The Real Cost of Electric and Hybrid Vehicles

A taxi driver in the Knighton area of Leicestershire had a shock recently when his car went in for a service. Ranjit Singh, the owner of an eight-year-old Mercedes Benz E-class hybrid was landed for a bill for £15,000 after discovering his battery had failed. 

A quick look on AutoTrader reveals that the car itself is only worth between £10-14K. This has left the driver, Ranjit Singh, in a difficult situation. 

Singh told LeicestershireLive:  

"I have always been a Mercedes customer and loved the cars they produce and we bought the car for its reliability. 

"I'm horrified by what has happened. I feel I now have just two options - scrap the eight-year-old car or spend more than it is worth. 

"We checked on Auto Trader and it says the car value now stands at just £12,850." 

"We also looked online at Mercedes-Benz forums, and found a lot of people facing the same issues. I fear this is only going to get worse." 

Since 2014, a significant portion of electric and hybrid vehicle batteries do come with an unlimited mileage warranty. However, most batteries only last for around 8-years or 100,000 miles. For taxi and private hire drivers, this is a concern.  

Situations like this highlight that taxi and private hire trades frustration with the move to greener vehicles. 

The Costs Are Adding Up 

It’s no secret that the trade has suffered some of the worst years on record thanks to the pandemic. But as greener initiatives are rolled out across the country, the costs are quickly adding up.  

The average cost of an electric car in the UK is around £44,000. A significant expense for any driver. And while there are cheaper options out there, the regulations in place for taxi and private hire vehicles means that smaller, cheaper cars are not an option.  

On top of this, insurance for electric vehicles can often be more expensive than their petrol or diesel equivalents. According to WhatCar? The Tesla Model 3 costs 45% more to insure than a 3 Series BMW. 

The cost of electric vehicles combined with minimal charging infrastructure in much of the UK is preventing a widespread shift to sustainable vehicles.  

But now, drivers also have to contend with the Clean Air Zones (CAZs) popping up around the country. In the coming months, Greater Manchester is set to introduce the largest CAZ in the country. CAZs in, Edinburgh, Bristol, Bradford, Oxford, Dundee and Newcastle are all set ot be introduced this year. 

The additional costs these zones present are leading many drivers to reconsider their future in the profession.  

Are Electric Vehicles All That Sustainable? 

Although its undeniable that electric and hybrid electric vehicles produce less emissions, there is an environmental cost. The batteries.  

Electric vehicles run on lithium-ion batteries. These batteries are created using huge amounts of raw materials including lithium, nickel and cobalt. The mining operations responsible for extracting these metals often have a huge impact on the local environment and wider climate.  

And with just an 8-year (or 100,000 miles) lifespan, there is the problem of disposal. Some estimates state that by 2030 there will be over 12million tons of retired electric vehicle batteries piling up. While there are suggestions on how to recycle and repurpose expired batteries, they often aren’t designed with recycling in mind.  

But whatever the problems are with electric vehicles, one thing is clear. They aren’t going away. Car manufacturers across the globe have road maps explaining how they will stop producing petrol or diesel cars by the 2030s. Whether more sustainable and affordable technology is introduced by that time remains to be seen.