2% offering them occasionally, and only 1% offering them 
on a regular basis. 

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§  Only one in ten providers (10%) say that the providing of services via collaborative platform 

represent their main source of income. 

§  Transport  (44%)  and  accommodation  (35%)  are  the  sectors  most  frequently  mentioned  by 

those who have offered services via collaborative platforms. 

While providers have a variety of reasons for offering services via collaborative 
platforms, nearly half spontaneously say they had not encountered any problems 

§  When asked to identify the reasons for offering services via collaborative platforms, just over 
half  of  providers  say  that  these  platforms  offer  an  easy  way  to  interact  with  consumers 
(53%) and a more sustainable and efficient use of available assets (51%), while half say that 
they  give  access  to  more  consumers  (50%)  and  represent  an  additional  source  of  income 
(50%).  

§  Conversely, when asked to identify the main problems they had encountered when providing 
services  via  a  collaborative  platform,  nearly  half  spontaneously  say  that  they  had  not 
encountered any problems (46%).  

• 

The problem most frequently mentioned is the lack of clarity about how to provide the 
service  legally  (22%),  followed  by  difficulties  with  customers  using  the  services  and 
complicated systems for paying tax (both 19%). 

Almost one fifth of Europeans who have not yet provided services via collaborative 
platforms would consider doing so 

§ 

Just under a fifth (19%) of those who have not provided services via collaborative platforms 
would consider doing so.  

§  Among those who never offered services via collaborative platforms, almost two thirds (64%) 

say that they have never done so because they have no time nor interest. 

•  Lack of technical knowledge about how to use collaborative platforms (31%), lack of trust 
in  the  online  booking  process  or  payments  (25%),  lack  of  trust  in  consumers  using  the 
services (24%) and lack of clarity about how to provide the service legally (22%) are also 
mentioned by more than one fifth of non-providers as a reason for having never offered 
services via collaborative platforms. 

§  More than one in ten (14%) of Europeans who have never offered services via collaborative 

platforms occasionally offer services via traditional channels, as private individuals. 

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I.  USE OF SERVICES OFFERED VIA COLLABORATIVE PLATFORMS 

In this section, we present the findings of a series of questions on European citizens’ awareness of, 
and frequency of use of collaborative platforms.  

1  Using services offered via collaborative platforms 

Respondents were asked whether they had ever used a service offered via a collaborative platform, 
and if so, how frequently5. Those who gave a positive answer to this question were then asked in 
which sectors they had used these services6. 

a.  Frequency of use of services offered via collaborative platforms 

Nearly a quarter of Europeans have used services offered via collaborative platforms 

Just  under  a  quarter  (23%)  of  respondents  say  that  they  have  used  services  offered  via 
collaborative  platforms.  Around  one  in  ten  have  used  such  services  once  or  a  few  times  (9%)  or 
occasionally (i.e. once every few months) (10%), and 4% use such platforms regularly (i.e. once a 
month or more often). 

Base: all respondents (n= 26,544) 

5 D8. Have  you ever used a service offered via a collaborative platform? ONE ANSWER ONLY No, never; Yes, once or a few times; Yes, 
occasionally (i.e. once every few months); Yes, regularly (i.e. once a month or more often); Don’t know. 
6  Q2.  In  which  of  the  following  sectors  have  you  used  a  service  offered  via  a  collaborative  platform?  MULTIPLE  ANSWERS  POSSIBLE 
Transport  (e.g.  car  sharing);  Accommodation  (e.g.  renting  an  apartment);  Food-related  services  (e.g.  home  delivery,  food  sharing); 
Household services (e.g. gardening, repairs, child care); Professional services (e.g. IT services, accounting); Collaborative finance (e.g. peer-
to-peer lending or crowd-funding); Other; Don’t know. 

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The results  of  the  survey  indicate  that  the proportion  of those  who say  they have used a service 
offered  via  a  collaborative  platform  has  increased  since  the  previous  Eurobarometer  survey  in 
20167. Although the  question and the answer options were worded  differently8, the proportion of 
those who said they used services via these platforms was 17%, while the proportion of those who 
said either they had never heard of these platforms or they had heard of them but never visited 
them was 81%.  

In  all  28  Member  States,  only  a  minority  of  respondents  have  used  services  offered  via  a 
collaborative platform. However, there is significant variation between countries. More than a third 
of respondents have done so in Latvia (40%), Malta (35%) and Ireland (34%). At the other end of 
the  scale,  in  nine  countries,  less  than  a  fifth  of  the  respondents  have  used  services  offered  via 
collaborative  platforms,  with  the  lowest  proportions  of  users  observed  in  Bulgaria  and  Portugal 
(both 17%).  

Base: all respondents (n= 26,544) 

7 FL438 on “The use of collaborative platforms”: 
http://ec.europa.eu/commfrontoffice/publicopinion/index.cfm/Survey/getSurveyDetail/instruments/FLASH/surveyKy/2112.  
8 Q1 Which of the following matches your experience regarding this type of platform? You have never heard of these platforms; You have 
heard of these platforms but you have never visited them; You have been on one or more of these platforms and paid for a service once; 
You use the services of these platforms occasionally (once every few months); You use the services of these platforms regularly (at least 
every month); Other (DO NOT READ OUT); None (DO NOT READ OUT); DK/NA (DO NOT READ OUT). 

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Base: all respondents (n= 26,544) 

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There  are  several  significant  socio-demographic  differences  in  the  proportions  of  those  who 
have used services offered via collaborative platforms. 

§  Nearly  four  in  ten  respondents  aged  15-24  (37%)  or  25-39  (38%)  have  used  a  service 
offered  via  a  collaborative  platform at least  once  or  a  few  times, compared with just over 
one in ten (11%) among those aged 55 or more. 

§  Nearly a third (32%) of those who have finished education at the age of 20 or more have 
done so, compared with only 5% among those who have finished education at the age of 15 
or less. 

§ 

Just over a third  (34%) of respondents living in large towns have used services offered via 
collaborative platforms, compared with less than a fifth (19%) of those living in rural areas. 

§  Over a third of employees (34%) and of the  self-employed (37%) have done so, compared 

with less than a fifth of manual workers (15%) and of those not working (16%).  

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b.  Use of services offered via collaborative platforms by sector 

Services in the accommodation and transport sectors are those that are most frequently 
used via collaborative platforms 

Among  respondents  who  have  used  services  offered  via  collaborative  platforms,  over  half  have 
done  so  in  the  accommodation  (57%)  and  transport  (51%)  sectors.  A  third  of  these  respondents 
(33%) have used collaborative platforms to access food-related services, and just over one in ten 
(14%) have done so to access household services. Fewer respondents have used these platforms to 
access  professional  services  (9%),  collaborative  finance  (8%)  or  spontaneously  mention  other 
sectors (6%). 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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There are significant differences at country level on this question9.  

In 15 of the 28 Member States, the largest proportion of those who have used services offered via 
collaborative  platforms  have  done  so  in  the  accommodation  sector,  while  in  12  countries,  the 
largest proportion have accessed services in the transport sector. In Slovakia, the most frequently-
used services offered via collaborative platforms are those related to food (50%) and in the United 
Kingdom  the  most  frequently-used  services  are  accommodation  and  food-related  services  (both 
55%). 

Q2

In	which	of	the	following	sectors	have	you	used	a	service	offered	via	a	collaborative	platform?
(MULTIPLE	ANSWERS	POSSIBLE)
(%	-	THE	MOST	MENTIONED	ANSWER	BY	COUNTRY)

69

68

68

67

62

62

62

61

60

57

56

55
55

54

49

49

44

81

76

68

66

64

64

64

60

59

58

51

49

50

ES

IE

FI

EL

BG

DE

AT

NL

HU EU28

IT

UK

BE

CY

SE MT

LT

EE

PT

FR

CZ

PL

SI

HR

DK

LU

LV

RO

SK

Accommodation	(e.g.	renting	an	apartment)

Transport	(e.g.	car	sharing)

Food-related	services	(e.g.	home	delivery,	food	sharing)

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

9 Results for Cyprus (n=93) and Luxembourg (n=110) should be treated with caution due to low sample sizes. 

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When recalculating these results on the total base of respondents, it can be observed that 14% of 
all respondents have used services in the accommodation sector, while 12% have done so in the 
transport sector. 

Base: All respondents (n= 26,544) 

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Base: All respondents (n= 26,544) 

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In 18 countries, at least half of those who have used services offered via collaborative platforms 
have  done  so  in  the  accommodation  sector10.  Four  cases  stand  out  for  particularly  large 
proportions,  with  more  than  two  thirds  in  Spain  (69%),  Finland  (68%),  Ireland  (68%)  and  Greece 
(67%) using collaborative platforms to access services in this sector. At the other end of the scale, 
in Latvia (27%) and Lithuania (31%) less than a third of the users of collaborative platforms have 
used them to access services in the accommodation sector. 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

10  Here  and  throughout  the  country  analysis  of  the  results  for  this  question  (Q2),  results  for  Cyprus  (n=93)  and  Luxembourg  (n=110) 
should be treated with caution due to low sample sizes. 

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In 14 of the 28 Member States, at least half of those who have used collaborative platforms have 
used them to access services  in the transport sector, ranging from 50% in Italy and the United 
Kingdom to 76% in Estonia and 81% in Lithuania. Yet in four cases, less than a third of respondents 
have used collaborative platforms to access these services: Hungary (20%), Slovakia (25%), Finland 
(26%) and the Netherlands (27%). 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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In the United Kingdom (55%), Slovakia (50%), Ireland (49%) and the Netherlands (44%), more than 
four  in  ten  of  the  users  of  collaborative  platforms,  have  used  these  platforms  to  access  food-
related  services,  but  in  17  of  the  28 Member  States,  the  proportion  of  these  respondents  that 
have used food-related  services  is  less  than  the  EU  average  of  33%,  and  in  Denmark  (14%)  and 
Italy (16%) less than a fifth used collaborative platforms to access this type of services. 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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Among the respondents who use collaborative platforms, just a minority in each country have used 
them to access services in the household services sector, with the highest proportions in Latvia 
(26%) and Malta (25%). In all but six cases, less than a fifth have accessed this type of services via 
collaborative platforms. In nine countries, less than one in ten give this answer, with particularly low 
proportions in Lithuania (4%) and Portugal (4%), where it is the sector least frequently mentioned 
by respondents. 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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In all countries, less than a fifth of the respondents who are users of collaborative platforms, have 
used these platforms  to  access professional  services. Bulgaria (18%), Ireland  and Luxembourg 
(both 16%) have the highest proportions of users of services of this sector, but in 10 countries less 
than one in ten of the users of collaborative platforms have used them for this purpose. In seven 
countries, the sector of professional services is the least frequently mentioned sector. 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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In France, Luxembourg, Malta (all 15%), Ireland (12%) and the United Kingdom (13%), over one in 
ten have used collaborative platforms to access services of the collaborative finance sector, but, 
in most Member  States, the  proportion  of users who have used collaborative platforms to access 
these  services  is  in  single  digits,  with  particularly  low  proportions  in  Denmark,  Croatia,  Hungary, 
Romania  (all  2%)  and  Italy  (1%).  In  18  countries,  the  collaborative  finance  sector  is  the  least 
mentioned sector.  

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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There are several socio-demographic differences on this question, although they mostly apply to 
the three most popular service areas (transport, accommodation, and food-related services). 

§  Men are more likely than women to have used services offered via collaborative platforms in 
the transport sector (54%, compared with 47%), but less likely to have used such services in 
the accommodation sector (53%, compared with 60%). 

§  The age of the respondent seems to be inversely proportional to the likelihood to use services 
offered  via  collaborative  platforms  in  the  sectors  of  transport  and  food,  with  the  youngest 
respondents the most likely to do so: for instance, over six in ten (63%) of those aged 15-24 
have used services offered via collaborative platforms in the transport sector, compared with 
55% among those aged 25-39, 43% among those aged 40-54 and just less than four in ten 
(39%) of those aged 55 years or more. However, middle-aged respondents are more likely to 
use services offered via collaborative platforms in the accommodation sector: over six in ten 
of  those  aged  25-39  or  40-54  use  these  services  (62% and  61%,  respectively),  compared 
with just over half (51%) of those aged 55 or more, and less than half (45%) of those aged 
15-24. 

§  Those  who  live  in  large  towns  are  more  likely  than  those  who  live  in  rural  villages  to  use 
services  offered  via  collaborative  platforms  in  the  transport  (57%,  compared  with  42%), 
food-related (38% vs. 28%) and household services (17% vs. 11%) sectors. 

§  The  self-employed  and  employees  (both  62%)  are  significantly  more  likely  to  use 
accommodation services  offered via collaborative  platforms than  manual  workers  (45%)  or 
those not in employment (47%). 

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2  Overall feedback on services offered via collaborative platforms 

Respondents  who  said  they  had  used  services  offered  via  collaborative  platforms  were  asked 
whether they would recommend these services or not11. 

Almost nine in ten of those who have used services offered via collaborative platforms 
would recommend them to others 

Among those who have used services offered via collaborative platforms, nearly nine in ten (88%) 
would  recommend  those  services.  Just  over  a  third  (35%)  say  they  would  definitely  recommend 
these services, while just over half (53%) would recommend them to some extent. Less than one in 
ten (7%) would not recommend them, with only 2% of respondents saying they would definitely not 
do  so.  A  small  minority  (4%)  of  users  spontaneously  say  they  would  recommend  some  types  of 
services, but not all, while 1% say they don’t know. 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

11 Q6. Overall, would you recommend services offered via collaborative platforms or not? ONE ANSWER ONLY Yes, definitely; Yes, to some 
extent; No, not really; No, definitely not; You would recommend some types of services, but not all; Don’t know. 

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There  is  not  much  country  variation  in  the  overall  proportions  of  those  who  would  recommend 
services offered via collaborative platforms, as at least eight in ten collaborative platform users in 
all countries say they would do so12. The only exception is the Netherlands, where less than three 
quarters (73%) say they would recommend these services.  

However,  there  are  significant  differences  when  it  comes  to  proportions  of  users  who  would 
definitely recommend these services. Malta stands out in this respect: nearly two thirds (64%) 
of  those  who  have  used  these  services  would  definitely  recommend  them,  and  in  further  seven 
countries at least half would also do so. In the remaining countries, more than one fifth of the users 
of these services would definitely recommend them, ranging from 44% of users in Portugal to 24% 
in Germany and Latvia. 

Large  variations  across  countries  can  also  be  observed  in  the  proportions  of  users  who  would 
recommend these services to some extent, ranging from six in ten or more in Latvia (66%) and 
Poland (60%) to less than one third in Malta (29%) and Croatia (31%). 

In most countries, the proportion of respondents who would not recommend these services is 
less  than  one  in  ten.  The  exceptions  are  Belgium,  the  Netherlands  (both  15%)  and  Luxembourg 
(10%).  

There  is  a  similar  pattern  in  the  case  of  those  who  spontaneously  say  they  would  recommend 
some of these services, but not all of them: over one in ten respondents give this answer in 
the Netherlands (11%) and Sweden (11%), but elsewhere the proportion is in single digits. 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

12  Here  and  throughout  the  country  analysis  of  the  results  for  this  question  (Q6),  results  for  Cyprus  (n=93)  and  Luxembourg  (n=110) 
should be treated with caution due to low sample sizes. 

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There are few socio-demographic differences on this question. 

§  Respondents aged 15-24 (38%), who finished their education at or after the age of 20 (36%) 
and  who  live  in  large  towns  (38%)  are  the  most  likely  to  say  that  they  would  definitely 
recommend these services. 

§  There  are  few  differences  in  terms  of  sectors  in  which  collaborative  platforms  were  used. 
Those  who  have  used  professional  services  offered  via  collaborative  platforms  are  slightly 
less  likely to definitely recommend them compared to users of collaborative finance services 
(36%  vs.  41%).  Those  who  have  used  collaborative  finance,  transport  or  accommodation 
servcies    offered  via  collaborative  platforms  are  the  most  likely  to  say  they  would 
recommend these services to at least some extent, although the gap with users of services in 
other sectors is small (92%-91% vs. 86%-89). 

