Despite the average price of petrol falling below £1.50 per litre for first time since Russia invaded Ukraine, the average electric car driver can be reassured that their vehicle will remain cheaper to run, unless fuel prices fall below £1 per litre – something they have not done for nearly 14 years.
These figures from home charging point supplier myenergi come in the wake of new UK electric car registrations exceeding even the motor industry’s own expectations in 2022, with almost 25,000 (or 7%) more registered last year than had been forecast by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.
“The vast majority of electric vehicle charging happens at home and often overnight – and that remains significantly cheaper than fuelling a petrol or diesel car,” said Jordan Brompton, co-founder and CMO of myenergi.
Under the government’s Energy Price Guarantee, the average dual fuel unit price for electricity on standard variable tariffs with direct debit is limited to 34p per kWh. For an electric car averaging just over 3 miles per kWh, this equates to a cost of 11p per mile.
With fuel at £1.50 per litre, a petrol car averaging around 45 miles per gallon will cost 15p per mile – and would only become cheaper to run if prices fell below £1 per litre.
Indeed, with cost savings front of mind for people across the country, the Zap-Map Price Index highlights that the price EV drivers pay varies a good deal across different charging scenarios.
As more and more drivers switch to electric, the purpose of Zap-Map’s Price Index is to keep track of the price that EV drivers pay when out and about, as well as how it varies across the different types of chargers. This will in turn help EV drivers to seek out the cheapest charging option and help to keep costs under control.
New electric car sales in the UK since 2010 – including pure-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles – reached a cumulative total of more than 1.1 million by the end of 2022, and the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders forecasts that an additional 1.1 million will be registered by the end of 2024.
Over 80% of EV drivers in the UK currently have a home charger.
“Far from waning demand, we are seeing interest in electric vehicles absolutely booming. While some models are more readily available, the average lead time for a new electric car is around nine months – far longer than the lead time for a new petrol or diesel car – underlining that this is still very much a supply-constrained market,” Brompton continued.
“While some public charging costs have risen noticeably in recent months, very few drivers rely on the rapid or ultra-fast chargers on the public charging network for their everyday charging needs.
“That’s good news for existing and prospective electric car drivers, since not only can those with home charging take advantage of Time of Use home energy tariffs with cheaper overnight electricity, but an increasing number will have the ability to charge for a marginal cost of zero, using their own renewable generation in the form of rooftop solar panels.”
Zap-Map’s latest EV Charging Survey of more than 4,300 EV drivers shows that more than 80% currently have a home charger. What’s more, the findings also revealed that 20% would be prepared to share their home charger with other EV drivers, providing thousands of community chargers across the UK, and an alternative charging option for those without access to a home charger.
