Over 40% of customers negatively influenced by EV culture war

Negative news coverage means that more than four out of 10 people (43%) think electric vehicles (EVs) catch fire easily, new research shows.

May’s new Startline Used Car Tracker, polled 303 consumers and 60 automotive retailers, also reveals that 52% believe EV batteries become useless after just a few years, 26% that they are ultimately more polluting than petrol cars, and 24% that drivers can lose control of the vehicles, which will then run away with them.

Paul Burgess, Startline Motor Finance chief executive, said: “There’s been a wave of inaccurate, sometimes sensationalist coverage about EVs over the last couple of years and our research shows that it is having a damaging effect on public perception.

“It appears that there are a relatively large number of people who, after seeing, hearing or reading negative coverage, believe that if they buy an EV, it is likely to either burst into flames or become useless after a short period of time due to battery failure.”

Burgess said that while both of these things are untrue, they are having an effect on demand for EVs in the new and used market.

He said: “As electric cars become more common over time, these myths will no doubt start to fade but in the shorter term, more should probably be done by the motor industry as a whole to counter them.”

The Startline Used Car Tracker also shows that 47% of people believe that EVs lose significant range in cold weather and 47% that they cost more to run and maintain than equivalent petrol or diesel models.