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3  Advantages and disadvantages of using collaborative platforms 

as a user 

Respondents who said that they had used services provided by collaborative platforms were asked 
to  identify  the  advantages13  and  disadvantages14  of  such  platforms  compared  with  traditional 
channels. 

a.  Advantages of collaborative platforms compared with traditional 

channels 

Almost three quarters of the users of services offered via collaborative platforms 
mention as an advantage of these platforms the fact that they offer a more convenient 
access to services compared with traditional channels 

There  are  significant  differences  in  the  proportions  of  users  who  identify  various  advantages  of 
collaborative platforms. Nearly three quarters (73%) of those who have used services offered via a 
collaborative  platform  say  that  a  more  convenient  access  to  services  is  an  advantage  of  such 
platforms  compared  with  traditional  channels.  Smaller  majorities  of  respondents  mention  as 
advantages  the  availability  of  ratings  and  reviews  by  users  (60%),  the  fact  that  services  are 
cheaper  or  free  (59%),  or  that  there  is  a  wider  choice  of  services  which  are  unavailable  via 
traditional  channels  (56%).  Significantly  fewer  respondents  say  the  fact  that  they  offer 
opportunities to interact with interesting people (34%) or to exchange services rather than pay for 
them  (31%)  are  an  advantage  of  collaborative  platforms.  Only  2%  say  that  there  are  no 
advantages of collaborative platforms over traditional channels. 

Small proportions spontaneously mention other advantages or say they don’t know (both 1%). 

13 Q4. In your personal experience, what are the advantages of using collaborative platforms compared with traditional channels, if any? 
MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE Cheaper or free  services offered via collaborative  platforms;  A wider  choice of  services unavailable via 
traditional channels; A more convenient access to services; The availability of ratings and reviews by users; The opportunities they offer 
to interact with interesting people; Possibility of exchanging services instead of paying for them; Other; None, there are no advantages; 
Don’t know. 
14  Q5.  In your  personal experience, what are the disadvantages of using collaborative platforms compared with traditional channels,  if 
any? MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE Problems with the online booking process or payments; Less trust in the providers of services offered 
via collaborative platforms; Services offered via collaborative platforms are not as expected; Misleading ratings and reviews from users; 
Lack of clarity about who is responsible in the event of a problem; Misuse of your personal data; Other; None, there are no significant 
issues; Don’t know. 

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Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

Although  the  question  and  the  answers  were  worded  differently15  and  the  question  gave  the 
possibility to choose only two answers, these results are broadly similar to those observed during 
the  Eurobarometer  survey  carried  out  in  201616.  In  that  instance,  ‘The  access  to  services  is 
organized  in  a  more  convenient  way’  (41%)  and  ‘It  is  cheaper  or  free’  (33%)  were  the  most 
frequently  mentioned  benefits  of  collaborative  platforms  according  to  the  users,  while  the 
‘availability of ratings and reviews‘ was not included in the list of possible options. 

15 Q3 Compared to the traditional commerce of goods and services, what do you think are the main benefits of this type of platform for 
its users? (MAXIMUM TWO  ANSWERS) It  is cheaper or free; It offers new or different services; The access to services  is organized in a 
more convenient way; The ability to exchange products or services instead of paying with money; Other (DO NOT READ OUT); None (DO 
NOT READ OUT); DK/NA (DO NOT READ OUT). 
16 FL438 on “The use of collaborative platforms”: 
http://ec.europa.eu/commfrontoffice/publicopinion/index.cfm/Survey/getSurveyDetail/instruments/FLASH/surveyKy/2112. 

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In  25  of  the  28  Member  States,  at  least  six  in  ten  of  those  who  have  used  services  offered  via 
collaborative  platforms17  say  that  convenient  access  to  services  is  an  advantage  of  such 
platforms  compared  with  traditional  channels,  ranging  from  60%  of  the  users  in  Cyprus  to  over 
eight in ten of those in Slovenia (87%), the United Kingdom (84%), Ireland (83%) and Spain (81%). 
The exceptions are the users of collaborative platforms in Croatia, where just half of them give this 
answer (50%) and in Italy and Denmark where only a minority do so (44% and 40%, respectively). 
In all but four countries, this is the most frequently mentioned advantage, and, in a further three 
countries, it is the second most frequently mentioned one. 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

17  Here  and  throughout  the  country  analysis  of  the  results  for  this  question  (Q4),  results  for  Cyprus  (n=93)  and  Luxembourg  (n=110) 
should be treated with caution due to low sample sizes. 

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There are significant country-level differences in the proportions of users of collaborative platforms 
who see the availability of ratings and reviews by users as an advantage. In 17 countries, at 
least  half  say  this  is  an  advantage,  but  this  varies  from  just  half  in  Luxembourg,  Romania  and 
Slovakia (all 50%) to three quarters in Spain (75%), and nearly as many in Slovenia (74%) Austria 
and  the  Czech  Republic  (both  73%).  In  most  of  the  countries  where  a  minority  of  the  users  of 
collaborative platforms identify the availability of ratings and reviews as an advantage, at least a 
quarter of users give this answer. The exception is Malta, where only 13% see this as an advantage 
of collaborative platforms. In 10 countries, this is the second most frequently mentioned advantage 
of collaborative platforms (in Spain, jointly with ‘Cheaper or free services offered via collaborative 
platforms’), and in a further 10 it is the third most frequently mentioned (in Lithuania, jointly with ‘A 
wider choice of services unavailable via traditional channels’). 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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A  majority  of  users  in  19  countries  say  that  the  fact  that  services  offered  via  collaborative 
platforms are cheaper or free is an advantage of collaborative platforms. This is particularly the 
case in the Czech Republic, where nearly nine in ten (87%) give this answer, followed by over three 
quarters in Slovenia (77%). However, in Finland (51%) and Estonia (52%) only just over half of the 
users of collaborative platforms hold this view. In nine  countries, only a minority  share the same 
view, but in almost all of these nine countries at least four in ten users of these platforms mention 
as  an  advantage  the  fact  that  services  offered  via  these  platforms  are  cheaper  or  free.  The 
exceptions  are  Hungary  (35%)  and  Malta  (32%).  In  four  countries,  this  is  the  most  frequently 
mentioned advantage of collaborative platforms, and in a further 13 is the second most frequently 
mentioned. 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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In 16 countries, at least half of the users of collaborative platforms think that the wider choice of 
services  is  an  advantage  of  collaborative  platforms  compared  with  traditional  channels.  This 
ranges from just half of users in the Netherlands (50%) to over two thirds in Slovenia (72%), Spain 
(69%) and Austria (68%). Among the 12 countries where only a minority of users of collaborative 
platforms  mention  this  as  an  advantage,  the  proportions  range  from  just  over  a  fifth  (21%)  in 
Hungary  to  nearly  half  in  Belgium,  Croatia  and  Romania  (all  49%).  In  four  countries,  this  is  the 
second most frequently mentioned advantage (in Malta, jointly with ‘Cheaper or free services’). In 
15 countries,  this  is  the  third  most  frequently  mentioned  advantage  (in  Bulgaria  and  in  Slovakia, 
jointly with ‘Cheaper or free services’). 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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In  France  (54%),  Austria  (53%)  and  Slovenia  (50%),  at  least  half  of  the  users  of  collaborative 
platforms consider as an advantage of these platforms the fact that they offer the opportunity 
to  interact  with  interesting  people.  Elsewhere,  only  a  minority  mention  this  advantage,  but 
there  is  still  a  wide  range  of  responses.  In  Poland  (44%),  the  Czech  Republic  (42%)  and  Latvia 
(41%),  over  four  in  ten  do  so,  compared  with  just  over  one  in  ten  in  Estonia  (12%)  and  Sweden 
(11%), and less than one in ten in Malta (8%).  

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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In  all  28  Member  States,  only  a  minority  of  the  users  of  collaborative  platforms  think  that  an 
advantage  of  these  platforms  is  the  possibility  they  offer  to  exchange  services  instead  of 
paying  for  them.  Nevertheless,  there  is  much  variation  between  countries.  In  France,  Portugal 
(both 46%) and Spain (45%) nearly half of the users consider this an advantage, and in a further 
13 countries more than a quarter do. Yet in the remaining 12 countries, no more than a fifth agree 
that this is an advantage. As in several of the previous cases, the lowest proportion of users who 
give this answer is found in Malta (4%). 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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The  table  below  illustrates  the  results  highlighting  the  first,  second  and  third  most  frequently 
mentioned answers by country. 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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Across the EU, respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms mention an 
average  of  around  three  advantages  (3.1)  of  using  these  platforms  compared  with  traditional 
channels.  In  15  countries,  collaborative  platform  users  mention  an  average  of  at  least  three 
advantages, with the highest figures observed in Slovenia (4.0) and Spain (3.8). The only countries 
in which users mention an average of less than two advantages are Malta (1.6) and Italy (1.9). 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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There are several significant socio-demographic differences on this question, as follows: 

§  Younger  users  of  collaborative  platforms  are  the  most  likely  to  mention  each  of  the 
advantages of collaborative platforms over traditional channels that were proposed, but the 
extent of this difference varies. For example, nearly two thirds (64%) of the users aged 15-
24  consider  an  advantage  of  these  platforms  the  fact  that  they  offer  cheaper  or  free 
services, compared with less than half (48%) among those aged 55 years or more. Yet only 
five percentage points separate the youngest (59%) and the oldest (54%) age cohorts on the 
question  of  whether  a  wider  choice  of  services  represents  an  advantage  of  collaborative 
platforms. 

§ 

In four cases, there is a clear difference between educational groups. Those with the highest 
level  of  education  are  more  likely  to  consider  each  of  the  following  as  advantages  of 
collaborative platforms: cheaper or free services (61% of those who finished education aged 
20 or more vs. 43%-55% of those who finished education aged less than 20 years); a wider 
choice  of  services  (57%  vs.  46%-52%);  and  more  convenient  access  to  services  (74%  vs. 
67%-69%). Similarly, those who have finished education aged 16 or more are more likely to 
consider the availability of ratings and reviews by users as an advantage compared to those 
who have finished education aged 15 or less (61%-58% vs. 46%). 

§  The self-employed are more likely than manual workers to think that cheaper or free services 
(63%  vs.  57%),  a  wider  choice  of  services  (60%  vs.  48%),  and  more  convenient  access  to 
services (77% vs. 67%) are advantages of collaborative platforms. However, manual workers 
are slightly more likely than the self-employed to see the opportunities these platforms offer 
to interact with interesting people as an advantage (42% vs. 36%). 

§  Users  of  collaborative  platforms  in  the  collaborative  finance  sector  are  the  most  likely  to 
mention each of the proposed advantages. For instance, they are the most likely to mention 
the possibility of exchanging services instead of paying for them (54% vs. 29%-35% of users 
of services in other sectors) or cheaper or free services (76% vs. 53%-68%) as advantages of 
collaborative platforms.   

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b.  Disadvantages of collaborative platforms compared with traditional 

channels 

Lack of clarity about who is responsible in the event of a problem is the disadvantage of 
collaborative platforms most frequently mentioned by users 

The  majority  of  those  who have  used  collaborative  platforms  identify  at  least  one  disadvantage, 
with only 15% spontaneously saying that there are no significant issues. 

The most frequently mentioned disadvantage is the lack of clarity about who is responsible in the 
event of a problem (49%), followed by misleading ratings and reviews (38%), misuse of personal 
data  (37%),  and  less  trust  in  the  providers  of  services  offered  via  collaborative  platforms  (34%). 
More  than  one  fifth  of  the  users  mention  as  a  disadvantage  the  two  following  issues:  services 
offered via collaborative platforms are not as expected (24%), or that there are problems with the 
online booking process or payments (22%). 

3% spontaneously mention other disadvantages, while 1% don’t know. 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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When comparing with the results of Eurobarometer survey carried out in 2016, again it should be 
noted that the question and the possible answers were differently worded18 and respondents could 
only  choose  two  possible  answers.  However,  ‘Not  knowing  who  is  responsible  in  case  a  problem 
arises’  (41%)  was,  already  at  that  time,  the  disadvantage  of  collaborative  platforms  most 
frequently mentioned by users. 

There  is  a  clear  split  between  countries  in  the  proportion  of  respondents  who  consider  a 
disadvantage  of  collaborative  platforms  the  lack  of  clarity  about  who  is  responsible  in  the 
event of a problem, although this is the most frequently mentioned disadvantage in all but two 
countries19 (in Finland, jointly with ‘Less trust in the providers of services offered via collaborative 
platforms‘).  In  13  of  the  28  Member  States,  a  majority  of  the  users  of  collaborative  platforms 
mention this as a disadvantage, ranging from just over half in Poland and the United Kingdom (both 
52%) to around two thirds in Spain (66%) and Germany (65%). In the remaining 15 countries, just a 
minority of the users of collaborative platforms share this view: in France (49%), Greece (48%) and 
Sweden (44%), over four in ten do so, but this proportion falls to around a quarter in Finland (25%) 
and Hungary (24%), and to less than a fifth (19%) in Italy. 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

18 Q4 Compared to the traditional commerce of goods and services, what do you think are the main problems for the people using the 
services  offered  on  these  platforms?  (MAXIMUM  TWO  ANSWERS)  Not  knowing  who  is  responsible  in  case  a  problem  arises;  Being 
disappointed  because  the  services  and  goods  do  not  meet  expectations;  Not  having  enough  information  on  the  service  provided;  Not 
trusting the provider or seller; Not trusting the  internet transactions in general; Other (DO NOT  READ  OUT); None (DO NOT  READ  OUT); 
DK/NA (DO NOT READ OUT). 
19  Here  and  throughout  the  country  analysis  of  the  results  for  this  question  (Q5),  results  for  Cyprus  (n=93)  and  Luxembourg  (n=110) 
should be treated with caution due to low sample sizes. 

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In only one country, Latvia (51%), more than half of the users of collaborative platforms mention 
misleading ratings and reviews as a disadvantage of these platforms. Nevertheless, there are 
significant  differences  among  the  remaining  countries.  In  Germany  (49%),  Bulgaria  and  Ireland 
(both 48%), nearly half of the users of collaborative platforms share this view. At the other end of 
the scale, in 9 countries, less than a quarter of them think that misleading ratings and reviews is a 
disadvantage, with the lowest proportions in Denmark, Finland (both 14%), Estonia and Malta (both 
13%). In 16 countries, this is the second most frequently mentioned disadvantage (in Luxembourg, 
Slovakia and Spain, jointly with ‘Misuse  of  your  personal  data’, while in Austria, jointly with ‘Less 
trust in the providers of services’). 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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In all countries, only a minority of users think that the misuse of personal data is a disadvantage 
of  collaborative  platforms,  but  there  is  significant  variation  between  countries.  In  Ireland  (47%),  
Poland (45%), France and Spain (both 44%), over four in ten users of collaborative platforms think 
so,  and,  in  a  further  11  countries,  more  than  a  third  of  the  users  share  the  same  view.  In  five 
countries, less than a fifth see misuse of personal data as a disadvantage, with a particularly low 
proportion  holding  this  view  in  Denmark  (7%).  Misuse  of  personal  data  is  the  most  frequently 
mentioned  disadvantage  only  in  Italy  (24%).  In  10  countries  this  is  the  second  most  frequently 
mentioned disadvantage (in Estonia, jointly with ‘Less trust in the providers of services’), while in 11 
it is the third most frequently mentioned disadvantage. 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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There  is  a  similar  distribution  of  country-level  responses  when  it  comes  to  lower  trust  in  the 
providers of services. In the Czech Republic, Germany (both 44%), Ireland and Latvia (both 41%), 
over four in ten users of collaborative platforms see this as a disadvantage, while in a further nine 
countries more than a third share this view. By contrast, in Hungary (14%), Estonia and Malta (both 
13%), well under a fifth of respondents think that lower trust in service providers is a disadvantage 
of  collaborative  platforms.  This  is  the  most  frequently  mentioned  disadvantage  only  in  Finland 
(25%, jointly with ‘Lack of clarity about who is responsible’), the second most frequently mentioned 
in four countries, and the third most frequently mentioned in 8 countries.  

