7:36 am, October 6, 2022
The government’s recent energy price cap has made a fifth of EV buyers make the switch to electric.
That’s the findings from a new What Car? survey. It surveyed 1,654 in-market buyers following the announcement of the energy price cap in September to limit average bills to £2,500 per annum.
Some 31.6 per cent of those surveyed were in the market for an electric car.
What Car? found that of the electric vehicle buyers surveyed, 20.5 per cent said the price cap announcement meant they were now considering an EV as their next car as they now know their bills wouldn’t go past a certain average level, while 79.5 per cent said they’d be in the market for an EV even if the cap had not been announced.
The findings come as pure-electrics now account for 14.5 per cent of the UK new car market, as revealed by Society of Manufacturers and Traders registrations data yesterday (Oct 5).
What Car?’s research also surveyed buyers not in the market for an electric car.
Of those buyers surveyed, 13.34 per cent said the announcement of the energy price cap has made them more comfortable with the idea of owning an electric car in the future, even if they’re not immediately in the market for one.
Steve Huntingford, editor, What Car?, said: ‘The energy price cap has had an immediate reaction from car buyers, and shows how important government support for the industry is.
‘Even with rising electricity prices, electric vehicles can prove very cost efficient to run and own, and if the industry is to become zero emissions by 2035, the technology must remain as attractive and affordable as possible.’
