More than half of potential buyers (57%) say they would never buy a used electric car without an independent check of its battery condition.
August’s Startline Used Car Tracker shows 77% are worried about potential battery failure and 76% about the cost of battery repair or replacement.
- 57% of potential buyers say they wouldn’t buy a used electric vehicle (EV) without an independent battery check
- 77% are worried about potential battery failure, and 76% about the cost if the battery needs repair or replacement
- However, 9% wouldn’t need a battery health check as long as the EV came from a reputable dealer, shows August’s Startline Used Car Tracker
Paul Burgess, CEO at Startline Motor Finance, said, “With more than two million EVs now on UK roads, it’s becoming clear that early fears over battery failure have been hugely overblown. In fact, it is proving to be a fairly rare occurrence.
“Despite this, it is a possibility still clearly playing on the minds of potential electric car buyers and professional battery health checks, which are being offered by a range of companies, could play an important role in creating a sense of security.
“Our research shows that for a significant proportion of motorists, a check would be a key element in choosing to go electric, providing a high degree of reassurance about the possibility of battery failure.”
However, the research also shows almost a third (31%) would buy an electric car without a check if it had a significant portion of its original manufacturer battery warranty remaining.
Also, 13% would be willing to buy if they felt the price of the car was low enough to offset the potential risk, 9% say they wouldn’t need a battery health check as long as the EV came from a reputable dealer, and 7% say they don’t want a battery health check at all.
Paul added, “Most manufacturer warranties run for around eight years, so a significant proportion of people in the market for an older car might be happy to buy without a check.”
