Tusker finds EV ‘range awareness’ replacing ‘range anxiety’

Based on current driving patterns, most electric car drivers could cover their weekly mileage on a single charge, making swapping to a greener vehicle a more attractive option, according to research by salary sacrifice car benefits provider Tusker.

A survey of over 500 customers found that 85% of drivers drove less than 200 miles each week for business and leisure, with a quarter covering less than 100 miles. Tusker calculates the current average range of the 41 electric models it has available is 231 miles, meaning most electric car users could complete all their weekly travel on a single charge.

Tusker CEO Paul Gilshan said: “With the majority of new models offering a range of over 250 miles, drivers are less concerned about range. In fact ‘range anxiety’ has moved to ‘range awareness’ as many drivers realise they can cover their weekly miles on one charge.

“Consequently 83% of drivers surveyed are now considering an electric car for their next vehicle, a rise from 74% in 2020.”

The trend was similar when surveying over 1,400 non-Tusker drivers, with 82% reporting they covered less than 200 miles per week, figures which have remained static for two successive years.

The survey showed that overall, under 7% of drivers said they drove more than 300 miles weekly, while according to manufacturer data, their needs could be covered by a single charge by a variety of models including the VW ID-4, Skoda Enyaq, Audi e-Tron, Hyundai Kona and the Tesla range.

The increased range of the latest electric vehicles (EVs) has also contributed to 63% of drivers saying they were fairly or very interested in considering a zero-emission car on salary sacrifice.

Over two thirds (69%) of survey respondents also said they were aware of the savings available on electric cars when taken on a salary sacrifice scheme, up from 57% in the 2020 survey.

“Salary sacrifice is playing its part in speeding up the move to electric cars for employees across the country,” said Gilshan, who pointed out that over the last twelve months 33% of its audience are now driving an EV compared with 5% in 2020’s survey.

tusker single electric char