- Dealers warned that EVs risk being sold at a loss as they ‘haemorrhage value’
Prices of second-hand electric cars have plummeted by almost a quarter in a year, figures show, amid a drop in consumer confidence.
Dealers have warned that Electric Vehicles (EVs) are sitting on forecourts for ‘months on end while they haemorrhage value’, with some at risk of selling at a loss if the market does not recover.
Earlier this week, Rishi Sunak ditched the 2030 target for a ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles, post- poning it until 2035.
The Prime Minister warned that imposing ‘unacceptable costs’ on families risked wrecking support for saving the planet.
The move, which brings the UK in line with the European Union, was a victory for the Mail’s campaign to rethink the 2030 deadline.
Mid-month figures for September released by AutoTrader – the largest online marketplace for cars – reveal that the average price of a used EV has fallen by 21.4 per cent to £32,463.
Premium sector EVs, including Tesla, BMW, Mini and Mercedes-Benz, were hit hardest – with values falling by up to 24.1 per cent year-on-year.
The data, reported by The Times, showed that prices of second-hand premium sector EVs peaked at £51,704 last August and have since plummeted by more than £10,000 to £39,268.
Marc Palmer, the head of strategy and insights at AutoTrader, said: ‘The used market will now be slower to mature. There will be fewer new EVs registered and fewer used cars coming to market.
‘There will be sections of the public, especially those who are sceptical, who will want to wait.
‘Used cars are the biggest part of the industry, but getting the majority of motorists into second-hand EVs will take longer. A lot of things are up in the air.’
Figures revealed earlier this week also showed that sales of new zero-emission vehicles to private buyers have fallen by more than 11 per cent. Umesh Samani, chairman of the Independent Motor Dealers Association, which represents more than 1,000 traders, said the delay to the ban on petrol and diesel cars had given ‘everyone some breathing space’.
He said: ‘It has been so volatile, dealers have been very frightened of getting involved with EVs.
‘Many of our members have been stuck with EVs on their forecourts that they cannot shift, even as they are falling by £2,000 to £3,000 a month. That’s a phenomenal amount.’
