Is there dislike towards EV drivers in the UK?

[Alistairuk]

Since buying my M3 I’ve payed more attention to anything regarding electric vehicles and noticed this gem in yesterday’s paper (in readers letter section) - admittedly it’s first time I’ve noticed such hatred directed towards EV drivers so my question is, how often do you come across similar comments from people? Or is the guy just a p***k

 

[Joelly]

ive not had any negative comments other than "ooo, theyre a bit rubbish arent they?" to which the response is just to laugh.
I guess in time that will happen. EV's will be taxed, there will be some form of tax on fuel. One day that person will drive an electric car and regret saying all of that...

 

[bungle_78]

The writer has a point. EVs do use the same road network but don't pay Road Fund Tax or contribute as much through VAT and Fuel Duty. At some point that will need to change.

Although it could be argued that EV drivers are doing less damage to the environment so the Gov won't have to spend as much tacking climate change if everyone drove an EV.

 

[Jason71]

well it depends who you ask. There is not the wierd hatred that seems to bubble up in the pickup truck driving segment of the US population.
Kids love them, well mainly Teslas
Most people don't know anything about them or care
Then there is the comments section of the tabloids.......Best Comments on EV Stories

 

[tonyj01]

Jealous?

My long term experience from strangers has been admiration, and interest. People really don't get the charging, either home or away. Not many get how fast the cars are off the line.

The letter writer seems to have not grasped that the incentives are there temporarily to increase the uptake for the benefit of everyone, cities, suburban and countryside.


Tony

 

[Jason71]

The writer has a point. EVs do use the same road network but don't pay Road Fund Tax or contribute as much through VAT and Fuel Duty. At some point that will need to change.

Although it could be argued that EV drivers are doing less damage to the environment so the Gov won't have to spend as much tacking climate change if everyone drove an EV.

Tax is used for raising revenue but also for social engineering. Right now the govt has decided that the long term benefits of EV adoption outweigh the short financial benefits of higher taxation. Nobody likes it when they are on the wrong end of taxation. yes it will have to change.
My plan would be to mandate an ever increasing proportion of spaces set aside for EV's in all car parks. Negligible cost for maximum pressure. THEN you will see real hate of EV's

 

[Neilio]

What the writer has said doesn't make sense? We should be paying for charging infrastructure? As far as I know, my car tax on my diesel vehicle doesn't go to BP to build petrol stations?

Also, don't we, as Tesla customers, pay for our charging infrastructure to be built? Or at least fund it by giving Tesla a lot of money for their vehicles so they can build superchargers.

 

[bungle_78]

Tax is used for raising revenue but also for social engineering. Right now the govt has decided that the long term benefits of EV adoption outweigh the short financial benefits of higher taxation. Nobody likes it when they are on the wrong end of taxation. yes it will have to change.
My plan would be to mandate an ever increasing proportion of spaces set aside for EV's in all car parks. Negligible cost for maximum pressure. THEN you will see real hate of EV's

Let them use bus lanes and park on double yellow lines as well.

 

[Cogarch]

EV drivers are doing less damage to the environment so the Gov won't have to spend as much tacking climate change if everyone drove an EV.

This

 

[Jason71]

The writer has a point. EVs do use the same road network but don't pay Road Fund Tax or contribute as much through VAT and Fuel Duty. At some point that will need to change.

Although it could be argued that EV drivers are doing less damage to the environment so the Gov won't have to spend as much tacking climate change if everyone drove an EV.

You are right but EV's are expensive to buy initially and a big part of that is the 20% VAT that the govt takes + in the case of Teslas the 10% import duty. so we are not entirely untaxed. I would never have bought a new car at all otherwise so its not like they would have had that but at a slightly lower rate from a cheaper ICE car

 

[Dangerous Fish]

The writer has a point. EVs do use the same road network but don't pay Road Fund Tax or contribute as much through VAT and Fuel Duty. At some point that will need to change.

Although it could be argued that EV drivers are doing less damage to the environment so the Gov won't have to spend as much tacking climate change if everyone drove an EV.

Well we pay Council Tax and that funds highway services.
The comment in that letter about charging infrastructure is also a bit misleading as we (as Tesla drivers) have indirectly funded that as well.

There certainly is a section of the population who dislike EVs and no doubt the drivers of them too and I put that down to ignorance and a fear of change mostly. The vast majority of non-EV owners I meet seem to be very interested in it all and receptive to the idea of changing though. Especially when I tell them how much it costs to "fill up".

