A survey of 1,500 drivers aged 17 to 20 years old indicates that the next generation of motorists looks more favourably upon electric cars than it does petrol and diesel ones.
The poll was commissioned by energy firm Eon and found that 55% of the young people questioned want their first car to be electric.
Of those surveyed, 23% agreed with the statement that petrol and diesel cars are as outdated as landline telephones. That percentage indicates that more than three quarters of young drivers still value petrol and diesel cars, and is roughly the same as the proportion of drivers who choose new electric cars over their conventional stablemates.
Some 56% of respondents said having an electric car would save them money, though while Eon focusses on running costs with a view to promoting a new home-electricity tariff offering power for just 7p per kWh from midnight to 7am, no figures relating to EV purchase prices or depreciation were reported by the firm.
Gráinne Regan, Eon’s propositions director, considers young people “may be onto something” with their assessment of EV costs – though Eon cautions that “nothing” within its press release “is to be taken, or relied upon, as advice”, and that it “makes no warranties” regarding its “quality [or] accuracy”.