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In  Latvia,  nearly  half  (48%)  of  the  users  of  collaborative  platforms  consider  a  disadvantage  of 
these  platforms  the  fact  that  services  offered  are  not  as  expected.  With  the  exception  of 
Ireland (35%), in all other countries no more than a third (33%) of the users give this answer, and in 
13 countries fewer than a fifth do so, with the lowest proportion in Hungary (9%). This is the third 
most frequently mentioned disadvantage in 5 countries.  

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Nearly  a  third  of  the  users  of  collaborative  platforms  in  the  United  Kingdom  (32%)  see  as  a 
disadvantage  of  these  platforms  the  problems  with  online  booking  processes  or  payments, 
followed by three in ten of the users in Ireland (30%). In the majority of the remaining countries, 
more than one in ten users share the same view, ranging from 27% in Romania to 12% in Malta. 
However, in four cases less than one in ten see booking or payment problems as a disadvantage of 
collaborative  platforms:  these  are  Croatia  (8%),  Hungary  (8%),  Denmark  (7%)  and  Finland  (7%). 
Problems  with  the  online  booking  process  or  payments  is  the  second  most  frequently  mentioned 
disadvantage in Estonia (15%). 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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In all cases, just a minority of the users of collaborative platforms spontaneously say that there are 
no  disadvantages  of  collaborative  platforms.  However,  several  countries  stand  out  for  the  high 
proportion of respondents who spontaneously give this response. In Finland (42%), Hungary (41%) 
and  Estonia  (40%),  at  least  four  in  ten  think  there  are  no  disadvantages,  as  do  over  a  third  in 
Denmark (35%) and just under three in ten in Croatia (29%). In all other cases less than a quarter 
think that there are no disadvantages, with the lowest proportion in Bulgaria (6%). 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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The  table  below  illustrates  the  results  highlighting  the  first,  second  and  third  most  frequently 
mentioned answers by country. 

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Across the EU, respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms mention an 
average  of  around  two  disadvantages  (2.1)  of  using  these  platforms  compared  with  traditional 
channels.  In  15  countries,  collaborative  platform  users  mention  an  average  of  at  least  two 
disadvantages, with the highest figures observed in Ireland, Latvia (both 2.6), Germany and Spain 
(both 2.5). In two countries, users mention an average of one or less than one disadvantage: these 
are Hungary (0.9) and Estonia (1.0). 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

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There are some socio-demographic differences, as follows: 

§  Users  aged  15-24  are  more  likely  than  those  aged  55  years  or  more  to  mention  as  a 
disadvantage  any of the following items: lack of clarity about who is responsible in the event 
of a problem (53% vs. 45%), problems with the online booking process or payments (29% vs. 
21%),  less  trust  in  the  providers  of  services  (37%,  compared  with  31%)  and  that  services 
offered  via collaborative platforms are not as expected (25% vs. 20%). The older cohort is 
more likely to mention misuse of personal data (37% vs. 30%), and they are also more likely 
to  see  no  disadvantages  (19%  vs.  11%).  Finally,  users  aged  25-39  are  the  most  likely  to 
mention misleading ratings and reviews as a disadvantage of collaborative platforms (41% 
vs. 35%-37% of other age groups). 

§  There are few strong differences between educational groups. Those with the lowest level of 
education  are  the  least  likely  to  mention  as  a  disadvantage  the  two  following  statements: 
lack  of  clarity  about  who  is  responsible  in  case  of  a  problem  (35%  vs  47%-49%)  and 
misleading ratings and reviews (29% vs. 38%-41%). Conversely, those with the highest levels 
of education are slightly more likely to see no disadvantages (22% vs. 16%) compared with 
the least educated.  

§  The self-employed are more likely than manual workers to mention all of the disadvantages, 
and particularly lack of clarity about who is responsible in case of problems (53% vs. 32%), 
services not being as expected (28% vs. 13%), less trust in service providers (35% vs 26%), 
misleading  ratings  and  reviews  by  other  users  (45%  vs.  31%).  On  the  other  hand,  manual 
workers  are  more  likely  than  the  self-employed  to  say  that  there  are  no  disadvantages  to 
collaborative platforms (32% vs. 11%). 

§  No  clear  pattern  can  be  identified  when  it  comes  to  the  analysis  by  sector  of  the  services 
used  via  collaborative  platforms.  However,  users  of  services  in  the  professional  services 
sector are the most likely to mention as disadvantages misleading ratings and reviews (48% 
vs. 37%-39% among users in other sectors) and, together with users of household services, 
the fact that the services are not as expected (32%-31% vs. 23%-26%). Users of services in 
the collaborative finance sector are the most likely to mention misuse of personal data (51% 
vs. 38%-41%). 

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4  Reasons for not using services offered via collaborative 

platforms 

Those respondents who said they had not used services offered via collaborative platforms were 
asked to identify reasons why they had not done so20.  

The most common reasons for not using collaborative platforms are not knowing what 
they are, or preference for traditional channels 

The most frequently mentioned reasons for not using collaborative platforms are not knowing what 
such  platforms  are  (36%)  and  preference  for  services  offered  via  traditional  channels  (34%).  A 
further fifth of respondents mention concerns about sharing personal data on the platform or the 
Internet (20%), followed by  lack  of  trust  in  the  services  offered  by  collaborative  platforms (17%) 
and lack of technical knowledge about how to use collaborative platforms (14%). Less than one in 
ten mention poor internet access (6%) as a reason for not using these services, while just over one 
in ten spontaneously mention other reasons (13%) and 3% say they don’t know. 

Base: respondents who have never used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 20,034) 

20  Q1.  For  which  of  the  following  reasons  have  you  never  used  a  service  offered  via  a  collaborative  platform?  MULTIPLE  ANSWERS 
POSSIBLE  You  don't  know  what  collaborative  platforms  are;  Poor  Internet  access;  Lack  of  technical  knowledge  about  how  to  use 
collaborative platforms; Lack of trust in the  services offered  via collaborative  platforms; Preference  for services offered  via traditional 
channels (e.g. with direct personal contact); Concerns about sharing personal data on the platform or the Internet; Other; Don’t know. 

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At country level, there is significant variation in the proportions who mention each of the various 
reasons for not using services via a collaborative platform. 

In  19  of  the  28  Member  States,  the  reason  most  frequently  given  for  not  using  collaborative 
platforms is  that respondents do  not  know what  such  platforms  are (in Estonia and Sweden, 
jointly  with  ‘Preference  for  services  offered  via  traditional  channels’).  In  each  of  the  remaining 
countries,  this  is  the  second  most  frequently  mentioned  reason  (in  France,  jointly  with  ‘Concerns 
about  sharing  personal  data  on  the  platform  or  the  Internet’),  with  the  exception  of  Denmark.  In 
Ireland (52%) and Cyprus (50%), at least half of those who never used collaborative platforms say 
the main reason for not using them is that they do not know what such platforms are, as do nearly 
half  of  those  in  the  United  Kingdom  (49%).  Denmark  (15%)  stands  out  for  a  particularly  low 
proportion who mention this reason: in all other countries, more than a fifth of non-users give this 
as a reason for not having ever used collaborative platforms.  

In  11  countries,  the  most  frequently  mentioned  reason  for  not  using  services  offered  via 
collaborative platforms is the preference for using services offered via traditional channels. 
This is the second most common answer in a further 16 countries (in Croatia, jointly with ‘Concerns 
about  sharing  personal  data’),  and  the  third  most  common  answer  in  Cyprus.  While  there  is 
significant variation, in all countries less than half of non-users give this answer, ranging from well 
over four in ten in Poland (45%) to just over one in ten in Cyprus (11%) and Romania (12%). 

In  most  countries,  no  more  than  a  quarter  of  non-users  are  dissuaded  from  using  collaborative 
platforms  because  of  concerns  about  sharing  personal  data.  The  exceptions  are  Germany 
(28%), France (27%), Spain (27%), Austria (26%) and Portugal (26%). At the other end of the scale, 
less than one in ten of the non-users in Lithuania (6%), Italy (5%), Cyprus (5%), Estonia (3%) and 
Malta (3%) gives this as a reason for not using collaborative platforms. In France (27%), Sweden 
(20%) and Croatia (18%) this is the second most frequently mentioned option, and in 16 countries 
it is the third most frequently mentioned (in Finland, Lithuania, the Netherlands and Spain, jointly 
with ‘Lack of trust in the services offered via collaborative platforms’, and, in Romania, jointly with 
‘Lack of trust’ and ‘Lack of technical knowledge about how to use collaborative platforms’). 

In all but one country, less than a quarter of non-users mention lack of trust in services offered 
via collaborative platforms as a reason for not using them. The exception is Spain (27%), where 
just over a quarter mention this reason. In the majority of the remaining countries, the proportions 
of non-users giving this answer ranges from one in  ten to around  a quarter. However, in Estonia 
(8%),  Italy  (7%),  Lithuania  (6%)  and  Malta  (5%)  just  less  than  one  in  ten  non-users  mention  the 
'lack of trust in the services offered' as a reason for not using collaborative platforms. This is the 
second  most  frequently  mentioned  reason  in  Denmark  (18%)  and  Cyprus  (13%),  and  is  the  third 
most frequently mentioned reason in 12 other countries. 

With the exception of Portugal (22%),  in all other countries less  than  a  fifth  of the non-users of 
collaborative  platforms  say  that  a  reason  that  prevents  them  from  using  these  platforms  is  the 
lack of technical knowledge. Nevertheless, this is the second most frequently mentioned reason 
in Malta (18%) and Estonia (11%). On the contrary, Lithuania (4%) stands out for a particularly low 
proportion who mention this reason. 

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In Malta (15%), poor internet access is the third most frequently mentioned reason for not using 
collaborative  platforms,  but  elsewhere  this  reason  is  less  frequently  mentioned.  In  Latvia  (11%), 
France (10%) and Luxembourg (10%), around one in ten give this answer, but in all other countries 
less than one in ten do so, with the lowest figure found in the Netherlands (2%). 

In  most  countries,  the  proportion  of  those  who  spontaneously  give  a  different  reason  for  not 
using  collaborative  platforms  is  no  more  than  a  fifth,  with  the  exceptions  of  Denmark  (34%), 
Estonia (28%) and Croatia (24%). 

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Socio-demographic differences are as follows: 

§  Women  (39%)  are  slightly  more  likely  than  men  (33%)  to  say  that  they  have  never  used 
services offered via collaborative platforms because they do not know what these platforms 
are. This is also a reason more likely  to  be  given by the oldest respondents  (43% of those 
aged 55 or more, compared with 29-33% in younger age groups), by those with the lowest 
levels of education (54%, compared with 27% of those with the highest levels of education) 
and  by  manual  workers  (36%,  compared  with  28%  of  employees  and  29%  of  the  self-
employed). 

§  Those with higher levels of education are strongly more likely than those with lower levels of 
education to mention preference for services offered via traditional channels (43% vs. 19% of 
those who have ended education aged less than 20), concerns about sharing personal data 
(25% vs. 11%) and lack of trust in the services (21% vs. 10%). 

§  The self-employed (42%) and employees (43%) are more likely than manual workers (30%) 
or those who are not in employment (28%) to have a preference for traditional services. 

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5  Impact of collaborative platforms on the overall use of services  

Respondents  who  had  used  collaborative  platforms were  asked  about  the  impact  of  their  use  of 
these services over the last twelve months on their overall use of services21. 

Six in ten of the users of services offered via collaborative platforms use these services 
on top of their habitual usage of services offered via traditional channels or as 
newcomers to the market 

A  third  (33%)  of  the  users  of  services  offered  via  collaborative  platforms  say  they  use  services 
offered  via  traditional  channels  to  approximately  the  same  extent,  but  they  now  also  use  these 
same services via collaborative platforms. Just over a quarter (27%) have only started to use these 
services when they became available via collaborative platforms. Thus, 60% of those using services 
offered via collaborative  platforms do so in  addition to  their  existing  use  of  services  and  without 
substituting a service provided via a traditional channel. 

On the other hand, one fifth of those using services offered via collaborative platforms (20%) have 
to some extent replaced the services they used via traditional channels, while just over one in ten 
(12%) have completely replaced some types of services. 

A further 6% of users spontaneously say that none of these statements reflect their experience and 
2% say they don’t know. 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

21  Q3.  Thinking  about  your  overall  experience  with  services  offered  via  collaborative  platforms  in  the  last  12  months,  which  of  the 
following statements best describes  your experience? ONE ANSWER ONLY You have to some extent replaced the services you used via 
traditional channels with services offered via collaborative platforms; You have completely replaced some types of services you used via 
traditional channels with services offered via collaborative platforms; You use services offered via traditional channels to approximately 
the same extent, but you now also use these same services via collaborative platforms; You only started using the services when they 
became available via collaborative platforms; None; Don’t know. 

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In summary, 60% of the users of services offered via collaborative platforms22 use them on top of 
their  habitual  usage  of  services  offered  via  traditional  channels  or  as  newcomers  to  the  market, 
while  around  one  third  (32%)  have  replaced  services  used  via  traditional  channels  with  those 
offered via collaborative platforms to at least some extent23. 

Base: respondents who have used services offered via collaborative platforms (n= 6,389) 

In 15 of the 28 Member States, the largest percentage of users report using traditional services 
to approximately the same extent as before but that they now also access these same 
services  via  collaborative  platforms24.  In  Spain,  over  half  (53%)  of  those  who  have  used 
collaborative platforms give this answer. In all other countries, this proportion ranges from just over 
four  in  ten  in  Sweden  (41%)  to  less  than  a  quarter  of  respondents  in  Czech  Republic,  Denmark, 
Romania (all 24%) and Portugal (23%). 

In  7  countries,  users  most  frequently  report  that  they  only  began  to  use  the  services  in 
question  when  they  became  available  via  collaborative  platforms.  In  Luxembourg  (39%), 
France  (37%)  and  Belgium  (34%),  over  a  third  of  the  users  of  collaborative  platforms  give  this 
answer, compared with only just over one in ten in Estonia (13%) and Spain (11%), where it is the 
least common response. 

22 Sum of the proportions who use services offered via traditional channels to approximately  the same extent, but now also use these 
same  services  via  collaborative  platforms  and  who  only  started  to  use  these  services  when  they  became  available  via  collaborative 
platforms. 
23  Sum  of  the  proportions  who  have  to  some  extent  replaced  the  services  they  used  via  traditional  channels  with  ones  offered  via 
collaborative platforms and who have completely replaced some types of services they used via traditional channels with services offered 
via collaborative platforms. 
24  Here  and  throughout  the  country  analysis  of  the  results  for  this  question  (Q3),  results  for  Cyprus  (n=93)  and  Luxembourg  (n=110) 
should be treated with caution due to low sample sizes. 

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There  is  a  similar  distribution  of  responses  in  the  case  of  those  who  have  to  some  extent 
replaced  the  services  they  used  via  traditional  channels  with  ones  offered  via 
collaborative  platforms.  In  7  countries,  this  is  the  most  frequent  response,  and,  more  in 
particular, over a third of respondents in Cyprus (39%), Hungary (37%), Estonia and Finland (both 
36%)  give  this  answer.  In  all  other  countries  no  more  than  a  third  give  this  response,  with  the 
lowest proportion found in Lithuania (11%), where this is the least common answer. 

In  all  countries,  no  more  than  a  fifth  of  respondents  say  that  they  have  completely  replaced 
some types of services they used via traditional channels with those from collaborative 
platforms. In all but three  countries, this is the least frequently mentioned response. In  Portugal 
(20%) and Malta (19%), around a fifth say that they have completely replaced some services, but in 
Luxembourg (3%) and Bulgaria (4%) very few give this response. 

In  the  majority  of  countries,  few  users  of  collaborative  platform  say  that  none  of  these 
statements apply to their experience. The exceptions are Belgium, Denmark (both 14%), Germany 
(12%) and Cyprus (10%). 

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There are some socio-demographic differences on this question, as follows: 

§  Men  (14%)  are  more  likely  than  women  (9%)  to  have  completely  replaced  some  types  of 
services they used via traditional channels with services offered via collaborative platforms. 

§  Users of collaborative platforms aged 55 years or more are the least likely to use services via 
traditional  channels  to  approximately  the  same  extent  while  at  the  same  time  using  those 
offered via collaborative platforms (24%,  compared  with 33-36%). Conversely, the younger 
users  of  collaborative  platforms  aged  15-24  are  the  most  likely  to  have  started  using  the 
services when they became available via collaborative platforms (32%, compared with 25%-
26% of other age groups). 

