Almost a quarter of British motorists are planning to switch to an electric vehicle for their next car, according to a survey from the AA.
The AA-Populus Poll asked 20,000 drivers, and found that 22 per cent of British drivers will be switching to either a hybrid or pure electric vehicle.
That would be an increase from the two per cent that currently drive cleaner vehicles, which correlates with the 470 per cent increase in searches for used hybrid and electric cars since 2014.
The survey also showed that just 12 per cent of those asked will be choosing a diesel car next, which has been put down to changing government policy (56 per cent) and stories in the media (58 per cent).
For 92 per cent of current diesel owners, they have asked for clearer messaging from the government over the future of diesel cars, while a fifth of diesel owners have said they won’t buy diesel again.
James Fairclough, AA Cars chief executive officer, said: “The appetite for electric and hybrid vehicles has increased significantly over the last few years, which is in no small part due to big technological leaps forward in the space.
“These advances mean vehicles can travel further on a single charge, charge points are an increasingly common sight across the country and manufacturers are designing more attractive models all the time. These are all contributing to the warming public opinion of environmentally friendly cars.”
This positive news for electrified vehicles come after the government announced that the plug-in car grant is being reduced for electric vehicles to £2,500 and abolished for plug-in hybrids.
Fairclough added: “The government has been keeping an eye on this increasing take-up and is now withdrawing grants for plug-in hybrids and reducing existing grants for pure electric vehicles. The implication is that mounting enthusiasm for non-traditionally fuelled cars won’t be dampened by removing financial incentives from the government.”
