Last updated on April 28th, 2020 at 09:00 am
As the world economy is struggling to cope with the effects of this pandemic, there is a lot of uncertainty on what the future will be after this is over. However, at WhichEV we have the strong belief that future is electric. There are multiple signs that the car industry is quickly changing, as electric cars are becoming more appealing and affordable to costumers.
According to a research by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, new car registrations fell by more than 44% in March, mainly due to the effects of the coronavirus shutdown. However, electric vehicle registrations have skyrocketed during the same period.
The electric vehicle market is currently booming, and it seems that it will keep growing exponentially. As we previously reported, sales have grown a massive 300% year-on-year for pure electric designs.
The new trend can be attributed to different factors. However, one of the key aspects is that buyers won’t have to wait long to receive their new electric vehicles.
An analysis by What Car? shows that the average waiting time on a new electric car has significantly dropped in the past 12 months, with the majority of new electric vehicles now available within 12 weeks. Last year, lead times for some electric cars exceeded more than a year, making it harder for buyers to commit to purchasing one.
The research has also revealed that eight manufacturers have stock of their electric cars in the UK now, meaning buyers will be able to place an order and have their vehicle delivered within two weeks. This includes the Tesla Model 3, as well as the all-new third-generation Renault Zoe and the all-new Peugeot e-208. However, both the Renault and Peugeot can take up to 12 or 16 weeks to arrive depending on the exact specification chosen.
The pandemic has forced people to stay at home in order contain the spread of Covid-19. This situation has led to a drastic pollution decrease due to less cars on the road. Venson Automotive Solutions has conducted a survey that showed that 45% of participants after seeing radical improvement on air pollution across the globe have reconsidered their electric vehicle ownership plans.
Of the 45% of motorists who are now reassessing their EV options, 26% confirmed they intend to become an EV driver in the next 5 years. Moreover 19% said their next company car or private purchase would be an EV.
With current tax regulations choosing an electric vehicle as a company car is a no-brainer, as it will save the employee a lot of money. The initial buying price will be higher but then all the other costs will be disproportionally lower compared to the ones of petrol cars, as shown by the comparative analysis that WhichEV conducted between the Mercedes C220d SE saloon and Tesla Model 3 Standard Range Plus.
As Marketing Director at Venson Automotive Solutions commented, many signs seem to point to a cleaner and more electric future: “In recent years we have seen the cost of electric vehicles fall, battery efficiency increase, and the network of both public and private charging points grow significantly. Fleet managers [that are] looking to introduce fully electric fleets could find employees more open to the idea now they have seen the global benefits it could bring to the environment.”
Whatever the reason, the movement toward EVs is happening and it's happening fast – despite the commercial price of oil dropping, momentarily, below $0 per barrel.