More than 1.3m EVs on the road in the UK

There are over 1.3 million electric vehicles (EVs) on the roads in the UK, according to a new industry report.

Data from Zap Map claims 3.94% of all vehicles on the road are electric – a rise from 0.6% in 2020.

EV charge point App ZapMap conducted its seventh annual survey into the industry and found some interesting takeaways.

From the 3,746 drivers who were surveyed fewer than 3% of owners stated that they would return to petrol or diesel cars.

Owners gave owning an electric vehicle an 87% satisfaction rate in the survey.

Drivers noted that cost-effectiveness (78%), environmental factors (73%), and vehicle performance (65%) were key factors in this decision to remain with EVs.

The survey also revealed that 79% of EV owners have their own charge point – with 51% also using public charging at least once a month.

Despite this, owners only gave the charge points in the UK a 64% satisfaction rate.

From the drivers who were surveyed, 61% stated that the charging network had improved in 2024 – up from 38% in the previous 12-month period.

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ZapMap also reported that the number of public electric charging points has significantly grown in recent years.

At the end of November 2024, there were 72,594 electric vehicle charging points across the UK, across 36,316 charging locations and 106,094 connectors.

Regarding the growth, the number of public charging points in the UK has increased from 20,964 at the end of 2020 to 53,865 by the end of 2023.

This marks a 32% rise in charging points since December 2023 and a 37% year-on-year growth since November 2023.

Interestingly, the survey did reveal that EV owners are increasingly avoiding topping up while shopping, as the use of supermarket charging stations has significantly declined.

The number of users at supermarket car park chargers has dropped by 32%.

This decline comes despite the installation of nearly 3,000 EV charge points at UK supermarkets and a 59% annual increase in supermarket locations offering EV charging.

The decrease is likely due to many supermarkets eliminating free charging options.

According to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), as of November 2024, there have been 338,314 new electric cars sold in the UK – signifying 18.7% market share of all new cars registered this year.

This is an increase from 2023, where 314,684 units were sold; and in 2022 when there were 267,203 new electric vehicles entered the UK market.

Highlighting the growth in EVs, SMMT’s reports show that in 2022, just 6.6% of all new cars sold were electric.

Are you looking to make the switch to an EV? If not, what is holding you back? Leave your comments below.