5 things to consider when switching to an EV

Thinking of switching to an electric vehicle (EV) and don’t know where to start? Here are some things you might want to consider when looking into a new electric car.

1. Usual driving distances

It might sound obvious, but do you know how many miles you do in a day? Or a week? Lots of people overestimate how many miles they do each week but knowing roughly how long your commute is, as well as how far you usually travel to say the supermarket, or the local shops, will help you make a decision on how long the range (the distance the car can go between charges) needs to be on your new electric car. You might want to make sure the range is long enough so you don’t have to charge every day, for example.

Our research suggests, with the average range of new EVs around 250 miles, and with average driving distances of less than 100 miles per week, it’s probable that most EVs will meet the requirements of most drivers. Find out more:

Driving the EV Revolution

2. Charging

Once you’ve determined roughly how long you’ll go between charges, you’ll need to work out your charging options. Can you get a charge point fitted at home, can you charge at work, or will you need to use the public charging infrastructure.

Knowing how often you’ll need to charhttps://tuskercars.com/knowledge-hub/home-charging-made-simple/ge, and where you can charge locally to you or on your usual routes, will have an impact on how important charging times are to you (less so if you’re charging overnight at home, perhaps more so if you’re charging on the way to work once or twice a week). This may help you decide which vehicles meet with your needs.

3. Available options

There are a huge number of makes and models to choose from, across every style of car on the UKs roads. It’s worth looking into which options would be important to you and narrow down your choices from there. Do you need quick charging to 80%, do you need the car to parallel park itself, is an entertainment system important? These are all features on some EVs and these options need to be considered on top of the usual questions of boot space and acceleration.

4. Reviews and Test Drives

There are a range of review sites, such as www.electrifying.com which will provide you with a wealth of information about the current and new EVs available in the UK. The reviews take into consideration the price and specifications available and will give you a sense of what to expect. We’d always advise drivers to take a test drive and try the vehicle for themselves before placing an order.

If you’re still unsure about the car for you, our Employee Engagement Team are experts in their field and are on hand to help you narrow your search. You can contact them with any questions on 0333 400 7431.

5. Savings

Electric vehicles are the most cost effective on the car benefit scheme from Tusker because of the way in which Benefit in Kind is calculated. With Benefit in Kind at just 2% until 2025 (rising by 1% each year until 2028), there are substantial savings to be made in both tax and National Insurance for employees.

It’s worth having a look at the Tusker system to see how much you could save versus other leasing products which won’t offer the benefit in kind savings.