§  Those with higher levels of education are the more likely to have to same extent replaced the 
services  they  used  via  traditional  channels  with  services  offered via  collaborative platforms 
(23%, vs 15%), while those with lower levels of education are the more likely to only have 
started using such services when they became available via collaborative platforms (31%, vs 
25%-26%). 

§  The  self-employed  are  more  likely  than  manual  workers  to  have  continued  to  use  services 
offered via traditional channels (36%, compared with 30%), but manual workers are the more 
likely to have started using these services only when they became available via collaborative 
platforms (33%, compared with 27%). 

§  There are also some significant differences on this question when responses are broken down 

by sector: 

•  Those  using  collaborative  finance  services  are  the  most  likely  to  have  completely 
replaced some types of services used via traditional channels with those provided  via 
collaborative  platforms  (18%  vs.  11%-14%  of  those  using  other  types  of  services), 
although they are the least likely to have replaced them to some extent (15% vs. 21%-
22%). Overall, there are only small differences between sectors among those who have 
replaced traditional channels with collaborative platforms to at least some extent.  

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•  Those using household (30%) and transport (32%) services are the least likely to have 
continued to use services offered via traditional channels (compared with 36%-38% of 
those using other types of services). However, together with those using collaborative 
finance services, they are also the most likely to have started using these services only 
when  they  became  available  via  collaborative  platforms  (27%-28%  vs.  21%-23%). 
Overall,  those  using collaborative  finance  services  are  slightly  more  likely  than  those 
using services in other sectors to have used services offered via collaborative platforms 
on top of those offered via traditional channels (64% vs. 58%-61%).  

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II.  PROVISION OF SERVICES VIA COLLABORATIVE PLATFORMS  

This chapter focuses on respondents’ use of collaborative platforms to provide services.  The first 
section  looks  at  the  proportions  of  respondents  who  have  offered  services  via  collaborative 
platforms and the breakdown of these services by sector. The second section focuses on providers’ 
experiences of using collaborative platforms, asking what reasons they have for offering services 
through this medium, and what problems they have encountered in doing so. The third section turns 
to  the  attitudes  of  non-providers,  asking  about  why  they  do  not  offer  services  via  collaborative 
platforms,  the likelihood they will offer such services, and the extent to which they use traditional 
channels to offer services. 

1  Offering services via collaborative platforms 

Respondents  were  asked  whether  they  had  ever  offered  a  service  via  a  collaborative  platform25. 
Those who said they had offered such services were then asked in which sectors they had offered 
these services26. 

a.  Frequency of offering services via collaborative platforms 

Only 6% of Europeans have ever offered services via collaborative platforms 

Only  6%  of  Europeans  have  ever  offered  services  via  collaborative  platforms,  with  3%  offering 
them once or a few times, 2% offering them occasionally (i.e. once every few months), and only 1% 
offering them on a regular  basis (i.e. once a month  or more often). Over  nine in ten  (94%) have 
never offered services via collaborative platforms. 

25 D9. Have you ever offered a service via a collaborative platform? No, never; Yes, once or a few times; Yes, occasionally; Yes, regularly; 
Don’t know. 
26  Q10.  In  which  of  the  following  sectors  have  you  provided  a  service  via  a  collaborative  platform?  MULTIPLE  ANSWERS  POSSIBLE 
Transport  (e.g.  car  sharing);  Accommodation  (e.g.  renting  an  apartment);  Food-related  services  (e.g.  home  delivery,  food  sharing); 
Household services (e.g. gardening, repairs, child care); Professional services (e.g. IT services, accounting); Collaborative finance (e.g. peer-
to-peer lending or crowd-funding); Other; None; Don’t know. 

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In all but two countries, less than one in ten have offered a service via a collaborative platform. The 
exceptions are Latvia (17%) and France (11%). On the other end of the spectrum, in Cyprus, only 
2% of respondents have offered services in this way.  

Base: all respondents (n= 26,544) 

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Younger,  more  educated  and  self-employed  respondents  are  more  likely  to  offer  services  via 
collaborative platforms. 

§  Older  respondents  are  less  likely  to  have  offered  services  via  these  platforms:  only  3%  of 
those  aged  55  years  or  more  say  they  have  offered  such  services,  compared  with  8%  of 
those aged 15-24 and 11% of those aged between 25-39. 

§  Nearly one in ten of those with the highest levels of education (9%) has offered services via 
collaborative platforms, compared with only 1% of those with the lowest levels of education. 

§ 

Just  over  one  in  ten  of  the  self-employed  (11%)  have  offered  services  via  a  collaborative 
platform, compared with only 4% of manual workers and of those not currently employed. 

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b.  Offering services via collaborative platforms by sector 

The services most commonly offered via collaborative platforms are in the transport and 
accommodation sectors 

The  transport  sector  (44%)  is  the  sector  most  frequently  mentioned  by  those  who  have  offered 
services via collaborative platforms, followed by the accommodation sector (35%). Less than a fifth 
have provided such a service in the household services (17%), professional services (14%) or food-
related services  (10%) sectors, and in the case of collaborative finance, less than one in ten (8%) 
have, with similar proportions spontaneously saying they have provided other kinds of services (9%) 
or have not provided any of the named services (7%). 1% say they don’t know. 

Base: respondents who have offered services via collaborative platforms (n= 1,598) 

A  country-level  analysis  of  this  question  is  not  possible  due  to  low  size  of  the  bases  of 
respondents. 

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There are several significant socio-demographic differences among those who provide services 
via a collaborative platform, varying by sector. In some cases, these results should be treated with 
caution due to small sample sizes27. 

§  Half (50%) of the service providers aged 15-24 have used collaborative platforms to provide 
services  in  the  transport  sector,  compared  with  just  over  a  third  (35%)  of  the  service 
providers aged 55 years or more. However, they are less likely than those in other age groups 
to  have  used  these  platforms  to  provide  services  in  the  accommodation  sector  (23%, 
compared with 33-41%). 

§  Those  with  the  lowest  levels  of  education  are  more  likely  to  have  provided  services  in  the 
food-related  services  sector  (20%,  compared  with  9%  of  those  with  the  highest  levels  of 
education),  in  the  household  services  sector  (32%,  compared  with  13%)  and  in  the 
collaborative finance sector (18%, compared with 7%). Conversely, those with higher levels of 
education  are  significantly  more  likely  to  have  provided  services  in  the  education  services 
sector (49% compared with 21%). Respondents living in large towns are more likely to have 
provided services in the accommodation sector (42%, compared with 33% of those in rural 
villages). 

§  Manual  workers  are  more  likely  than  the  self-employed  to  have  provided  services  in  the 
transport  (45%  compared  with  33%),  food-related  (22%  compared  with  10%)  and 
professional  services  (25%  compared  with  18%)  sectors,  while  more  of  the  self-employed 
have provided services in the accommodation sector (46% compared with 32%).  

27 The categories with low sample sizes are respondents who finished their education aged 15 or less (n= 39) and manual workers (n= 
70). 

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2  Advantages and disadvantages of using collaborative platforms 

as a provider 

Those respondents who said they had provided services via collaborative platforms were then asked 
for what reason they had used these platforms28, and which problems they had encountered when 
using them29.  

a.  Main reasons for offering services via collaborative platforms 

Providers have a variety of reasons for offering services via collaborative platforms 

When asked to identify their reasons for offering services via collaborative platforms, respondents 
give  a  variety  of  answers,  with  none  standing  out  in  particular.  Just  over  half  say  that  these 
platforms offer an easy way to interact with consumers (53%) and a more sustainable and efficient 
use of available assets (51%), while half say that they give access to more consumers (50%) and 
represent an additional source of income (50%).  

Slightly  fewer  mention  that  collaborative  platforms  make  it  easy  to  become  a  services  provider 
(43%) or that using them means you can have flexible working hours (40%). Just over a third of 
respondents  see  collaborative  platforms  as  a way to offer additional  or more innovative services 
(36%), but just one in ten (10%) say that offering services in this way constitutes their main source 
of  income.  Very  few  (2%)  spontaneously  mention  other  reasons  for  offering  services  via 
collaborative platforms, while 6% do not identify any specific reasons for using these platforms to 
offer services and 1% say they don’t know. 

28 Q11. For which of the following reasons do you offer services via collaborative platforms? MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE Main source 
of income; An additional source of income; Flexible working hours; An easy opportunity to become a services provider; An opportunity to 
offer additional or more innovative services; Access to more consumers; An easy way to interact with consumers; More sustainable and 
efficient use of available assets; Other; None; Don’t know. 
29 Q12. What are the main problems you encountered when providing services via a collaborative platform, if any? MULTIPLE ANSWERS 
POSSIBLE  Lack  of  clarity  about  how  to  provide  the  service  legally;  Complicated  or  difficult  to  provide  the  service  legally;  Complicated 
system for  paying tax; Unclear impact on  your employment  status; Difficulties with consumers  using your  services; Other; None; Don’t 
know. 

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Base: respondents who have offered services via collaborative platforms (n= 1,598) 

A  country-level  analysis  of  this  question  is  not  possible  due  to  low  size  of  the  bases  of 
respondents. 

Across  the  EU,  respondents  who  have  offered  services  via  collaborative  platforms  mention  an 
average of more than three reasons (3.3) for offering services via these platforms. 

There are some socio-demographic differences on this question, but they vary in magnitude. In 
some cases, these results should be treated with caution due to small sample sizes30. 

§ 

In most cases, there are no significant differences between women and men, but women are 
more  likely  than  men  to  mention  flexible  working  hours  (44%,  compared  with  37%)  and 
access to more consumers (54%, compared with 48%), while men are slightly more likely to 
mention more sustainable and efficient use of assets (52%, compared with 48%). 

§  Those  aged  15-24  are  more  likely  than  those  aged  55  or  more  to  mention  each  of  these 
reasons.  For  instance,  they  are  more  likely  to  say  they  offer  services  via  collaborative 
platforms because this represents for them an additional source of income (66%, compared 
with 35%). 

30 The categories with low sample sizes are respondents who finished their education aged 15 or less (n= 39), manual workers (n= 70) 
and those who provided services via collaborative platforms in the collaborative finance sector (n=123). 

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§  There are differences between educational groups in each case. Those with the lowest levels 
of  education  are  more  likely  to  use  these  platforms  as  their  main  source  of  income  (21%, 
compared with 7%), while those with the highest levels of income are more likely to use them 
as  an  additional  source  of  income  (49%,  compared  with  39%).  The  remaining  reasons  are 
mentioned more frequently by those with the lowest levels of education, with the exception 
of more sustainable and efficient use of assets, which is mentioned by nearly half (49%) of 
those with the highest levels of education, but by just over four in ten (41%) of those with 
the lowest levels. 

§  Manual  workers  are  more  likely  than  the  self-employed  to  mention  each  of  the  stated 
reasons for offering services via collaborative platforms. In particular, they are more likely to 
provide  services  via  collaborative  platforms  as  their  main  (30%  compared  with  17%)  and 
additional (63% compared with 43%) sources of income. 

§  Those who provided services in the collaborative finance sector are the most likely to mention 
as  reasons  for  doing  so  the  fact  that  these  platforms  offer  an  easy  way  to  interact  with 
consumers  (77%  compared  with  59%-62%)  and  a  more  sustainable  and  efficient  use  of 
available  assets  (71%  compared  with  49%-66%).  Those  offering  household  services  via 
collaborative platforms are the most likely to mention an easy opportunity to become service 
providers  (62% compared with  44%-58%), an additional source of income (63% compared 
with 49%-61%) and, together with providers of professional services, flexible working hours 
(59% compared with 38%-49%) as reasons for offering services via these platforms. Finally, 
providers in the transport sector are the least or among the least likely to mention each of 
the  reasons  listed  in  the  survey,  except for more sustainable and  efficient use of available 
assets. 

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b.  Main problems encountered when providing services via collaborative 

platforms 

Nearly half of the respondents that are providers of services via collaborative platforms 
have encountered no problems when using these platforms 

When  asked  to  identify  the  main  problems  they  had  encountered  when  providing  services  via  a 
collaborative platform, nearly half spontaneously say that they had not encountered any problems 
(46%).  The  problem  most  frequently  mentioned  is  the  lack  of  clarity  about  how  to  provide  the 
service  legally  (22%),  followed  by  difficulties  with  customers  using  the  services  and  complicated 
systems  for  paying  tax  (both  19%).  Fewer  say  that  it  is  complicated  or  difficult  to  provide  the 
service legally (13%) or that doing so has an unclear impact on their employment status (9%). 

4% of the providers spontaneously mention other problems (4%), while 2% say they don’t know. 

Base: respondents who have offered services via collaborative platforms (n= 1,598) 

A  country-level  analysis  of  this  question  is  not  possible  due  to  low  size  of  the  bases  of 
respondents. 

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There are fewer significant and consistent socio-demographic differences in this case. For some 
categories and these results should be treated with caution due to small sample sizes31. 

§  Men are slightly more likely than women to mention lack of clarity about how to provide the 
service legally (24%, compared with 20%) and that it is complicated or difficult to provide it 
legally  (16%,  compared  with  9%),  while  women  are  more  likely  to  say  that  they  have  not 
experienced any problems (50%, compared with 43%).  

§  Those aged 15-24 are slightly more likely to say that there is insufficient clarity about how to 
provide  services  legally  via  collaborative  platforms  (26%,  compared  with  21-22%  in  other 
age groups).  

§  Few  significant  differences  can  also  be  observed  when  the  answers  are  broken  down  by 
respondents’ occupation. For instance, employees are among the least likely to mention each 
of these  problems  and,  together with manual  workers,  they  are  the  most  likely  to  say  they 
have not encountered any problems when providing services via collaborative platforms (51% 
of employees and 50% of manual workers, compared with 40% of self-employed and 42% 
of those who are not in employment). 

§  Providers  in  the  transport  and  collaborative  finance  sectors  are  the  most  likely  to  say  that 
they  have  not  encountered  any  problems  when  providing  these  services  via  collaborative 
platforms  (48%-46%  compared  with  25%-40%  in  other  sectors).  Providers  of  services  via 
collaborative platforms in the food sector are the most likely to  mention as a problem the 
difficulties  with  consumers  using  their  services  (33%  compared  with  14%-28%),  while 
providers  of  professional  services  are  the  most  likely  to  report  problems  with  complicated 
systems for paying tax (31% compared with 19%-27%).  

31 The categories with low sample sizes are respondents who finished their education aged 15 or less (n= 39), manual workers (n= 70) 
and those who provided services via collaborative platforms in the collaborative finance sector (n=123).). 

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3  Non-providers’ attitudes towards collaborative platforms 

This  final  section  examines  the  attitudes  of  non-providers  towards  collaborative  platforms.  First, 
citizens  who  have  never  offered  services  via  collaborative  platforms,  were  asked  whether  they 
would consider offering services occasionally via collaborative platforms32. Then, the same citizens 
were asked for what reason they do not offer such services33 and  whether they  had  occasionally 
offered services via traditional channels34. 

a.  Reasons for not offering services via collaborative platforms 

A majority of those who do not offer services via collaborative platforms do not have 
the time nor the interest to do so 

When asked why they have never offered a service via a collaborative platform, nearly two thirds 
(64%) say that they do not have sufficient time or interest to do this. Just under a third (31%) say 
they lack the technical knowledge about how to use collaborative platforms, while around a quarter 
mention lack of trust in online booking process or payments (25%) and lack of trust in consumers 
using their services (24%). Just over a fifth (22%) do not offer these services because it is unclear 
or complicated to provide the service legally, while under a fifth mention that systems for  paying 
tax are complicated (16%) or that the impact it would have on their employment status is unclear 
(13%). One in ten (10%) mention poor Internet access or spontaneously mention other reasons. 5% 
say they don’t know. 

