The second edition of the NFDA Electric Vehicle Dealer Attitude Survey has shown that Toyota “topped every question” due to EV commitment over the next two years.

The main objective of the survey is to understand retailers’ views on the approach to the electric vehicle sector of both manufacturers and the Government. NFDA carries out the survey twice a year.

The NFDA said that as this is a fast-developing area and one which not all manufacturers have entered, it included all the manufacturers that took part in the first edition of the survey and added any manufacturers that met a minimum response rate of 20%.

This edition of the survey encompasses twelve manufacturers, following the addition of Mercedes.

NFDA’s director Sue Robinson said: “It is positive to see increasing retailer satisfaction levels with their manufacturers’ approach to the electric vehicle sector, as the NFDA Electric Vehicle Dealer Attitude Survey shows.”

The EV DAS analyses the aspects which play a key role in the electric vehicle sector. These include current and future product offering, supply availability, profit return, return on investment, finance offering, and incentives.

The survey also includes questions asking retailers their views on consumer buying intentions and the Government’s plug-in grant. These are beyond manufacturers’ control and, as a result, do not contribute to the overall average scores of the survey.

The overall average score was 6.79 out of 10, up from 6.47.

Toyota topped every question of the survey and had the highest average score, with 9.35 points out of 10. Kia and the new-entry Mercedes followed with 8.35 and 7.50 points respectively. Hyundai, Volvo, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Audi and BMW had ratings above 6.0, demonstrating a certain degree of satisfaction from their dealer networks.

At the other end of the table, Renault, Volkswagen and Peugeot were the only three manufacturers with average scores below 6.0. Despite the low scores, all three manufacturers saw their score improve. In the case of Peugeot, this was quite significant, with an increase from 2.75 to 4.09 points.

Robinson said: “Despite generally high levels of satisfaction, the survey shows that a number of retailers have concerns surrounding their return on investment in equipment and training, and supply availability.

“For the second time, retailers gave the highest average score to their manufacturers’ proposed plug-in hybrid and pure electric product range for the next two years**, demonstrating confidence in the future of the sector.

“NFDA encourages manufacturers and retailers to consider the findings of the survey and collaborate to address any potential issues that may have an effect on the market”.