UK car buyers ready to make switch to EVs once price matched

All new car buyers in the UK are ready to switch to electric vehicles (EVs) as soon as the price matches those of petrol and diesel models, reveals a new report from campaign group FairCharge.

As long as EVs were sold for the same price as equivalent petrol and diesel models, 100% of the 2,000 new car buyers surveyed for the report indicated they would opt for one.

The report, titled Driving Away from Fossil Fuels, looks at the drivers’ underlying preferences, revealing that 47% of drivers would choose a battery electric vehicle (BEV) today if there was price parity between electric and conventional vehicles – jumping from less than 1% of consumers in 2011 and 2% in 2015.

However, price parity is not forecast to be reached until later in the decade, with FairCharge raising concerns that the manufacturing industry will not be able to supply enough EVs to meet consumer demand without stronger government action.

The survey finds that earlier deployment of public charging infrastructure will not significantly impact consumer demand for EVs because 81% of new car buyers surveyed have access to some form of off-street parking.

The finding that charging infrastructure will not affect demand for new EVs cuts against claims made by some car manufacturers that policies such as the ban on new petrol and diesels from 2030 need to be scrapped due to a lack of public charging infrastructure, says the campaign group.

Quentin Willson, Founder of FairCharge, said: ‘As someone who has been driving electric cars for over a decade the results of this landmark survey come as no surprise. We’re seeing more and more EVs on our roads as word spreads from delighted owners and drivers switch to electric to avoid the spiralling costs of filling up with diesel and petrol.

‘But the Government needs ambitious EV quota proposals to ensure that the car industry has the right commercial environment to build enough EVs to satisfy this growing demand. We passed the tipping point of electrification last year and this year there are now some electric cars with waiting lists measured in years.’

Stephen Metcalfe, Conservative MP for South Basildon, who writes a foreword to the report, commented: ‘I’m delighted to have worked with the FairCharge campaign in publishing this report today – the findings are striking and indicate we are at risk of missing a golden opportunity to go greener, faster – and realise in full the benefits of the electrification of road transport.

‘We will be presenting these findings to my colleagues in Parliament today, and I hope that they will join myself and the 80,000 FairCharge campaign supporters to push the Government to ensure we seize this moment.’

Photo by Mikes Photography