Britain’s heading for an electrified future, but also head-first into a skills gap and UK electric vehicle owners will be the first ones having to pay for it, according to Lawrence Whittaker, CEO at Warrantywise.
“It’s highlighted by recent figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders that show more cars (31,120) registered in February 2022 had electric powertrain properties applied from mild hybrid to full EV,” he (above) said.
In fact, so far in 2022, 88,731 Battery Electric Vehicles (BEV), Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEV), Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEV) and Mild Hybrid Electric Vehicles (MHEV) have been registered in the UK.
“What’s even more alarming is that from February 2021 to February 2022, 154 per cent more BEVs have been registered. That’s enormous. Over 24,850 BEVs were registered in January and February this year. Two months and that’s outstripped 2021 by a factor of one and a half. For reference, in 2021 that figure was 9,776 BEVs.”
He added, “With the Government looking to entice motorists into swapping to EVs via grants, I’m calling for the same politicians to invest in halting the ever-widening skills gap, especially when we know the 2030 deadline for the end of internal combustion power for new vehicles.
“The Institute of the Motor Industry agrees and is calling for a £15m funding injection from the Government to help address the skills gap. The organisation currently reports that of a total workforce of 238,000 motor technicians in the UK, only 15,500 are IMI TechsafeTM registered and qualified to work on EVs – that’s just 6.5 per cent of the UK’s total motor technician workforce.”
He concluded, “The skills gap is simple and evident to me, and as a specialist third-party automotive warranty provider, it’s worrying. There are more zero emission and plug-in hybrid vehicles on the road than there are specialist third-party mechanics and skilled labour to maintain them. That’s the simple maths.
“With predictions of more than ten million electric-based cars on the road by 2030, and the Government working towards 2030 with its own emissions goals, this is something we need to fix, and fast, or else customers will end up having to continue to pay dealer rates.”