service providers – our “dual market strategy.” Our stores carry an extensive product line consisting of new and remanufactured automotive hard parts, maintenance items, accessories, a complete line of auto body paint and related materials, automotive tools and professional service provider service equipment.
Our extensive product line includes an assortment of products that are differentiated by quality and price for most of the product lines we offer. For many of our product offerings, this quality differentiation reflects “good,” “better,” and “best” alternatives. Our sales and total gross profit dollars are, generally, highest for the “best” quality category of products. Consumers’ willingness to select products at a higher point on the value spectrum is a driver of sales and profitability in our industry. We have ongoing initiatives focused on marketing and training to educate customers on the advantages of ongoing vehicle maintenance, as well as “purchasing up” on the value spectrum.
Our stores also offer enhanced services and programs to our customers, including used oil, oil filter and battery recycling; battery, wiper and bulb replacement; battery diagnostic testing; electrical and module testing; check engine light code extraction; loaner tool program; drum and rotor resurfacing; custom hydraulic hoses; professional paint shop mixing and related materials; and machine shops. As of March 31, 2021, we operated 5,660 stores in 47 U.S. states and 22 stores in Mexico.
We are influenced by a number of general macroeconomic factors that impact both our industry and our consumers, including, but not limited to, fuel costs, unemployment trends, interest rates and other economic factors. Due to the nature of these macroeconomic factors, we are unable to determine how long current conditions will persist and the degree of impact future changes may have on our business. Macroeconomic factors, such as increases in the U.S. unemployment rate, and demand drivers specific to the automotive aftermarket, such as U.S. miles driven, have been pressured as a result of responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, such as stay at home orders, work from home arrangements, and reduced travel. However, government stimulus and unemployment benefits and the reopening processes have positively impacted our performance. We are unable to predict the ongoing and future impact of the pandemic on broader economic conditions or our industry.
We believe the key drivers of current and future long-term demand for the products sold within the automotive aftermarket include the number of U.S. miles driven, number of U.S. registered vehicles, new light vehicle registrations and average vehicle age.
Number of Miles Driven
The number of total miles driven in the U.S. influences the demand for repair and maintenance products sold within the automotive aftermarket. In total, vehicles in the U.S. are driven approximately three trillion miles per year, resulting in ongoing wear and tear and a corresponding continued demand for the repair and maintenance products necessary to keep these vehicles in operation. According to the Department of Transportation, the number of total miles driven in the U.S. decreased 13.2%, increased 0.9% and increased 0.4% in 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively, and through February of 2021, year-to-date miles driven decreased 11.7%. Miles driven dramatically declined in 2020, as a result of responses to the COVID-19 Pandemic, and have remained below pre-pandemic levels. Further government measures or consumer and business behavior could continue to have a negative impact on miles driven, but we are unable to predict the duration and severity of the impact to our business.
Size and Age of the Vehicle Fleet
The total number of vehicles on the road and the average age of the vehicle population heavily influence the demand for products sold within the automotive aftermarket industry. As reported by The Auto Care Association, the total number of registered vehicles increased 10.4% from 2009 to 2019, bringing the number of light vehicles on the road to 278 million by the end of 2019. For the year ended December 31, 2020, the seasonally adjusted annual rate of light vehicle sales in the U.S. (“SAAR”) was approximately 16.3 million, and for 2021, the SAAR is estimated to be approximately 17.8 million, contributing to the continued growth in the total number of registered vehicles on the road. In the past decade, vehicle scrappage rates have remained relatively stable, ranging from 4.1% to 5.7% annually. As a result, over the past decade, the average age of the U.S. vehicle population has increased, growing 18.0%, from 10.0 years in 2009 to 11.8 years in 2019. The outlook for SAAR is highly uncertain, as the severity and duration of the COVID-19 crisis is indeterminable; however, the rate of new vehicle sales in any given year represents a small percentage of the total light vehicle population and has a muted impact on the total number of vehicles on the road and average age of vehicles over the short term.
We believe the increase in average age can be attributed to better engineered and manufactured vehicles, which can be reliably driven at higher mileages due to better quality power trains, interiors and exteriors, and the consumer’s willingness to invest in maintaining these higher-mileage, better built vehicles. As the average age of vehicles on the road increases, a larger percentage of miles are being driven by vehicles that are outside of a manufacturer warranty. These out-of-warranty, older vehicles generate strong demand for automotive aftermarket products as they go through more routine maintenance cycles, have more frequent mechanical failures and generally require more maintenance than newer vehicles. We believe consumers will continue to invest in these reliable, higher-quality, higher-mileage vehicles and these investments, along with an increasing total light vehicle fleet, will support continued demand for automotive aftermarket products.