Samuel Bell bought his electric car when he was 19, and although it cost him £15,000, he thinks the investment is worth it in the long term.
The now 20-year-old admits that he likely could have got a petrol or diesel car for cheaper, but his preference is for an electric vehicle (EV) – so he opted for a Seat Mii Electric.
He says the cheaper costs of charging compared to fueling up is a key reason for getting the EV, combined with the fact that he learnt to drive in one.
Mr Bell bought the car as a factory demo with only 3,500 miles on the clock, using a combination of finance and a deposit, and does not regret it.
“My dad has an EV, my mum has one, and I learnt in one. So my field of cars to choose was narrowed a bit, as I can only drive automatic vehicles,” explains Mr Bell, who is from Newcastle but now lives in Berkshire while he is on work placement on a hotel management course.
But he says he could “absolutely” have got a petrol or diesel automatic car for less money upfront.
Explaining his reasoning for buying the EV, he says: “This, for me, is a Monday to Friday car, and it’s cheap to run day to day. I have a charger at home for charging it and it gets me into London, where I often go for work without a ULEZ charge.”
The ULEZ (Ultra Low Emission Zone) charge in London is a daily fee charged for driving vehicles within the ULEZ that don’t meet the emissions standards. All electric vehicles are compliant, but some older petrol and diesel vehicles are not.
He is not the only one choosing an EV, with research suggesting that under-25s are more open to EVs than older drivers.
Polling from Carmoola, from which Samuel bought his car, found that 67 per cent of drivers aged under 25 would consider an EV as their next car, while 12 per cent would not, and the remainder were unsure.
In comparison, less than half (47 per cent) of drivers aged 45 plus would do so, while 27 per cent of this cohort said they’d never consider an EV.
Mr Bell added that the downsides that some people point out with EVs have not affected him.
He can charge at home easily and doesn’t worry that his car won’t be able to travel the distances he needs without running out of charge.
He also likes a lot of the features, explaining: “I’m a bit of a tech guy; I like the gadgets too.”
Mr Bell says it costs him £18 to fuel a 175-mile journey with his charging tariff.
“Petrol prices near where I am would be even higher,” he says.
Figures from the MoneySuperMarket Household Money Index (HMI) reveal that the average cost to get on the road with an EV is over £16,139 – more than twice as much as a petrol car. But they cost half as much to run.
It found the average price of an EV suitable for a first-time driver is over three times that of a comparable petrol car – at £11,335 compared to £3,218.
It also found insurance was a little more expensive, costing £1,881 for an under 25, compared to £1,621 for fossil-fuelled cars, and that lessons in EVs generally cost a little more as well.
Mr Bell says other aspects of his car, such as how quiet it is, also draw him to EVs.
“It’s not noisy and smelly like some petrol cars,” he adds.
He admits he’s “lucky” as part of his car purchase came from financial help from his family, and he says he is very grateful for this.
