As it’s reported that one electric vehicle was sold every minute in July, car finance experts Carmoola have investigated the growing popularity of Electric and Hybrid vehicles across the UK.
According to a survey of 2,202 respondents across Great Britain, it’s the Scottish population that is leading the way when it comes to driving Electric vehicles. Scots have the highest percentage of Electric vehicles with 5% claiming to have an electric vehicle as their main car. While it’s the Welsh who are least likely to have an electric vehicle, with 1% of those surveyed having an electric car as their main vehicle.
Car sales have been on the rise for the past 12 months and electric vehicle (BEV) registrations jumped by a massive 87.9 per cent to 23,010, meaning one new electric car was sold every minute in July. While Great Britain has seen increased adoption of electric vehicles, still only 3% of those surveyed have an electric vehicle as their main car and 6% have a Hybrid.
There are now over 45,737 public charging points across the UK, with the majority being located in the Greater London region (31.4%). This is followed by the South East with 5,654 (12.4%) and Scotland with 4,073 (8.9%). Surprisingly, despite beginning the highest location for public charging points, only 2% of Londoners have an electric vehicle as their main car preferring a hybrid model (9%). As expected, regions with the lowest number of public charging points have the smallest adoption of electric vehicles.
The survey also found that drivers in the 45-54s age group are the highest (4%) to own an electric vehicle as their main car, while only 1% of 25 to 34-year-olds.
Yorkshire and Humberside has the highest (11%) Hybrid vehicle ownership while the North East is least likely to have a Hybrid, as 0% of those surveyed had a Hybrid as their main car.
For most car buyers, the price tag of an electric car is arguably the most important factor when deciding whether to push through with the purchase. According to those surveyed, the overall price is the most important reason for buying a new car. Some drivers who want to make the shift to electric vehicles get discouraged when they learn that such cars are more expensive than their diesel or petrol counterparts. While electric cars can be costly to buy, in the long run, you’ll actually save more money than driving a petrol car.
Although electricity costs have been on the rise, charging an EV is still cheaper than topping up at a refuelling station. For example, the average price to charge an electric car on the public charging network in June 2023 was 49p/kWh on slow/fast chargers. This adds up to 13 pence per mile, so a 100-mile journey could cost £13.00 before needing to be plugged in again. With a petrol car, you’ll get 7.2 miles out of one litre of fuel. If the price of petrol per litre is £1.44, then you’d need about £14.51 to top up your car for a 100-mile trip. That’s an additional £1.45 on fuel costs.
Despite the increase in charging prices over the last year, electric car drivers are mostly still in a better position than drivers who have to fill their cars up at pumps. Typically, an EV driver will only charge on the most expensive rapid or ultra-rapid chargers for a small amount of time. Many EV drivers charge at home for most of the time, with the energy price cap currently sitting at around 34p/kWh, this is 15p/kWh less than public charging points and saving more overall on petrol costs in the long run.
Aidan Rushby at Carmoola comments, “It’s predicted that EV costs will drop in the next decade as battery technology improved and mass production cuts costs. In the short term, electric cars may have a higher price tag, but charging them is much cheaper than refilling a tank with fuel. You’re sure to save money in the long run if you drive an electric car. Our survey shows that drivers are most concerned with the overall cost of buying a new car. Whilst, improved choice and the increase in models in the market will continue to encourage further adoption of these vehicles, drivers will still need further incentives for buying these vehicles. More charging points will need to be installed and more allowances will need to be applied to encourage further uptake over traditional petrol and diesel models.”