32 Q7. Would you consider offering services occasionally as a private individual via collaborative platforms? ONE ANSWER POSSIBLE Yes; 
No; Don’t know. 
33 Q8. For which of the following reasons have you never offered a service via a collaborative platform? MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE 
No  time  or  interest;  Poor  Internet  access;  Lack  of  technical  knowledge  about  how  to  use  collaborative  platforms;  Lack  of  trust  in  the 
online booking process or payments; Lack of trust in consumers using your services; Unclear or complicated to provide the service legally; 
Complicated system for paying tax; Unclear impact on your employment status; Other; Don’t know. 
34 Q9. Have  you ever offered services occasionally as a  private  individual  via traditional channels? ONE ANSWER ONLY No, never; Yes, 
once or a few times; Yes, occasionally; Yes, regularly; Don’t know. 

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In all countries, the most frequently mentioned reason by non-providers for not offering services via 
collaborative platforms is lack of time or interest. However, there are significant differences in 
the proportions of non-providers who say so. In six countries, at least three quarters say they lack 
time or interest, with France (83%) standing out with a high proportion of non-providers giving this 
answer. In six other countries, only a minority say they do not have time nor interest, particularly in 
Cyprus where less than three in ten do so (29%). 

In all but four countries, lack of technical knowledge about how to use collaborative platforms is 
the second most frequently mentioned reason for not offering services via collaborative platforms, 
and, in three countries, it is the third most frequently mentioned reason. While in each country less 
than  half  give  this  answer,  there  is  significant  variation.  In  Portugal  (44%)  and  Spain  (42%)  over 
four  in  ten  of  non-providers  say  they  lack  technical  knowledge  about  how  to  use  collaborative 
platforms, while less than a fifth do so in Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania (all 17%) and Denmark (16%). 

In three countries, lack of trust in the online booking or payment process is the second most 
frequently  mentioned  reason  for  not  offering  services  via  collaborative  platforms,  and  in  12 
countries this is the third most frequently mentioned reason. Only a minority of respondents in all 
countries  give  this  answer,  but  there  is  much  variation.  In  Austria,  Spain  (both  35%),  France  and 
Portugal (both 34%), over a third of the non-providers  identify  this  as  a reason  why they  do  not 
offer services via collaborative platforms, while just less than one in ten of the non-providers do the 
same in Denmark (9%), Italy, Lithuania (both 8%), Estonia (4%) and Malta (3%). 

The country-level  distribution  is  very  similar  in  what  concerns lack  of  trust in  consumers who 
use  the  services offered via collaborative  platforms. In  France and  Denmark, this  is  the  second 
most frequently mentioned reason for not offering services via collaborative platforms, and in 12 
countries it is the third most frequently mentioned reason. Over a third of non-providers give this 
answer  in  Austria  (35%),  Spain  (35%)  and  France  (34%).  Again,  the  lowest  proportions  of  non-
providers who give this answer are in Italy (8%), Lithuania (7%), Estonia (5%) and Malta (2%).  

In  six  countries,  the  third  most  frequent  reason  mentioned  by  non-providers  for  not  offering 
services  via  collaborative  platforms  is  that  it  is  unclear  or  complicated  to  provide  such 
services legally. There is a wide spread of responses: again, Spain (36%) and Portugal (33%) have 
the  largest  proportions  of  non-providers  who  give  this  answer,  followed  by  Austria  (30%).  At  the 
other end of the scale, the lowest proportions are again found in Estonia, Lithuania (both 5%), Italy 
(4%) and Malta (3%).  

In  all  countries,  around  one  quarter  of  non-providers  mention  complicated  tax  systems  as  a 
reason  for  not  providing  services  via  collaborative  platforms.  Portugal  (25%),  Austria  (23%)  and 
Spain (23%) have again the largest proportions of non-providers mentioning this reason, along with 
Slovenia (23%), while the smallest proportions are found in Cyprus, Italy and Malta (all 2%). 

In Portugal (26%) Spain (23%) and Austria (21%), more than a fifth of non-providers say that they 
do not offer services via collaborative platforms because of the unclear impact of doing so on 
their employment status. Very few respondents in Italy (4%), Estonia (3%) and Malta (1%) have 
this concern. 

In  all  countries,  less  than  a  fifth  say  that  poor  Internet  access  prevents  them  from  providing 
services  via  collaborative  platforms.  The  highest  proportions  are  in  Ireland  (16%),  Belgium  and 
Spain (both 15%), while the lowest are in Denmark, Estonia and the Netherlands (all 3%).  

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In most countries, no more than a fifth of non-providers mention other reasons. It is notable that 
Estonia (22%) and Malta (21%), which are two of the countries that consistently have the lowest 
proportions of  non-providers who mention specific reasons, have the highest proportions of those 
who mention other reasons for not doing so, along with Croatia (21%). 

Base: respondents who have never offered services via collaborative platforms (n= 24,857) 

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There are few substantial socio-demographic differences on this question. 

§  The non-providers aged 55 years or more are the least likely to say they do not offer services 
via collaborative platforms because they have no time or interest (60% compared with  65%-
68%). By contrast, the oldest cohort is the most likely to mention lack of technical knowledge 
(36% compared with 24-30%) and poor Internet access (14% compared with 7-9%). 

§  Those  with  the  highest  levels  of  education  are  more  likely  than  those  with  lower  levels  of 
education  to  say  they  have  no  time  or  interest  in  providing  services  via  collaborative 
platforms (66% compared with 57%-63%). On the other hand, those with the lowest levels 
of education are more likely to say they have poor internet access (17% compared with 8%) 
or lack of technical knowledge (41% compared with 27%-33%). 

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b.  Possibility of offering services via collaborative platforms 

Nearly a fifth of respondents who have never offered services via collaborative 
platforms would consider doing so occasionally 

Respondents who said they have not previously offered services via collaborative  platforms  were 
asked if they would consider doing so on an occasional basis. Just under a fifth (19%) say that they 
would consider doing this, compared with nearly eight in ten (78%) who say that they would not. 
3% say they don’t know. 

Base: respondents who have never offered services via collaborative platforms (n= 24,857) 

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In  all  countries,  the  majority  of  respondents  that  have  never  offered  services  via  collaborative 
platforms would not consider doing so occasionally in the future, with the proportion varying from 
just  under  two  thirds  in  Cyprus,  Greece  (both  65%)  and  Portugal  (64%),  to  over  eight  in  ten 
respondents in the Netherlands (86%), Belgium and Germany (both 84%).  

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For the socio-demographic breakdown, the focus is on the proportions of respondents who would 
consider offering services occasionally via collaborative platforms. 

§  Men (22%) are more likely than women (16%) to say that they would consider offering such 

services. 

§  There  is  a  significant  difference  between  age  groups:  over  a  third  of  respondents  aged 
between 15 and 24 (34%) say that they would offer such services, compared with less than 
one in ten of those aged 55 or more (9%). 

§  Over  a  fifth  of  those  with  the  highest  levels  of  education  (22%)  answer  this  question 
positively,  compared  with  less  than  one in ten  of those with the lowest levels  of education 
(9%). 

§  Nearly  three  in  ten  of  the  self-employed  (29%)  would  consider  offering  services  via 
collaborative platforms, compared with less than a fifth of manual workers (17%) or those 
not currently in employment (15%). 

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c.  Frequency of use of traditional channels to offer services 

More than one in ten of those who have never offered services via collaborative 
platforms (14%), occasionally offer services, as a private individual, via traditional 
channels 

Over eight in ten (85%) of those who have not provided services via collaborative platforms have 
also not offered services via traditional channels. However, 14% respondents do so, either once or a 
few times (6%), or occasionally (i.e. once every few months) (6%), or regularly (i.e. once a month or 
more often) (2%). 1% say they don’t know. 

Base: respondents who have never offered services via collaborative platforms (n= 24,857) 

In  all  but  one  of  the  28  Member  States,  less  than  a  quarter  of  those  who  have  never  offered 
services  via  collaborative  platforms  say  also  that  they  have  never  offered  services  via 
traditional channels either. The exception is Latvia (27%). At the other end of the scale, one in 
ten say the same in Greece, Hungary and Spain (all 10%) and less than one in ten say this in Cyprus 
(8%).  

In  most  countries,  less  than  one  in  ten  of  the  respondents  that  have  never  offered  services  via 
collaborative platforms, have offered services via traditional channels once or a few times. 
However, one in ten in Finland, Lithuania, the Netherlands and Sweden (all 10%) have done so, as 
did 15% in Latvia. In Ireland, Italy (both 4%), Cyprus and Greece (both 3%), very few have offered 
services via traditional channels once or a few times. 

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Poland (14%) and Romania (10%) are the only countries in which at least one in ten of those that 
have  never  offered  services  via  collaborative  platforms  have  however  offered  services  via 
traditional channels on an occasional basis, while very few in any country have offered such 
services on a regular basis, the highest proportion occurring in the Czech Republic (5%). 

Base: respondents who have never offered services via collaborative platforms (n= 24,857) 

Base: respondents who have never offered services via collaborative platforms (n= 24,857) 

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For the socio-demographic breakdown, the focus is on the total proportions of those who say 
they have offered services via traditional channels. Among these: 

§  Men  (17%)  are  more  likely  than  women  (12%)  to  have  offered  services  via  traditional 

channels. 

§  Nearly a fifth of those with the highest levels of education (18%) have offered services via 
traditional channels, compared with only 5% of those with the lowest levels of education. 

§  The self-employed (27%) are significantly more likely to have offered such services: over a 
quarter  give  this  answer,  compared  with  only  14%  of  employees  and  15%  of  manual 
workers. 

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III.  USER-PROVIDER PROFILING OF RESPONDENTS 

The final chapter focuses on the profiles of respondents with respect to whether they are users of 
services provided via collaborative platforms, providers, both users and providers, or neither. 

Three quarters of Europeans are neither users nor providers of services via collaborative 
platforms, while almost one fifth are only users 

By  far  the  most  common  profile  of  respondents  is  that  they  are  neither  users  nor  providers  of 
services  via  collaborative  platforms,  with  three  quarters  (75%)  of  those  polled  falling  into  this 
category. Nearly a fifth (19%) are only users of these services, while only 1% of respondents are 
solely providers, leaving 5% who are users and providers. 

Base: all respondents (n= 26,544) 

In  all  countries,  the  largest  percentage  of  respondents  are  neither  users  nor  providers  of 
services via collaborative platforms. In most cases, this proportion ranges from two thirds to 
eight  in  ten  of  the  respondents.  Latvia  (58%)  stands  out  for  a  particularly  low  proportion  of 
respondents who are neither users nor providers, while the highest proportions are in Lithuania and 
Portugal (both 82%).  

The  proportion  of  respondents  who  are  only  users  of  services  offered  via  collaborative 
platforms  ranges  from  just  over  one  in  ten  of  respondents  in  Belgium,  Italy  (both  14%)  and 
Bulgaria (13%), to over three in ten in Malta (31%). More than a quarter of respondents in Estonia, 
Ireland (both 28%), Hungary and the United Kingdom (both 27%) are only users. 

In all but two countries, less than one in ten are both users and providers of services offered 
via  collaborative  platforms.  The  exceptions  are  Latvia  (15%)  and  France  (10%).  In  Cyprus, 
Lithuania and Portugal (all 2%) very few respondents give this answer. 

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Finally, very few respondents (2% or less) in any of the countries surveyed are only providers of 
these services, and in each country this is the lowest percentage recorded. 

Base: all respondents (n= 26,544) 

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There  are  clear  socio-demographic  differences  for  the  two  largest  categories,  those  who  are 
only users, and those who are neither users nor providers. 

§  Around  three  in  ten  of  those  aged  15-39  (29%-31%)  are  users  of  services  offered  via 
collaborative platforms, compared with less than one in ten (9%)  among those  aged  55  or 
more. On the other hand, while just over six  in ten  of  those  aged  15-39 (61%) are neither 
users  nor  providers,  this  increases  to  nearly  nine  in  ten  of  those  in  the  oldest  age  group 
(88%). 

§  A  quarter  of  respondents  with  the  highest  levels  of  education  (25%)  are  users  of  these 
services and more than two thirds (67%) are neither users nor providers, compared with 5% 
and 94% respectively of those with the lowest levels of education. 

§ 

Just over  a quarter  of  respondents in  large towns (27%) are users of services provided via 
collaborative platforms, compared with only 14% of those in rural villages. By contrast, over 
eight  in  ten  of  respondents  in  rural  villages  (81%)  are  neither  users  nor  providers,  against 
less than two thirds of respondents in large towns (65%). 

§  The self-employed (27%) and employees (26%) are much more likely than manual workers 
(11%)  or  those  not  working  (13%)  to  be  users  of  these  services,  while  the  self-employed 
(10%) are more likely to be users and providers, compared with 3% of manual workers and 
those  not  working.  On  the  other  hand,  while  only  just  over  six  in  ten  (62%)  of  the  self-
employed are neither users nor providers, over eight in ten manual workers (85%) and those 
not working (83%) are in this category.  

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specifications 

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS 

Between  the  23  and  30  April  2018,  TNS  Political  &  Social,  a  consortium  created  between  TNS 
political & social, TNS UK and Kantar Belgium, carried out the FLASH EUROBAROMETER 467 survey 
on  request  of  the  EUROPEAN  COMMISSION,  Directorate-General  for  Internal  Market,  Industry, 
Entrepreneurship and SMEs. It is a general public survey co-ordinated by the Directorate-General for 
Communication, “Media monitoring, media analysis and Eurobarometer” Unit.  

The FLASH EUROBAROMETER 467 survey covers the population of the respective nationalities of the 
European Union Member States, resident in each of the 28 Member States and aged 15 years and 
over.  

All  interviews  were  carried  using  the  TNS  e-Call  centre  (our  centralised  CATI  system).  In  every 
country  the  respondents  were  called  both  on  fixed  lines  and  mobile  phones.  The  basic  sample 
design applied in all states is multi-stage random (probability). In each household, the respondent 
was drawn at random following the "last birthday rule". 

TNS has developed its own RDD sample generation capabilities based on using contact telephone 
numbers from responders to random probability or random location face-to-face surveys, such as 
Eurobarometer,  as  seed  numbers.  The  approach  works  because  the  seed  number  identifies  a 
working  block  of  telephone  numbers  and  reduces  the  volume  of  numbers  generated  that  will  be 
ineffective.  The  seed  numbers  are  stratified  by  NUTS2  region  and  urbanisation  to  approximate  a 
geographically representative sample. From each seed number the required sample of numbers are 
generated by randomly replacing the last two digits. The sample is then screened against business 
databases in order to exclude as many of these numbers as possible before going into field. This 
approach is consistent across all countries. 

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COUNTRIES

INSTITUTES

N°
INTERVIEWS

DATES
FIELDWORK

POPULATION
15+

PROPORTION
EU28

BE

BG

CZ

DK

DE

EE

IE

EL

ES

FR

HR

IT

CY

LV

LT

LU

HU

MT

NL

AT

PL

PT

RO

SI

SK

FI

SE

UK

Belgium

Bulgaria

Czech Rep.