 

[Alistairuk]

What the writer has said doesn't make sense? We should be paying for charging infrastructure? As far as I know, my car tax on my diesel vehicle doesn't go to BP to build petrol stations?

Also, don't we, as Tesla customers, pay for our charging infrastructure to be built? Or at least fund it by giving Tesla a lot of money for their vehicles so they can build superchargers.

I should have mentioned it’s a Scottish paper so I reckon by that he’s referring to the Scottish Governments push to roll out charging infrastructure - most of which is at present free to use under the ChargePlaceScotland network...

I agree with all the other comments that people have made regarding incentives for early adoption of EVs

I’d only really seen hatred towards EVs in the US before that caught my attention yesterday (hatred might be too strong a word to use) so just wondered if anyone else had come across it in their day to day business

 

[mrobins64495]

The usual response I get for buying a Tesla is as follows:

1) I just don’t like them. To which I usually ask have they been in one or driven them and the answer is normally no

2) you mean those cars that catch fire all the time.

3) they’re so expensive why waste your money.

I think what you learn is everyone has an opinion rightly or wrongly so meeeh

 

[Durzel]

It is inevitable that over time EVs will be taxed in some way to make up for the shortfall in tax from petrol/diesel and VED.

We're not at that point yet, which is why there are various incentives to get people into EV cars, and installing charging infrastructure. As said already the Govt presumably feels the costs of climate change outweigh the subsidies, for now.

Teslas are the face of EV, so to speak, so they're probably more likely to attract negative sentiment from people already predisposed against EVs, for short-sighted and/or selfish reasons similar to that newspaper article.

 

[FlyingTimbo]

As a keen cyclist, I constantly hear criticism from motorists claiming 'I don't pay road tax' and other ignorant misconceptions. It's a lack of understanding of different groups with preconceived ideas.

One anti EV comment I hear is 'In a traffic jam, your battery will go flat and you'll be stuck there' People forget that cars can run out of petrol! Such ignorance!

 

[fancealot]

As a keen cyclist, I constantly hear criticism from motorists claiming 'I don't pay road tax' and other ignorant misconceptions. It's a lack of understanding of different groups with preconceived ideas.

One anti EV comment I hear is 'In a traffic jam, your battery will go flat and you'll be stuck there' People forget that cars can run out of petrol! Such ignorance!

lol that's great, because as we all know in a traffic jam an EV will hardly use anything of it's battery, only a trickle for the screen, A/C and heaters etc.

 

[j1mgg]

The sooner the Scottish papers die the better, nothing but a load of toilet paper.

In answer to the question, I haven't really noticed anything untoward, and I haven't had that animosity towards ev drivers either. Will see at the start of next month when I get my car what it is like.

 

[dan223]

I haven't seen much in the UK (a fair few in the US), but for sure there are some people that don't like them, and may try to cause a problem for you if you run into them, quite often because they are jealous. As for the article it is VED, it hasn't been road tax for a long time, it is just a method of taxation. At the moment the government are trying to push people to move to electric, and this is one way of doing so. There will become at time when there are a decent amount of EV's on the road and then the government need to make up that loss of revenue from VED, fuel duty etc, and I'm sure there will be taxes for EV's then, but until that happens this is how it is.

 

[Rustybkts]

I don't think many will be happy every time I leave them standing at the lights but as they are far behind, I leave them fuming as they drag their ICE's from the line whilst running through multiple complicated gear boxes.

The younger generation do get EV's as my daughter has a Zoe and son is trying to chop in his hybrid Merc company car for a pure EV but subject to the car list.

The majority of kids await the cheaper second hand cars that will come along in a few years time.

 

[Chalks99]

Since buying my M3 I’ve payed more attention to anything regarding electric vehicles and noticed this gem in yesterday’s paper (in readers letter section) - admittedly it’s first time I’ve noticed such hatred directed towards EV drivers so my question is, how often do you come across similar comments from people? Or is the guy just a p***k

Since buying my M3 I’ve payed more attention to anything regarding electric vehicles and noticed this gem in yesterday’s paper (in readers letter section) - admittedly it’s first time I’ve noticed such hatred directed towards EV drivers so my question is, how often do you come across similar comments from people? Or is the guy just a p***k

Uber Prius's don't help; even if they are hybrids..... the majority of people making derogatory comments about ev's don't know the difference between a full electric and hybrid.