Annual EV Mileage On The Rise
The average mileage for an electric vehicle in the UK has passed the 10,000 mile mark for the first time, according to analysis by the RAC Foundation.
Using data from more than 1.2 million MOT tests, the Foundation produced research that showed that the average electric car under three years old is now completing 10,054 miles a year – more than 2,400 miles more than a traditional petrol-powered offering.
In fact, the research showed that only diesel cars are completing more miles on average a year, with those cars having long been the go-to choice for fleet and company car drivers looking to benefit from increased fuel economy.
On average, diesel cars are completing around 700 miles more than a full EV, although that figure was more than 10,000 just a decade ago.
Although some of the data involved will include younger vehicles that require an MOT earlier than at the three year old mark, EV mileage continues to rise and figures are only expected to increase further after the government announced the introduction of the new Electric Car Grant.
“Until recently new car buyers, often fleets and businesses, have looked to diesels when they’ve needed something capable of racking up the big miles whilst still offering reasonable fuel economy,” Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, said.
“Now it seems that fully electric cars are starting to take over where the diesel left off, providing a practical alternative in terms of range and cost per mile, and because of the attractive tax breaks they come with.
“The world where many saw the electric vehicle as being a second-car option, handy only for short trips, is changing rapidly to one where the battery-electric car is being bought to be a workhorse, adopted by fleet buyers and used by those whose jobs see them driving far further each year than the average motorist.
“Given this shift in buying patterns, the fact that new cars generally have tended to run up more miles than older ones and that most electric cars on the road are relatively young, it might not be so surprising that our analysis shows battery-powered vehicles account for a disproportionately large number of miles in use.”
Full electric vehicles accounted for just 3.7% of the cars on UK roads in the 2024 motorparc data released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.