Denmark

Germany

Estonia

Ireland

Greece

Spain

France

Croatia

Italy

Kantar Belgium (Kantar TNS)

KANTAR TNS BBSS

Kantar CZ

Kantar Gallup

Kantar Deutschland

Kantar Emor

Kantar UK Limited

Taylor Nelson Sofres market 
research

TNS Investigación de Mercados 
y Opinión 

Kantar Public France

HENDAL

Kantar Italia

Rep. Of Cyprus

CYMAR Market Research

Latvia

Lithuania

Kantar TNS Latvia

TNS LT

Luxembourg

Kantar Belgium (Kantar TNS)

Hungary

Malta

Kantar Hoffmann

MISCO International

Netherlands

TNS NIPO

Austria

Poland

Portugal

Romania

Slovenia

Slovakia

Finland

Sweden

Kantar Deutschland

Kantar Polska

Marktest – Marketing, 
Organização e Formação

Centrul Pentru Studierea 
Opiniei si Pietei (CSOP)

Mediana DOO

Kantar Slovakia

Kantar TNS Oy

Kantar Sifo

United Kingdom

Kantar UK Limited

1002

1001

1000

1005

1000

1000

1002

1000

1005

1000

1002

1000

500

1001

1000

500

1001

507

1006

1000

1000

1000

1006

1000

1000

1001

1001

1004

23/04/2018

26/04/2018

23/04/2018

26/04/2018

24/04/2018

26/04/2018

24/04/2018

28/04/2018

9,430,478

6,108,289

8,930,036

4,793,807

2.18%

1.41%

2.07%

1.11%

23/04/2018

26/04/2018

71,834,280

16.62%

23/04/2018

26/04/2018

23/04/2018

26/04/2018

1,102,407

3,666,259

24/04/2018

28/04/2018

9,190,023

0.26%

0.85%

2.13%

24/04/2018

26/04/2018

39,460,860

9.13%

23/04/2018

28/04/2018

54,651,908

24/04/2018

28/04/2018

3,548,976

24/04/2018

26/04/2018

52,545,031

24/04/2018

26/04/2018

717,310

24/04/2018

26/04/2018

23/04/2018

28/04/2018

1,650,098

2,428,325

24/04/2018

28/04/2018

493,032

24/04/2018

26/04/2018

8,395,200

24/04/2018

25/04/2018

376,304

23/04/2018

30/04/2018

14,312,179

23/04/2018

28/04/2018

7,516,038

23/04/2018

26/04/2018

32,246,194

23/04/2018

28/04/2018

8,877,432

12.64%

0.82%

12.16%

0.17%

0.38%

0.56%

0.11%

1.94%

0.09%

3.31%

1.74%

7.46%

2.05%

24/04/2018

26/04/2018

16,608,007

3.84%

23/04/2018

26/04/2018

24/04/2018

26/04/2018

24/04/2018

26/04/2018

24/04/2018

28/04/2018

1,756,267

4,599,960

4,608,516

8,227,534

0.41%

1.06%

1.07%

1.90%

23/04/2018

26/04/2018

54,203,274

12.54%

TOTAL EU28

26,544

23/04/2018

30/04/2018

432,278,024

100%*

TS2 

 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The use of the collaborative economy 

April 2018 

Flash Eurobarometer 467 

Technical 
specifications 

Readers are reminded that survey results are estimations, the accuracy of which, everything being 
equal, rests upon the sample size and upon the observed percentage. With samples of about 1,000 
interviews, the real percentages vary within the following confidence limits: 

Statistical Margins due to the sampling process
(at the 95% level of confidence)

various sample sizes are in rows

various observed results are in columns

N=50
N=500
N=1000
N=1500
N=2000
N=3000
N=4000
N=5000
N=6000
N=7000
N=7500
N=8000
N=9000
N=10000
N=11000
N=12000
N=13000
N=14000
N=15000

5%
95%
6,0
1,9
1,4
1,1
1,0
0,8
0,7
0,6
0,6
0,5
0,5
0,5
0,5
0,4
0,4
0,4
0,4
0,4
0,3
5%
95%

10%
90%
8,3
2,6
1,9
1,5
1,3
1,1
0,9
0,8
0,8
0,7
0,7
0,7
0,6
0,6
0,6
0,5
0,5
0,5
0,5
10%
90%

15%
85%
9,9
3,1
2,2
1,8
1,6
1,3
1,1
1,0
0,9
0,8
0,8
0,8
0,7
0,7
0,7
0,6
0,6
0,6
0,6
15%
85%

20%
80%
11,1
3,5
2,5
2,0
1,8
1,4
1,2
1,1
1,0
0,9
0,9
0,9
0,8
0,8
0,7
0,7
0,7
0,7
0,6
20%
80%

25%
75%
12,0
3,8
2,7
2,2
1,9
1,5
1,3
1,2
1,1
1,0
1,0
0,9
0,9
0,8
0,8
0,8
0,7
0,7
0,7
25%
75%

30%
70%
12,7
4,0
2,8
2,3
2,0
1,6
1,4
1,3
1,2
1,1
1,0
1,0
0,9
0,9
0,9
0,8
0,8
0,8
0,7
30%
70%

35%
65%
13,2
4,2
3,0
2,4
2,1
1,7
1,5
1,3
1,2
1,1
1,1
1,0
1,0
0,9
0,9
0,9
0,8
0,8
0,8
35%
65%

40%
60%
13,6
4,3
3,0
2,5
2,1
1,8
1,5
1,4
1,2
1,1
1,1
1,1
1,0
1,0
0,9
0,9
0,8
0,8
0,8
40%
60%

45%
55%
13,8
4,4
3,1
2,5
2,2
1,8
1,5
1,4
1,3
1,2
1,1
1,1
1,0
1,0
0,9
0,9
0,9
0,8
0,8
45%
55%

50%
50%
13,9 N=50
4,4
3,1
2,5
2,2
1,8
1,5
1,4
1,3
1,2
1,1
1,1
1,0
1,0
0,9
0,9
0,9
0,8
0,8
50%
50%

N=500
N=1000
N=1500
N=2000
N=3000
N=4000
N=5000
N=6000
N=7000
N=7500
N=8000
N=9000
N=10000
N=11000
N=12000
N=13000
N=14000
N=15000

TS3 

 
 
  
 
 
 
 
	
 
	
The use of the collaborative economy 

April 2018 

QUESTIONNAIRE 

Flash Eurobarometer 467 

Questionnaire 

(READ OUT): Collaborative platforms are specialist internet-based websites 
or apps that provide an open marketplace where consumers can connect with 
people offering services. Consumers can use services ranging from renting 
accommodation  or  car  sharing  to household  jobs.  People  offering  services 
can be private individuals providing occasional services or professionals. 

ASK ALL 

D8 

Have you ever used a service offered via a collaborative platform? 
(READ OUT - ONE ANSWER ONLY - IF NEEDED, CLARIFY: "AS A CONSUMER") 
No, never 
Yes, once or a few times 
Yes, occasionally (i.e. once every few months) 
Yes, regularly (i.e. once a month or more often) 
DK/NA (DO NOT READ OUT) 

1 
2 
3 
4 
5 
NEW BASED ON FL438 Q1 

D9 

Have you ever offered a service via a collaborative platform? 
(READ OUT - ONE ANSWER ONLY - IF NEEDED CLARIFY: "YOU AS A SERVICE 
PROVIDER") 

No, never 
Yes, once or a few times 
Yes, occasionally (i.e. once every few months) 
Yes, regularly (i.e. once a month or more often) 
DK/NA (DO NOT READ OUT) 

1 
2 
3 
4 
5 
NEW 

Q1 

 
 
  
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
	
 
The use of the collaborative economy 

April 2018 

Flash Eurobarometer 467 

Questionnaire 

Q1 

Q2 

ASK Q1 IF D8=1, OTHERS GO TO Q2 
Q1: ROTATE ANSWERS 2 TO 6 
Q1: CODES 1 AND 8 ARE EXCLUSIVE 

For which of the following reasons have you never used a service offered 
via a collaborative platform? 
(READ OUT - MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE) 
You don't know what collaborative platforms are 
Poor Internet access 
Lack of technical knowledge about how to use collaborative 
platforms 

1, 
2, 
3, 

Lack of trust in the services offered via collaborative platforms 

Preference for services offered via traditional channels (e.g. with 
direct personal contact) 

Concerns about sharing personal data on the platform or the 
Internet 

Other (DO NOT READ OUT) 
DK/NA (DO NOT READ OUT) 

ASK Q2, Q3, Q4, Q5, Q6 ONLY IF D8=2 TO 4, OTHERS GO TO Q7 
Q2: ROTATE ANSWERS 1 TO 6 

In which of the following sectors have you used a service offered via a 
collaborative platform? 
(READ OUT - MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE) 
Transport (e.g. car sharing) 
Accommodation (e.g. renting an apartment) 
Food-related services (e.g. home delivery, food sharing) 
Household services (e.g. gardening, repairs, child care) 
Professional services (e.g. IT services, accounting) 
Collaborative finance (e.g. peer-to-peer lending or crowd-funding) 
Other (DO NOT READ OUT) 
DK/NA (DO NOT READ OUT) 

4, 

5, 

6, 

7, 
8 
NEW 

1, 
2, 
3, 
4, 
5, 
6, 
7, 
8 
NEW 

Q2 

 
 
  
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
 
 
 
 
	
 
The use of the collaborative economy 

April 2018 

Q3 

Flash Eurobarometer 467 

Questionnaire 

Thinking about your overall experience with services offered via 
collaborative platforms in the last 12 months, which of the following 
statements best describes your experience? 
(READ OUT - ONE ANSWER ONLY) 
You have to some extent replaced the services you used via traditional 
channels with services offered via collaborative platforms 

You have completely replaced some types of services you used via 
traditional channels with services offered via collaborative platforms 

You use services offered via traditional channels to approximately the 
same extent, but you now also use these same services via 
collaborative platforms 

You only started using the services when they became available via 
collaborative platforms 

None (DO NOT READ OUT) 
DK/NA (DO NOT READ OUT) 

Q4: ROTATE ANSWERS 1 TO 6 
Q4: CODES 8 AND 9 ARE EXCLUSIVE 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 
6 
NEW 

Q4 

In your personal experience, what are the advantages of using collaborative 
platforms compared with traditional channels, if any? 

(READ OUT - MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE) 
Cheaper or free services offered via collaborative platforms 
A wider choice of services unavailable via traditional channels 
A more convenient access to services 
The availability of ratings and reviews by users 
The opportunities they offer to interact with interesting people 
Possibility of exchanging services instead of paying for them 
Other (DO NOT READ OUT) 
None, there are no advantages (DO NOT READ OUT) 
DK/NA (DO NOT READ OUT) 

1, 
2, 
3, 
4, 
5, 
6, 
7, 
8 
9 
NEW BASED ON FL438 Q3 

Q3 

 
 
  
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
	
 
The use of the collaborative economy 

April 2018 

Flash Eurobarometer 467 

Questionnaire 

Q5: ROTATE ANSWERS 1 TO 6 
Q5: CODES 8 AND 9 ARE EXCLUSIVE 

Q5 

In your personal experience, what are the disadvantages of using 
collaborative platforms compared with traditional channels, if any? 

(READ OUT - MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE) 
Problems with the online booking process or payments 
Less trust in the providers of services offered via collaborative 
platforms 

Services offered via collaborative platforms are not as expected 

1, 
2, 

3, 

Misleading ratings and reviews from users 
Lack of clarity about who is responsible in the event of a problem 
Misuse of your personal data 
Other (DO NOT READ OUT) 
None, there are no significant issues (DO NOT READ OUT) 
DK/NA (DO NOT READ OUT) 

4, 
5, 
6, 
7, 
8 
9 
NEW BASED ON FL438 Q4 

Q6 

Overall, would you recommend services offered via collaborative platforms 
or not? 
(READ OUT - ONE ANSWER ONLY) 
Yes, definitely 
Yes, to some extent 
No, not really 
No, definitely not 
You would recommend some types of services, but not all (DO NOT 
READ OUT) 

1 
2 
3 
4 
5 

DK/NA (DO NOT READ OUT) 

6 
NEW 

Q4 

 
 
  
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
	
 
The use of the collaborative economy 

April 2018 

Flash Eurobarometer 467 

Questionnaire 

Q7 

Q8 

Q9 

ASK Q7, Q8 AND Q9 IF D9=1, OTHERS GO TO Q10 

Would you consider offering services occasionally as a private individual 
via collaborative platforms? 
(READ OUT - ONE ANSWER ONLY) 
Yes 
No 
DK/NA (DO NOT READ OUT) 

1 
2 
3 
NEW 

Q8: ROTATE ANSWERS 1 TO 8 

For which of the following reasons have you never offered a service via a 
collaborative platform? 
(READ OUT - MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE) 
No time or interest 
Poor Internet access 
Lack of technical knowledge about how to use collaborative platforms 
Lack of trust in the online booking process or payments 
Lack of trust in consumers using your services 
Unclear or complicated to provide the service legally 
Complicated system for paying tax 
Unclear impact on your employment status 
Other (DO NOT READ OUT) 
DK/NA (DO NOT READ OUT) 

1, 
2, 
3, 
4, 
5, 
6, 
7, 
8, 
9, 
10 
NEW 

Have you ever offered services occasionally as a private individual via 
traditional channels? 
(READ OUT - ONE ANSWER ONLY) 
No, never 
Yes, once or a few times 
Yes, occasionally (i.e. once every few months) 
Yes, regularly (i.e. once a month or more often) 
DK/NA (DO NOT READ OUT) 

1     
2     
3     
4     
5     
NEW 

Q5 

 
 
  
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
		
	
	
The use of the collaborative economy 

April 2018 

Flash Eurobarometer 467 

Questionnaire 

Q10 

Q11 

ASK Q10, Q11 AND Q12 IF D9=2 TO 4 
Q10: ROTATE ANSWERS 1 TO 6 
Q10: CODES 8 AND 9 ARE EXCLUSIVE 

In which of the following sectors have you provided a service via a 
collaborative platform? 
(READ OUT - MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE) 
Transport (e.g. car sharing) 
Accommodation (e.g. renting an apartment) 
Food-related services (e.g. home delivery, food sharing) 
Household services (e.g. gardening, repairs, child care) 
Professional services (e.g. IT services, accounting) 
Collaborative finance (e.g. peer-to-peer lending or crowd-funding) 
Other (DO NOT READ OUT) 
None (DO NOT READ OUT) 
DK/NA (DO NOT READ OUT) 

1,   
2,   
3,   
4,   
5,   
6,   
7,   
8   
9   
NEW 

Q11: ROTATE ANSWERS 1 TO 8 
Q11: CODES 10 AND 11 ARE EXCLUSIVE 

For which of the following reasons do you offer services via collaborative 
platforms? 
(READ OUT - MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE) 
Main source of income 
An additional source of income 
Flexible working hours 
An easy opportunity to become a services provider 
An opportunity to offer additional or more innovative services 
Access to more consumers 
An easy way to interact with consumers 
More sustainable and efficient use of available assets 
Other (DO NOT READ OUT) 
None (DO NOT READ OUT) 
DK/NA (DO NOT READ OUT) 

1,   
2,   
3,   
4,   
5,   
6,   
7,   
8,   
9,   
10   
11   
NEW 

Q6 

 
 
  
 
 
  
  
  
  
                          
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
                          
  
  
  
  
  
  
                          
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
		
	
	
The use of the collaborative economy 

April 2018 

Q12 

Flash Eurobarometer 467 

Questionnaire 

Q12: ROTATE ANSWERS 1 TO 5 
Q12: CODES 7 AND 8 ARE EXCLUSIVE 

What are the main problems you encountered when providing services via a 
collaborative platform, if any? 
(READ OUT - MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE) 
Lack of clarity about how to provide the service legally 
Complicated or difficult to provide the service legally 
Complicated system for paying tax 
Unclear impact on your employment status 
Difficulties with consumers using your services 
Other (DO NOT READ OUT) 
None (DO NOT READ OUT) 
DK/NA (DO NOT READ OUT) 

1,      
2,      
3,      
4,      
5,      
6,      
7      
8      

NEW 

Q7 

 
 
  
 
 
  
  
  
                          
  
    
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
	 
 
	
D8

Have you ever used a service offered via a collaborative platform?
(%)

s
e
m

i
t

w
e
f

a

r
o
e
c
n
o

,
s
e
Y

9

8

9

7

17

10

12

13

10

9

9

12

6

11

14

5

12

17

15

15

8

4

8

8

14

12

12

13

11

r
e
v
e
n

,

o
N

76

82

83

81

73

80

69

65

77

76

67

73

82

79

59

82

78

67

65

69

80

79

82

76

70

68

79

77

69

EU28

BE

BG

CZ

DK

DE

EE

IE

EL

ES

FR

HR

IT

CY

LV

LT

LU

HU

MT

NL

AT

PL

PT

RO

SI

SK

FI

SE

UK

)
s
h
t
n
o
m
w
e
f

y
r
e
v
e

e
c
n
o

y
l
l

a
n
o
i
s
a
c
c
o

,
s
e
Y

.

e

.
i
(

)
n
e
t
f
o
e
r
o
m

r
o
h
t
n
o
m
a

e
c
n
o

l

y
l
r
a
u
g
e
r

,
s
e
Y

.

