Research from What Car? has revealed that 90 per cent of EV owners would not return to traditional petrol or diesel powertrains.

As an ever-increasing proportion of the UK population move towards electrification, a poll of 563 electric and plug-in hybrid owners revealed that the overarching motivation for sticking with EVs was for their green credentials.

Two thirds of drivers (65 per cent) stated that EVs were better for the environment, while 62 per cent valued the technology of the cars and its inevitable improvement in the future, giving drivers no reason to revert back.

While electric vehicles are typically more expensive than those with internal combustion engines, the economic benefits of owning an EV was a large factor in owners’ decisions to purchase one in the first place, and was also a reason not to return to petrol or diesel vehicles in the future. Over half of EV owners cited lower running costs as a key benefit to owning an electrified vehicle, while more than a quarter purchased their EV due to tax savings.

The desire to have a longer range was the primary concern for over half of the ten per cent who said they would consider switching back to petrol or diesel.

“It’s interesting to see that the environmental advantages of electric vehicles are the primary influence for EV owners when it comes to making decisions for purchasing a car. This is backed up by our own research last year and was one of the fundamental reasons behind the launch of AX Electric as we know that EV owners, who value the green benefits of zero emissions vehicles, do not want a petrol or diesel replacement vehicle in the event of a collision.”

Scott Hamilton-Cooper, Director of Sales and Operations at AX

AX Electric is the first fully comprehensive and tailored EV credit hire solution. It offers a 100 per cent EV-for-EV guarantee, nationwide delivery promise on cars, as well as guaranteed deployment to an EV authorised and approved repairer.