More customers would buy an electric or hybrid in one year than right now, says JudgeService

The likelihood of buyers choosing electric or hybrid alternatives increases relative to how soon they wish to change their vehicle, according to Judgeservice.

Its new State of the Nation Industry Report 2021 polled the views of 2,150 car owners to identify usage and buying trends as the UK comes out of Covid restrictions.

The report shows how petrol’s dominance as the fuel of choice for car buyers considering their next purchase is waning, dropping from 55% in 2020 to 52% in 2021, with diesel freefalling from 21% to 16%.

Over the same period owners saying they would choose electric increased from 8% to 12%, with hybrid increasing from 16% to 20%.

However, the research shows how the switch to electric and hybrid is dependent on how soon owners need to change their cars.

The survey identifies how petrol remains the fuel of choice for over half of the owners (55%) looking to purchase as soon as possible, rising to 58% planning to buy within two months.

But the rate falls to just 39% for those not planning to buy a car for at least 12 months.

Although only 7% of buyers plan to purchase an EV as soon as they can, this rises to 10% for those not planning to purchase for at least 12 months.

The research also shows how demand for hybrids rises from 12% of owners wanting to buy as soon as possible to a high of 22% for purchases expected to be made in the next six months.

“Electric buying intentions are hugely affected by owners’ ability to have access to appropriate infrastructure and charge their cars at home. Our findings identify a clear trend towards the intention to choose an electric or hybrid vehicle next time around, with the likelihood of buying one increasing the further off that purchase needs to be made,” said Neil Addley, managing director of JudgeService.

“Although owners right now are still heavily biased towards traditional fuel types, the electric dream is something they are seriously considering embracing. Also, with nearly a quarter of owners currently undecided about which fuel they will choose in 12 months’ time or longer, there’s room for even more growth,” he said.