A third of people plan to buy an electric car next - but more than half will stick with petrol

A third (34%) of people planning to replace their car in the next two years are considering an electric vehicle (EV), according to our UK survey of car owners. However, more than half (55%) are still planning to buy a petrol car.

Despite the upcoming government ban that will cease sales of new petrol and diesel cars in 2030 (and hybrids from 2035), 55% of people we spoke to - all who said they are planning to buy a car in the next two years - are still considering buying a petrol car next.

After petrol, the next most considered fuel choice is pure electric (34%), putting it ahead of plug-in hybrids (25%) and full hybrids (24%), indicating people are more interested in going straight to an EV than using hybrids as a ‘stepping stone’ to full electrification.

The two thirds of people who are currently not considering an EV list the cost of the car itself as their main reason (44%) not to buy one. This is closely followed by anxieties related to charging, including a lack of charge points (39%), the range of the car (36%), recharge times (29%) and EVs perceived as simply being ‘too much of a hassle’ (29%).

Looking to go electric? We reveal the best electric cars for 2022

What would change people’s minds?

When those who said they would not choose an EV for their next car were asked what would change their mind, the responses were largely around convenience. Quick charging times would be a big convincer (31%), as would a ‘good’ range (31%), lower running cost than petrol/diesel cars (28%), charge points available where needed (27%) and EVs costing a similar amount to buy compared to petrol and diesel cars (25%).

However, one in eight people we spoke to (12%) said there was currently nothing that would encourage them to buy an EV.

Are we asking for too much?

Commenting on the survey results, Which? car expert Adrian Porter said: ‘quick recharging times and low costs are two of the most given reasons that would convince more people to buy EVs, but the two are actually opposed to each other. Our data shows that the highest power, most costly chargers you can use translate into more cost per mile than equivalent petrol and diesel cars - even with today’s fuel prices.

‘As ever, it’s never as simple as we’d like it to be. But EVs offer massive benefits from lower running costs (as long as you don't use pricey chargers or can charge from home), plus silent running, smooth and instant acceleration and low typical maintenance costs - even the brake pads wear down less compared to petrol and diesel cars.

‘But it’s clear that the cost of the car and the perceived availability of public charge points are key to convincing more people to switch.’

What if all new cars sold in 2021 were electric?

To illustrate how polluting non-EVs are, we looked at how much tailpipe CO2 would be saved if all the new non-EV cars sold in 2021 were in fact electric cars.

According to data from industry trade association the SMMT, this is how many new cars were sold in 2021 per fuel type:

Using these figures, and then adding our figures for tailpipe CO2 from our independent tests, we estimated that for every year non-EVs are running (based on 9,000 miles per year), they produce 3,181,458 tonnes of CO2 - that's just for the 1,456,454 new non-EV cars sold in the UK in 2021.

It’s important to note that these figures take into account only tailpipe CO2. Life-cycle analysis (LCA) looks at the total CO2 cost and environmental detriment of building, using and disposing/recycling of a product.

We’re working with Green NCAP to get LCA figures for cars, but the preliminary data released earlier this year shows that EVs have a lower CO2 LCA figure than equivalent sized non-EV cars, despite having a higher CO2 cost in the production stage (particularly due to the large battery pack).

The crucial point is how green the grid’s electricity is in the country in which the EV is charged. For example, an EV that's charged in Sweden (a country that has the highest share of electricity from renewables) will be far more green compared to one charged in Poland, which generates a large proportion of its electricity from coal. 

All statistics from our survey of 2,050 UK car owners conducted in June 2022.

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