e

.
i
(

10

6

5

7

6

7

11

11

7

10

20

9

9

5

16

8

6

12

9

10

8

11

6

11

11

13

7

6

10

4

4

3

5

3

2

8

10

5

5

4

6

3

3

10

5

4

4

11

5

3

5

3

4

5

6

2

2

9

w
o
n
k

t
'
n
o
D

1

0

0

0

1

1

0

1

1

0

0

0

0

2

1

0

0

0

0

1

1

1

1

1

0

1

0

2

1

'
s
e
Y

'

l

a
t
o
T

23

18

17

19

26

19

31

34

22

24

33

27

18

19

40

18

22

33

35

30

19

20

17

23

30

31

21

21

30

    The use of the collaborative economy   April 2018  Tables of results Flash Eurobarometer 467             T1 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
D9

Have you ever offered a service via a collaborative platform?
(%)

s
e
m

i
t

w
e
f

a

r
o
e
c
n
o

,
s
e
Y

3

4

3

2

3

2

1

3

1

3

4

2

1

1

12

1

3

5

3

4

3

3

1

3

5

5

3

2

1

r
e
v
e
n

,

o
N

94

94

94

95

93

96

95

92

96

93

89

93

95

96

82

97

93

92

95

90

94

94

96

91

92

90

94

95

96

EU28

BE

BG

CZ

DK

DE

EE

IE

EL

ES

FR

HR

IT

CY

LV

LT

LU

HU

MT

NL

AT

PL

PT

RO

SI

SK

FI

SE

UK

)
s
h
t
n
o
m
w
e
f

y
r
e
v
e

e
c
n
o

y
l
l

a
n
o
i
s
a
c
c
o

,
s
e
Y

.

e

.
i
(

)
n
e
t
f
o
e
r
o
m

r
o
h
t
n
o
m
a

e
c
n
o

l

y
l
r
a
u
g
e
r

,
s
e
Y

.

e

.
i
(

2

1

2

1

2

1

2

2

1

2

6

3

2

0

4

1

3

2

1

3

2

2

1

4

2

3

1

1

1

1

1

1

2

2

0

1

1

1

2

1

2

2

1

1

1

1

1

1

2

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

2

w
o
n
k

t
'
n
o
D

0

0

0

0

0

1

1

2

1

0

0

0

0

2

1

0

0

0

0

1

0

0

1

1

0

1

1

1

0

'
s
e
Y

'

l

a
t
o
T

6

6

6

5

7

3

4

6

3

7

11

7

5

2

17

3

7

8

5

9

6

6

3

8

8

9

5

4

4

    The use of the collaborative economy   April 2018  Tables of results Flash Eurobarometer 467             T2 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
D8D9

User-provider profile
(%)

r
e
d
i
v
o
r
p
y
l
n
O

1

2

2

1

1

1

0

1

0

1

1

2

1

0

2

1

2

1

0

2

2

1

1

2

1

2

1

1

1

r
e
d
i
v
o
r
p
d
n
a

r
e
s
U

5

4

4

4

6

3

3

6

3

6

10

5

4

2

15

2

5

6

4

7

4

5

2

6

7

7

4

3

3

r
e
d
i
v
o
r
p
r
o
n
r
e
s
u
t
o
N

75

80

81

80

73

80

69

65

78

75

66

72

81

81

58

82

76

66

65

68

79

78

82

75

70

67

79

79

69

r
e
s
u
y
l
n
O

19

14

13

15

20

16

28

28

19

18

23

21

14

17

25

15

17

27

31

23

15

16

15

17

22

24

16

17

27

EU28

BE

BG

CZ

DK

DE

EE

IE

EL

ES

FR

HR

IT

CY

LV

LT

LU

HU

MT

NL

AT

PL

PT

RO

SI

SK

FI

SE

UK

    The use of the collaborative economy   April 2018  Tables of results Flash Eurobarometer 467             T3 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Q1

For which of the following reasons have you never used a service offered via a collaborative platform?
(MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE)
(%)

e
r
a

s

l

m
r
o
f
t
a
p
e
v
i
t
a
r
o
b
a

l
l

o
c

t
a
h
w
w
o
n
k

t
'
n
o
d
u
o
Y

36

32

46

36

15

43

30

52

36

36

27

27

28

50

34

41

32

24

29

25

43

29

36

46

44

41

33

34

49

EU28

BE

BG

CZ

DK

DE

EE

IE

EL

ES

FR

HR

IT

CY

LV

LT

LU

HU

MT

NL

AT

PL

PT

RO

SI

SK

FI

SE

UK

s
s
e
c
c
a

t
e
n
r
e
t
n

I

r
o
o
P

6

9

5

6

3

5

3

7

6

8

10

4

6

6

11

3

10

7

15

2

6

7

8

7

3

5

6

4

4

t
u
o
b
a

l

e
g
d
e
w
o
n
k

l

a
c
i
n
h
c
e
t

f
o
k
c
a
L

s

l

m
r
o
f
t
a
p
e
v
i
t
a
r
o
b
a

l
l

o
c

e
s
u
o
t

w
o
h

s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s

e
h
t
n

i

t
s
u
r
t

f
o
k
c
a
L

s

l

m
r
o
f
t
a
p
e
v
i
t
a
r
o
b
a

l
l

o
c

a
i
v
d
e
r
e
f
f
o

s
l
e
n
n
a
h
c

l

a
n
o
i
t
i
d
a
r
t

a
i
v
d
e
r
e
f
f
o
s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s

r
o
f

e
c
n
e
r
e
f
e
r
P

)
t
c
a
t
n
o
c

l

a
n
o
s
r
e
p
t
c
e
r
i
d
h
t
i

w

.

.

g
e
(

14

19

13

16

14

12

11

12

18

15

16

15

12

10

16

4

15

9

18

12

15

14

22

11

14

16

11

13

13

17

24

17

21

18

20

8

13

20

27

21

13

7

13

15

6

21

12

5

19

23

18

18

11

16

19

14

19

14

34

37

21

27

34

38

30

21

27

38

41

18

38

11

32

28

36

41

18

39

37

45

30

12

37

26

28

34

21

a
t
a
d

l

a
n
o
s
r
e
p
g
n
i
r
a
h
s

t
u
o
b
a

s
n
r
e
c
n
o
C

t
e
n
r
e
t
n

I

e
h
t

r
o
m
r
o
f
t
a
p
e
h
t
n
o

l

20

21

19

22

17

28

3

16

16

27

27

18

5

5

15

6

20

15

3

19

26

20

26

11

19

15

14

20

20

r
e
h
t
O

)
S
U
O
E
N
A
T
N
O
P
S
(

w
o
n
k

t
'
n
o
D

13

12

8

16

34

7

28

10

11

14

20

24

15

11

18

17

15

15

16

17

7

8

17

16

14

8

18

14

9

3

3

2

4

2

2

1

3

2

2

2

3

1

3

2

4

4

0

4

4

4

3

2

3

1

4

4

1

5

    The use of the collaborative economy   April 2018  Tables of results Flash Eurobarometer 467             T4 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Q2

In which of the following sectors have you used a service offered via a collaborative platform?
(MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE)
(%)

)
g
n
i
r
a
h
s

r
a
c

.

.

g
e
(

t
r
o
p
s
n
a
r
T

51

36

38

64

59

43

76

41

35

55

66

60

50

43

51

81

58

20

38

27

34

64

68

49

64

25

26

47

50

EU28

BE

BG

CZ

DK

DE

EE

IE

EL

ES

FR

HR

IT

CY

LV

LT

LU

HU

MT

NL

AT

PL

PT

RO

SI

SK

FI

SE

UK

)
t
n
e
m

t
r
a
p
a
n
a
g
n
i
t
n
e
r

.

.

g
e
(
n
o
i
t
a
d
o
m
m
o
c
c
A

s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s
d
e
t
a
e
r
d
o
o
F

l

)
g
n
i
r
a
h
s
d
o
o
f

,

y
r
e
v
i
l

e
d
e
m
o
h

.

.

g
e
(

s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s
d
o
h
e
s
u
o
H

l

)
e
r
a
c
d

l
i

h
c

,
s
r
i
a
p
e
r

,

i

g
n
n
e
d
r
a
g

.

.

g
e
(

s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s

l

a
n
o
i
s
s
e
f
o
r
P

)
g
n
i
t
n
u
o
c
c
a

,
s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s

T
I

.

.

g
e
(

i

)
g
n
d
n
u
f
d
w
o
r
c

r
o
g
n
d
n
e

i

l

r
e
e
p
o
t
r
e
e
p

e
c
n
a
n
i
f

e
v
i
t
a
r
o
b
a

l
l

o
C

r
e
h
t
O

)
S
U
O
E
N
A
T
N
O
P
S
(

w
o
n
k

t
'
n
o
D

.

.

g
e
(

57

54

62

62

54

62

45

68

67

69

58

34

56

49

27

31

54

60

44

61

62

38

51

41

55

43

68

49

55

33

35

37

32

14

25

27

49

28

38

26

26

16

38

22

25

38

33

24

44

30

30

20

39

21

50

31

25

55

14

11

24

14

5

20

5

22

15

8

14

7

10

10

26

4

16

12

25

12

13

11

4

15

6

23

8

6

19

9

4

18

7

1

7

4

16

10

13

2

5

10

11

11

5

16

10

10

10

10

10

12

11

8

12

5

10

11

8

5

3

5

2

4

6

12

5

9

15

2

1

6

4

5

15

2

15

3

9

8

6

2

4

3

7

3

13

6

10

8

3

6

4

4

1

6

6

4

7

4

8

21

4

4

9

18

7

8

5

4

17

6

8

11

8

4

2

0

0

1

0

3

1

4

2

1

0

1

0

0

1

1

1

1

1

0

1

2

0

2

0

1

0

3

4

    The use of the collaborative economy   April 2018  Tables of results Flash Eurobarometer 467             T5 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Q3

Thinking about your overall experience with services offered via collaborative platforms in the last 12 months, which of the
following statements best describes your experience?
(%)

s

l

m
r
o
f
t
a
p
e
v
i
t
a
r
o
b
a

l
l

o
c

a
i
v
d
e
r
e
f
f
o
s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s
h
t
i

w

s

l

m
r
o
f
t
a
p
e
v
i
t
a
r
o
b
a

l
l

o
c

a
i
v
d
e
r
e
f
f
o

s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s

e
h
t
d
e
c
a
p
e
r

l

t
n
e
t
x
e

e
m
o
s
o
t

e
v
a
h
u
o
Y

s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s
h
t
i

w
s
l
e
n
n
a
h
c

l

a
n
o
i
t
i
d
a
r
t

a
i
v
d
e
s
u
u
o
y

20

17

31

33

31

19

36

20

24

15

14

21

26

39

17

11

20

37

18

25

22

16

30

28

21

32

36

20

18

EU28

BE

BG

CZ

DK

DE

EE

IE

EL

ES

FR

HR

IT

CY

LV

LT

LU

HU

MT

NL

AT

PL

PT

RO

SI

SK

FI

SE

UK

s
e
p
y
t

e
m
o
s
d
e
c
a
p
e
r

l

l

y
l
e
t
e
p
m
o
c

e
v
a
h
u
o
Y

s
l
e
n
n
a
h
c

l

a
n
o
i
t
i
d
a
r
t

a
i
v
d
e
s
u
u
o
y

s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s

f
o

12

7

4

11

7

6

16

13

13

16

8

15

15

9

7

11

3

12

19

14

10

16

20

9

17

12

6

14

14

s

l

m
r
o
f
t
a
p
e
v
i
t
a
r
o
b
a

l
l

o
c

a
i
v

s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s

e
m
a
s

e
s
e
h
t

e
s
u
o
s
l
a

s
l
e
n
n
a
h
c

l

a
n
o
i
t
i
d
a
r
t

a
i
v
d
e
r
e
f
f
o
s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s

e
s
u
u
o
Y

w
o
n
u
o
y

t
u
b

,
t
n
e
t
x
e

e
m
a
s

e
h
t

y
l
e
t
a
m
i
x
o
r
p
p
a
o
t

33

28

37

24

24

30

26

36

39

53

32

29

29

25

40

40

32

31

31

30

32

36

23

24

29

37

35

41

30

n
e
h
w
s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s

e
h
t
g
n
i
s
u
d
e
t
r
a
t
s

y
l
n
o
u
o
Y

s

l

m
r
o
f
t
a
p
e
v
i
t
a
r
o
b
a

l
l

o
c

a
i
v

l

e
b
a

l
i

a
v
a

e
m
a
c
e
b
y
e
h
t

27

34

22

23

21

30

13

22

18

11

37

30

28

17

25

32

39

16

26

24

27

26

21

31

30

14

15

18

28

)
S
U
O
E
N
A
T
N
O
P
S
(

e
n
o
N

6

14

5

7

14

12

4

5

5

5

8

5

2

10

9

2

6

3

1

5

8

4

3

6

1

4

6

6

4

w
o
n
k

t
'
n
o
D

2

0

1

2

3

3

5

4

1

0

1

0

0

0

2

4

0

1

5

2

1

2

3

2

2

1

2

1

6

    The use of the collaborative economy   April 2018  Tables of results Flash Eurobarometer 467             T6 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Q4

In your personal experience, what are the advantages of using collaborative platforms compared with traditional channels,
if any? (MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE)
(%)

d
e
r
e
f
f
o
s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s

e
e
r
f

r
o
r
e
p
a
e
h
C

s

l

m
r
o
f
t
a
p
e
v
i
t
a
r
o
b
a

l
l

o
c

a
i
v

EU28

BE

BG

CZ

DK

DE

EE

IE

EL

ES

FR

HR

IT

CY

LV

LT

LU

HU

MT

NL

AT

PL

PT

RO

SI

SK

FI

SE

UK

59

57

62

87

64

59

52

61

64

75

68

59

40

46

63

44

67

35

32

43

63

71

73

45

77

41

51

46

56

l

e
b
a

l
i

a
v
a
n
u
s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s

f
o
e
c
i
o
h
c

i

r
e
d
w
A

s
l
e
n
n
a
h
c

l

a
n
o
i
t
i
d
a
r
t

a
i
v

56

49

62

65

36

60

36

64

55

69

65

49

35

39

55

32

61

21

32

50

68

57

66

49

72

41

58

42

58

s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s
o
t

s
s
e
c
c
a

i

t
n
e
n
e
v
n
o
c

e
r
o
m
A

73

72

74

71

40

74

75

83

65

81

77

50

44

60

78

61

63

77

69

71

77

75

76

65

87

67

63

62

84

s
r
e
s
u
y
b
s
w
e
i
v
e
r
d
n
a

s
g
n
i
t
a
r

f
o
y
t
i
l
i

b
a

l
i

a
v
a

e
h
T

60

53

63

73

32

72

30

63

60

75

64

43

37

29

68

32

50

36

13

44

73

68

72

50

74

50

39

35

64

t
c
a
r
e
t
n

i

o
t

r
e
f
f
o
y
e
h
t

s
e
i
t
i
n
u
t
r
o
p
p
o
e
h
T

l

e
p
o
e
p
g
n
i
t
s
e
r
e
t
n

i

h
t
i

w

s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s
g
n
g
n
a
h
c
x
e

i

f
o
y
t
i
l
i

b
i
s
s
o
P

m
e
h
t

r
o
f
g
n
i
y
a
p
f
o
d
a
e
t
s
n

i

34

36

40

42

20

33

12

34

24

40

54

28

14

14

41

19

39

14

8

17

53

44

40

38

50

15

18

11

30

31

30

38

31

9

30

11

29

32

45

46

19

18

20

42

19

39

11

4

13

35

33

46

27

41

12

12

15

28

)
S
U
O
E
N
A
T
N
O
P
S
(

r
e
h
t
O

1

1

0

0

5

0

3

2

2

1

0

2

2

5

1

10

0

2

5

4

1

1

1

6

2

1

4

2

2

s
e
g
a
t
n
a
v
d
a
o
n
e
r
a

e
r
e
h
t

,

e
n
o
N

)
S
U
O
E
N
A
T
N
O
P
S
(

2

3

1

1

2

3

2

1

1

1

3

1

0

4

1

0

2

1

1

1

1

0

0

2

0

2

1

2

1

w
o
n
k

t
'
n
o
D

1

0

2

1

0

1

1

1

1

1

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

1

2

2

1

1

0

2

1

3

0

2

1

    The use of the collaborative economy   April 2018  Tables of results Flash Eurobarometer 467             T7 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Q5

