Corona’s exit restrictions and lockouts enforced by governments around the world are undoubtedly making life difficult for many, but they also have a positive impact on people’s awareness in some respects, reports Venson Automotive Solutions, a UK provider of solutions and services related to Company vehicles. The company commissioned a study on how people perceive the effects of Corona on the environment. 45 percent of the people surveyed by Venson said that the radical improvement in air quality as a direct result of significantly less traffic prompted them to buy an electric car as the next vehicle. A further 17 percent stated that they had confirmed the decision they had already made to switch to an electric vehicle because of Corona.
Of the 45 percent of drivers who are now rethinking their electric car options, 19 percent indicated that their next company car or private purchase would be an electric car. The remaining 26 percent said they intend to become electric car drivers within the next five years. Interesting: Venson last carried out the same survey in July 2019. At that time, 41 percent said they would generally consider switching to an electric vehicle, but 31 percent said they would not do so for another 10 to 15 years. The number of respondents who are considering buying an electric car has therefore not increased significantly. But at least the majority of these people now seem to want to make the purchase much earlier.
The recent Venson poll also shows that the UK public is expecting more from government and businesses to accelerate the adoption of electric cars once the UK recovers from the Corona crisis. This includes further investments in the charging infrastructure (62 percent), the introduction of additional clean air zones in large cities (38 percent) and new laws that will help companies to switch to fully electric company or commercial vehicle fleets in the next 5 years (38 Percent).
“In recent years, the cost of electric cars has dropped, battery efficiency has increased and the network of public and private charging stations has grown significantly. All of these steps have increased consumer confidence in the electric car future. Although the number of admissions is increasing, we still have a long way to go. However, fleet managers who want to introduce fully electric fleets could also inspire employees for this idea if they have recognized the global environmental benefits. ”- Alison Bell, Marketing Director at Venson Automotive Solutions
This study is limited to Great Britain. However, one can safely assume that the same survey in this country and in many other countries would have led to very similar results.
Is Tesla benefiting from the crisis?
Analysts are now assuming that Tesla in particular could benefit from the corona pandemic and further expand its lead in electric cars. The reason for this assessment: Other car manufacturers are delaying their electric car programs because of Corona. Long before the pandemic, Tesla had an impressive lead in electric cars, with more sales than any other established automaker.
A few months ago, analysts predicted that Tesla could no longer be competitive once the established automakers put their money into the mass production of electric cars. Now, however, some of these programs are delayed due to the corona virus pandemic, and several analysts believe the situation can further increase Tesla’s competitive advantage.
Tesla may also suffer from the delays. But the electric car manufacturer has a number of advantages, e.g. B. that he does not have to work with unions, can generally react faster than more established companies and now has a lot of valuable experience in the production of electric cars.
The market launch of the Cybertrucks, the extremely controversial pickup truck from Tesla, shows how and why Tesla could benefit from Corona. Tesla plans to deliver the cyber truck for the first time in late 2021. A year earlier, at the end of 2020, the still young e-car start-up Rivian actually wanted to deliver its R1T pick-up to customers for the first time. Because of Corona, the market launch of the R1T is likely to be delayed by several weeks, if not months. It is also unclear how the current crisis will affect other electric pickups to be launched next year, such as the Ford F150 Electric and the GMC Electric Hummer.
Source: Venson – press release dated April 6, 2020 // Electrek – Tesla could further its EV lead post-pandemic as legacy automakers delay electric programs
