‘Charging anxiety’ dents demand for electric cars
‘Charge scare’ denting demand for electric cars amid doubts Britain will meet its 2030 target of 300,000 charging points
Car sales are bouncing back, but ‘charging anxiety’ is hampering Britain’s push towards electric vehicles, industry heads say.
According to figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), new vehicle registrations rose to 287,825 in March, up 18 percent from the same month last year.
It completed its strongest quarter since 2019, before the pandemic hit, as supply chain challenges eased and demand improved.
Battery electric vehicles represent 16% of the market – the same number as last year
But while battery electric vehicle sales hit a record 46,626, they still accounted for just over 16 percent of the market, which is the same share as a year ago.
The figures fueled fears that Britain’s electric car revolution has stalled as motorists worry about the high cost of electric driving and a lack of charging points.
SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes said the “biggest obstacle” to a green revolution was “the charging of fear.” A report from the UK’s Department for Transport shows that the UK is still a long way from its target of having 300,000 charging points by 2030, the date by which it wants to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel cars.
It estimated monthly installation of new devices would need to increase by 288 percent to meet the target.
There are just over 40,000 charging points in the UK, with almost a third concentrated in the Greater London area, according to tracker Zap-Map.
Speaking to the BBC, Hawes said: “There’s still demand there, but we need demand to accelerate. The biggest obstacle everyone always points to is infrastructure and charging anxiety.
“People ask: ‘Can I charge where I want, when I want and at what price?’ That’s what needs to move.’
Hawes said there is “a long way to recovery” for the industry, adding that new car registrations are well below pre-pandemic levels.
John Wilmot, CEO of car leasing comparison website LeaseLoco, said it would be naive to explain the industry out of the woods.
According to SMMT figures, there were 458,054 new car registrations in March 2019.
Ginny Buckley, the CEO of auto retailer Electrifying, said supporting infrastructure was key to making a green shift.
“We need to reduce the bureaucracy around building permits and make sure charging points are installed in the right places and at the right speeds,” she said.
“Once motorists see more chargers and trust them to be reliable, they will confidently switch to cheaper EVs with smaller batteries.”