Is Your Business Ready For Electric Vehicle Charging?

The car market is changing rapidly – it’s already cheaper to run an electric vehicle than a petrol or diesel and it’s now suggested that sales of battery-powered cars could overtake diesel as early as 2019. But how ready is the UK for electric cars? As ROLEC accredited, electric vehicle charging specialists, IDES UK has a keen eye on the electric car market.

Our concern is that consumer demand is currently higher than many businesses would believe and that some catching up needs to take place. Let’s take a look at the rise of the electric car and why we might not be that well prepared in some areas.

Why Are People Going Electric?

People buy pure electric cars, or hybrids, for all sorts of reasons, including environmental reasons, but the main driving factor now seems to be cost.

Electric cars are cheaper to run than their fossil fuel counterparts, electricity is cheaper than petrol or diesel and maintenance costs tend to be lower. The latest year analysed on running costs (2015), showed that overall, electric cars came out around 10% cheaper to run. It’s not a huge amount, but with fossil fuels not getting any cheaper, it seems like the better option.

The initial purchase price is also playing a part in electric vehicle popularity. With both low and high-end vehicles now available, one of the most pocket-friendly, the Nissan Leaf starts at £21,500 (including the government’s £4,500 subsidy).

With 22,250 dinky Leaf’s sold this year, it is the UK’s top-selling electric car. The BMW i3 was the second most popular and the much more expensive Tesla Model S came third. With a model available to suit all budgets and the helpful government subsidiaries, electric cars really are on the up.

Electric Cars to Overtake Diesel

Although many business owners admit that they are not ready to invest in electric vehicles just yet (more on that later) Economics Analyst, Matt Finch, reckons that electric car sales will outstrip diesel by May 2019. In his recent article, Matt looked at diesel and alternative fuel vehicles sales and states that it’s already clear that that the popularity of diesel fuel vehicles is waning.

While green and environmental groups will celebrate this news, some are concerned about the effect it will have on the manufacturing industry in the UK. Matt reassures in his article that this isn’t necessarily true, as the vast majority of cars we make here in the UK are sold abroad anyway.

So, with a consumer market showing that they are ready for electric vehicles and the clock ticking for fossil fuel cars– how ready are businesses and UK infrastructure?

Business Leaders Not Willing to Invest Just Yet

The government clearly have their sight set on us using more electric cars – Chancellor Philip Hammond pledged £400m towards charging infrastructure last month, and promised tax breaks for those who charge their cars at work. Despite this, and consumer demand for electric vehicles, a recent YouGov survey found that 45% of respondents are not willing to invest in electric vehicle technology and infrastructure before 2025.

More than 1,000 senior decision-makers took part in the survey, which was carried out on behalf of npower Business Solutions. Their reasons for holding back on investing in the technology included poor battery life on currently available cars and a lack of charging points.

The good news is that 38% of those surveyed agreed that business sites having charging facilities would make investments more attractive. If business leaders agree that charging points are a good thing and consumers want to buy more electric cars, then we are surely heading in the right direction? However, it was found that 29% of respondents were worried about the installation costs associated with electric vehicle charging points. While we agree that it’s an investment, it isn’t as expensive as you probably imagine and it’s a future-proof investment.

Electric Vehicle Charging Point Installation

npower’s director of vehicle charging solutions Jason Scagell is hoping that the push from the government and extra budget will encourage more businesses to support the rise of electric vehicles and their associated infrastructure. He said: “the measures announced in the Budget have come at the perfect time. We hope that this commitment will help ensure the UK has the necessary infrastructure in place to support a strategic move to electric vehicles by enterprises.”

If electric vehicle charging points are something your business has considered, it’s now clearer than ever that electric cars are here to stay and there is no time like the present to fit the necessary equipment.

IDES are an approved installer of Electric Vehicle Charging points and hold an accreditation with market leading manufacturer ROLEC. Please get in touch if you have any questions about electric car charging points – we will be happy to give you an overview of costs and installation time.

Email enquiry@idesuk.com or call us on 08432 894645.