3 in 5 Londoners now see electric cars as one of the best ways to reduce their impact on the environment, while environmental concerns are now the main driver of electric car sales, ahead of financial benefits such as cutting out fuel costs.
The research of 1,000 Brits from electronics distributor reichelt elektronik also found that less than 1 in 4 (23%) would never consider buying an electric car.
What’s driving electric car purchases?
As sales of electric cars continue to increase across the UK, reichelt investigated the main purchasing decisions for people in London, including whether most were going electric because of the environment, or because of their budget. 30% said that their main purchasing decision was to reduce their impact on the environment.
This compared with 25% who said that their main purchasing decision was to save money on petrol costs.
Helping to reduce environmental impact
57% of those surveyed see electric cars as one of the best ways to reduce their personal impact on the environment. Perhaps unsurprisingly, 78% believe that electric cars are more environmentally friendly than petrol or diesel cars, although this means that 1 in 5 are still yet to be convinced that electric cars are any better for the environment than their petrol or diesel counterparts.
Electric cars in the year 2044
The survey also asked consumers where they expect the market for electric cars to be in 25 years’ time. 71% said that they expect electric cars to be on the majority of roads by 2044.
Thomas Kruse, product manager at reichelt elektronik, comments, “The market in the UK and across Europe has matured greatly, and electric cars have now become a mainstream purchasing decision. As expectations of uptake increase, charging infrastructure will only increase as electric vehicles become the new normal.”