In your personal experience, what are the disadvantages of using collaborative platforms compared with traditional
channels, if any? (MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE)
(%)

e
n

i
l

n
o
e
h
t
h
t
i

w
s

l

m
e
b
o
r
P

s
t
n
e
m
y
a
p
r
o
s
s
e
c
o
r
p
g
n
k
o
o
b

i

s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s

f
o
s
r
e
d
i
v
o
r
p
e
h
t
n

i

t
s
u
r
t

s
s
e
L

s

l

m
r
o
f
t
a
p
e
v
i
t
a
r
o
b
a

l
l

o
c

a
i
v
d
e
r
e
f
f
o

s

l

m
r
o
f
t
a
p
e
v
i
t
a
r
o
b
a

l
l

o
c

a
i
v
d
e
r
e
f
f
o
s
e
c
i
v
r
e
S

d
e
t
c
e
p
x
e

s
a

t
o
n
e
r
a

EU28

BE

BG

CZ

DK

DE

EE

IE

EL

ES

FR

HR

IT

CY

LV

LT

LU

HU

MT

NL

AT

PL

PT

RO

SI

SK

FI

SE

UK

22

23

18

21

7

25

15

30

20

22

19

8

17

22

23

13

22

8

12

18

22

21

26

27

18

16

7

15

32

34

35

35

44

27

44

13

41

37

40

35

17

17

20

41

17

36

14

13

31

40

31

29

29

26

23

25

36

38

24

30

33

22

14

27

14

35

17

32

23

13

17

16

48

12

29

9

19

20

33

19

24

25

22

17

15

13

27

s
r
e
s
u
m
o
r
f

s
w
e
i
v
e
r
d
n
a

s
g
n
i
t
a
r
g
n
d
a
e
l
s
i

i

M

38

40

48

38

14

49

13

48

44

44

46

17

20

36

51

21

40

17

13

29

40

41

44

36

41

29

14

22

37

l

e
b
i
s
n
o
p
s
e
r

s
i

o
h
w

t
u
o
b
a

y
t
i
r
a
l
c

f
o
k
c
a
L

l

m
e
b
o
r
p
a

f
o
t
n
e
v
e

e
h
t
n

i

49

59

57

55

28

65

29

57

48

66

49

28

19

35

59

29

54

24

30

38

59

52

55

37

53

36

25

44

52

a
t
a
d

l

a
n
o
s
r
e
p
r
u
o
y

f
o
e
s
u
s
i

M

37

30

40

35

7

40

14

47

39

44

44

26

24

34

35

19

40

21

25

32

36

45

37

30

39

29

19

19

40

s
e
u
s
s
i

t
n
a
c
i
f
i
n
g
i
s
o
n
e
r
a

e
r
e
h
t

,

e
n
o
N

)
S
U
O
E
N
A
T
N
O
P
S
(

15

8

6

15

35

8

40

11

9

11

16

29

21

8

8

21

14

41

16

17

16

12

17

14

17

16

42

16

15

)
S
U
O
E
N
A
T
N
O
P
S
(

r
e
h
t
O

3

2

3

1

9

3

4

5

0

2

2

8

4

4

1

3

3

2

6

5

3

2

4

6

3

4

6

2

2

w
o
n
k

t
'
n
o
D

1

1

2

2

1

2

5

0

2

0

1

3

1

2

2

3

0

1

5

2

2

1

0

4

1

3

0

3

1

    The use of the collaborative economy   April 2018  Tables of results Flash Eurobarometer 467             T8 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Q6

Overall, would you recommend services offered via collaborative platforms or not?
(%)

y
l
e
t
i
n
i
f
e
d

,
s
e
Y

35

26

50

36

39

24

54

41

40

33

31

57

42

50

24

54

28

53

64

27

26

31

44

53

41

39

32

31

36

t
n
e
t
x
e

e
m
o
s
o
t

,
s
e
Y

53

54

40

54

47

57

38

47

51

58

59

31

48

39

66

38

58

39

29

46

59

60

48

38

48

53

59

51

54

y
l
l

a
e
r

t
o
n

,

o
N

5

12

2

5

5

6

2

4

3

2

4

2

4

3

6

4

5

3

2

13

6

4

2

3

3

2

6

3

6

s
e
p
y
t

e
m
o
s
d
n
e
m
m
o
c
e
r
d
u
o
w
u
o
Y

l

)
S
U
O
E
N
A
T
N
O
P
S
(

l
l

a

t
o
n
t
u
b

,
s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s

f
o

4

4

5

1

6

8

4

4

2

5

3

6

4

5

1

3

3

4

2

11

6

3

3

2

6

4

2

11

1

t
o
n
y
l
e
t
i
n
i
f
e
d

,

o
N

2

3

3

2

2

2

1

4

4

2

3

2

2

3

2

1

5

1

1

2

2

1

2

3

2

1

0

1

2

w
o
n
k

t
'
n
o
D

1

1

0

2

1

3

1

0

0

0

0

2

0

0

1

0

1

0

2

1

1

1

1

1

0

1

1

3

1

'
s
e
Y

'

l

a
t
o
T

88

80

90

90

86

81

92

88

91

91

90

88

90

89

90

92

86

92

93

73

85

91

92

91

89

92

91

82

90

EU28

BE

BG

CZ

DK

DE

EE

IE

EL

ES

FR

HR

IT

CY

LV

LT

LU

HU

MT

NL

AT

PL

PT

RO

SI

SK

FI

SE

UK

'

o
N

'

l

a
t
o
T

7

15

5

7

7

8

3

8

7

4

7

4

6

6

8

5

10

4

3

15

8

5

4

6

5

3

6

4

8

    The use of the collaborative economy   April 2018  Tables of results Flash Eurobarometer 467             T9 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Q7

Would you consider offering services occasionally as a private individual via collaborative platforms?
(%)

Yes

No

Don't know

EU28

BE

BG

CZ

DK

DE

EE

IE

EL

ES

FR

HR

IT

CY

LV

LT

LU

HU

MT

NL

AT

PL

PT

RO

SI

SK

FI

SE

UK

19

15

22

15

21

12

14

19

31

19

21

29

24

28

22

21

26

20

18

12

15

20

30

25

20

18

29

23

17

78

84

75

81

75

84

80

77

65

77

78

66

72

65

75

72

72

78

75

86

83

78

64

72

78

78

67

72

79

3

1

3

4

4

4

6

4

4

4

1

5

4

7

3

7

2

2

7

2

2

2

6

3

2

4

4

5

4

    The use of the collaborative economy   April 2018  Tables of results Flash Eurobarometer 467             T10Q8

For which of the following reasons have you never offered a service via a collaborative platform?
(MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE)
(%)

s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s

r
u
o
y
g
n
i
s
u
s
r
e
m
u
s
n
o
c
n

i

t
s
u
r
t

f
o
k
c
a
L

24

32

29

27

21

30

5

27

17

35

34

10

8

11

14

7

25

13

2

17

35

20

29

21

18

20

15

13

25

e
n

i
l

n
o
e
h
t
n

i

t
s
u
r
t

f
o
k
c
a
L

s
t
n
e
m
y
a
p
r
o
s
s
e
c
o
r
p
g
n
k
o
o
b

i

25

31

26

24

9

33

4

27

21

35

34

14

8

13

16

8

30

13

3

15

35

24

34

20

25

17

14

12

26

d
e
t
a
c
i
l

p
m
o
c

r
o
r
a
e
l
c
n
U

y
l
l

a
g
e

l

e
c
i
v
r
e
s

e
h
t

e
d
i
v
o
r
p
o
t

22

25

21

25

13

28

5

26

23

36

28

8

4

6

13

5

26

11

3

18

30

21

33

14

23

14

15

18

21

x
a
t
g
n
i
y
a
p
r
o
f

m
e
t
s
y
s
d
e
t
a
c
i
l

p
m
o
C

16

19

15

22

11

21

4

21

18

23

20

7

2

2

16

6

18

8

2

11

23

13

25

12

23

13

10

6

16

s
u
t
a
t
s

t
n
e
m
y
o
p
m
e

l

r
u
o
y
n
o
t
c
a
p
m

i

r
a
e
l
c
n
U

13

14

15

8

6

15

3

17

17

23

13

5

4

6

15

6

16

6

1

11

21

13

26

10

12

7

5

6

14

r
e
h
t
O

)
S
U
O
E
N
A
T
N
O
P
S
(

w
o
n
k

t
'
n
o
D

10

7

8

12

17

6

22

9

9

10

9

21

16

20

16

16

7

15

21

16

6

7

13

16

19

10

20

7

7

5

3

3

4

1

6

3

8

5

5

1

4

1

6

3

4

1

2

7

6

5

6

5

7

2

8

4

7

8

t
u
o
b
a

l

e
g
d
e
w
o
n
k

l

a
c
i
n
h
c
e
t

f
o
k
c
a
L

s

l

m
r
o
f
t
a
p
e
v
i
t
a
r
o
b
a

l
l

o
c

e
s
u
o
t

w
o
h

31

37

37

35

16

29

17

39

37

42

32

25

21

26

26

17

28

17

20

20

37

31

44

28

39

34

25

21

37

t
s
e
r
e
t
n

i

r
o
e
m

i
t
o
N

64

76

52

75

65

75

64

62

42

61

83

43

52

29

60

60

76

51

42

61

75

51

64

42

66

48

56

66

62

s
s
e
c
c
a

t
e
n
r
e
t
n

I

r
o
o
P

10

15

12

11

3

9

3

16

12

15

14

7

6

5

14

6

14

8

11

3

12

12

13

13

6

8

7

4

12

EU28

BE

BG

CZ

DK

DE

EE

IE

EL

ES

FR

HR

IT

CY

LV

LT

LU

HU

MT

NL

AT

PL

PT

RO

SI

SK

FI

SE

UK

    The use of the collaborative economy   April 2018  Tables of results Flash Eurobarometer 467             T11 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Q9

Have you ever offered services occasionally as a private individual via traditional channels?
(%)

s
e
m

i
t

w
e
f

a

r
o
e
c
n
o

,
s
e
Y

6

7

7

5

8

7

8

4

3

5

6

8

4

3

15

10

6

6

7

10

6

6

5

6

5

8

10

10

5

r
e
v
e
n

,

o
N

85

87

85

82

86

85

84

86

89

89

85

81

89

92

73

79

87

90

87

79

84

75

88

81

89

83

81

80

86

EU28

BE

BG

CZ

DK

DE

EE

IE

EL

ES

FR

HR

IT

CY

LV

LT

LU

HU

MT

NL

AT

PL

PT

RO

SI

SK

FI

SE

UK

)
s
h
t
n
o
m
w
e
f

y
r
e
v
e

e
c
n
o

y
l
l

a
n
o
i
s
a
c
c
o

,
s
e
Y

.

e

.
i
(

)
n
e
t
f
o
e
r
o
m

r
o
h
t
n
o
m
a

e
c
n
o

l

y
l
r
a
u
g
e
r

,
s
e
Y

.

e

.
i
(

6

4

5

7

3

6

4

6

4

3

6

8

5

3

9

6

6

3

2

6

6

14

6

10

4

6

6

6

4

2

2

3

5

2

1

3

3

3

2

2

2

2

2

3

2

1

1

3

4

3

4

1

2

2

2

2

1

4

w
o
n
k

t
'
n
o
D

1

0

0

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

0

0

0

3

0

0

1

1

1

1

0

1

0

1

1

3

1

'
s
e
Y

'

l

a
t
o
T

14

13

15

17

13

14

15

13

10

10

14

18

11

8

27

18

13

10

12

20

15

24

12

18

11

16

18

17

13

    The use of the collaborative economy   April 2018  Tables of results Flash Eurobarometer 467             T12 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Q10

In which of the following sectors have you provided a service via a collaborative platform?
(MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE)
(%)

)
g
n
i
r
a
h
s

r
a
c

.

.

g
e
(

t
r
o
p
s
n
a
r
T

44

38

33

52

51

46

24

16

16

52

73

27

36

14

35

52

59

14

19

12

33

55

28

29

55

21

4

30

8

EU28

BE

BG

CZ

DK

DE

EE

IE

EL

ES

FR

HR

IT

CY

LV

LT

LU

HU

MT

NL

AT

PL

PT

RO

SI

SK

FI

SE

UK

)
t
n
e
m

t
r
a
p
a
n
a
g
n
i
t
n
e
r

n
o
i
t
a
d
o
m
m
o
c
c
A

.

.

g
e
(

s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s
d
e
t
a
e
r
d
o
o
F

l

)
g
n
i
r
a
h
s
d
o
o
f

,

y
r
e
v
i
l

e
d
e
m
o
h

.

.

g
e
(

s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s
d
o
h
e
s
u
o
H

l

)
e
r
a
c
d

l
i

h
c

,
s
r
i
a
p
e
r

,

i

g
n
n
e
d
r
a
g

.

.

g
e
(

s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s

l

a
n
o
i
s
s
e
f
o
r
P

)
g
n
i
t
n
u
o
c
c
a

,
s
e
c
i
v
r
e
s

T
I

.

.

g
e
(

i

)
g
n
d
n
u
f
d
w
o
r
c

r
o
g
n
d
n
e

i

l

r
e
e
p
o
t
r
e
e
p

e
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26

21

21

37

25

45

26

23

19

37

69

26

10

25

19

4

6

3

9

13

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12

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12

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23

8

20

36

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21

18

11

13

14

13

13

3

35

9

17

32

30

18

1

18

5

31

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11

0

37

0

24

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6

28

24

24

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31

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36

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32

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r
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2

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6

    The use of the collaborative economy   April 2018  Tables of results Flash Eurobarometer 467             T13 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Q11

For which of the following reasons do you offer services via collaborative platforms?
(MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE)
(%)

e
m
o
c
n

i

f
o
e
c
r
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s

l

a
n
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t
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d
d
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n
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50

37

56

54

48

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65

49

61

70

53

55

17

14

51

47

54

20

27

44

61

58

53

50

61

42

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34

47

e
m
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s
n
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i

10

15

25

5

5

6

19

12

25

14

4

8

6

14

9

5

9

7

15

5

11

16

10

20

5

11

0

4

17

EU28

BE

BG

CZ

DK

DE

EE

IE

EL

ES

FR

HR

IT

CY

LV

LT

LU

HU

MT

NL

AT

PL

PT

RO

SI

SK

FI

SE

UK

i

s
r
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g
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w
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b
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x
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l

l

40

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39

40

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40

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44

40

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18

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41

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16

22

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63

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53

40

19

63

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35

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53

50

58

57

23

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70

39

76

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37

22

28

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63

38

19

38

56

58

69

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l

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1

0

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4

4

5

0

    The use of the collaborative economy   April 2018  Tables of results Flash Eurobarometer 467             T14 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Q12

What are the main problems you encountered when providing services via a collaborative platform, if any?
(MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE)
(%)

w
o
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t
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b
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27

42

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15

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28

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28

30

39

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13

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13

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9

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19

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4

25

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11

12

13

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4

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21

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18

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29

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15

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11

18

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9

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f
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19

21

29

10

20

28

14

15

19

24

17

14

17

16

14

24

35

15

11

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29

21

6

21

20

22

16

13

17

)
S
U
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E
N
A
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N
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P
S
(

r
e
h
t
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4

9

0

11

5

3

5

4

7

2

2

10

0

29

2

12

11

3

7

6

9

0

4

8

0

7

18

3

11

)
S
U
O
E
N
A
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N
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S
(

e
n
o
N

46

38

28

44

58

51

43

50

21

40

56

41

49

46

52

44

37

45

45

34

27

32

30

35

55

36

50

64

57

w
o
n
k

t
'
n
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D

2

2

6

4

5

0

0

0

0

0

1

5

5

0

4

0

0

3

6

6

4

1

0

4

0

19

3

5

1

EU28

BE

BG

CZ

DK

DE

EE

IE

EL

ES

FR

HR

IT

CY

LV

LT

LU

HU

MT

NL

AT

PL

PT

RO

SI

SK

FI

SE

UK

    The use of the collaborative economy   April 2018  Tables of results Flash Eurobarometer 467             T15