Almost
a third of UK car owners said they would buy electric as their
next car, according to a survey by LeaseLoco,
the UK’s largest car leasing comparison
website.
LeaseLoco
polled more than 2,000 car owners and asked them about their next
car purchase - 31% said they would consider switching to electric
in the next 2-3 years.
This
shows that demand for pure electric cars is there. And if we
extrapolate - of the 35,168,259 registered car owners in the UK*,
that could mean almost 11 million are ready to switch to
electric.
According
to SMMT figures*, there are just over 750,000 low, ultra low and
zero emissions cars on UK roads. Of these, less than 100,000 are
pure electric cars.
The
low number of electric cars currently on UK roads compared to the
latent demand for zero emissions motoring, shows the challenge
facing the Government and car manufacturers to meet this demand,
but also the opportunity.
The
problem is that many car owners still have major concerns that
might prevent them switching to electric in the next few years
even though the desire to do so is there.
Survey
respondents said they would only consider switching if there were
more attractive incentives to buy electric, a greater range of
cars and more affordable models, and the nationwide charging
infrastructure was improved.
Almost
half of respondents (46%) said more attractive incentives would
help make their decision to switch, while 33% said improving the
charging infrastructure would give them the confidence to buy an
electric car.
Age and Location
LeaseLoco
polled motorists across different age groups and locations on
their car buying plans and whether they would buy
electric.
There
was little difference in attitudes between older and younger car
owners towards electric car ownership - 30% of car owners aged
18-34 would consider buying electric for their next car, compared
to 33% of 45-54 year olds.
Across
the regions there was more disparity - almost half (46%) of
respondents living in Greater London would consider buying
electric for their next car, compared to just 15% in
Wales.
Almost
half (48%) of car owners living in Bristol would consider buying
electric next, compared to just 17% of registered car owners in
Cardiff.
John Wilmot, CEO of LeaseLoco,
comments:“Our survey shows that demand for
electric cars is soaring and that the UK public are ready to make
the leap to electric en masse. If the chief concerns around price
and charging infrastructure were alleviated, take-up could be
much more rapid than many expect.
“The
Government needs to take advantage of the growing popularity of
zero emissions motoring, but the worry is that without more
focus, investment and education, this latent demand will not
translate into sales and momentum will be
lost.
“With
the sale of new diesel and petrol cars banned from 2030, the next
two to three years will be critical in ensuring that the switch
to greener motoring stays on track.”
-- ENDS --
Notes to Editors
Methodology
The
independent survey of 2,000 car owners, aged between 18 and 65
was carried out in April 2021 by LeaseLoco, the UK’s largest car
leasing comparison website.
*
There are 35,168,259 registered car owners in the UK, according
to the most up-to-date figures from the Society of Motor
Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT)
https://www.smmt.co.uk/2020/04/vehicle-ownership-in-the-uk-surpasses-40-million-with-many-still-on-the-roads-supporting-nationwide-coronavirus-response/#:~:text=New%20data%20reveals%20record%2040.4,services%20and%20key%20workers%20moving.
