Studies for older electric vehicles, such as the Nissan Leaf, which has been around for twelve years has shown that battery degradation is minimal. First and foremost, based on data from over 6,000 electric vehicles, spanning all the major makes and models, batteries are exhibiting high levels of sustained health. If the observed degradation rates are maintained, the vast majority of batteries will outlast the usable life of the vehicle. Like us, health declines with age.

If your electric car does run out of charge, it will switch into failsafe mode, giving you enough time to pull over. Unlike fuel-run cars, you cannot head to the nearest petrol station on foot and buy fuel to take away, meaning you will need to call for roadside assistance.

Research has shown that electric vehicles can preserve their battery power well, even if they are stuck in traffic with music, air-con and headlights on. One example showed that in just over an hour, a vehicle had lost just 2% of the charge from its 77kWh battery; the equivalent of 8 miles’ range.

In short, yes. According to National Grid’s project director, it is expected that electricity demand would increase by 10% if the entire country switched to EVs overnight and started charging. Some might argue that 10% is a huge increase. However, increased reliance on off-grid energy sources such as solar panels has helped the country to rely less on the energy grid. In fact, the UK’s peak demand has fallen by 16% since 2002.

No – a complete fallacy! Charge sockets and charge leads are completely waterproof. The charge lead is locked in to the chargepoint and the vehicle whilst it is charging and sockets and leads are made to the relevant standards which will withstand any downpours, however severe. There is also no way water can reach the electrics on an EV whilst it is being driven in the rain.

Electric cars can handle extended periods of inactivity very well, even better than combustion-powered engines, whose 12V batteries can lose charge, and whose fluids and radiator hoses can become damaged. But if you really want to pamper your electric car, simply charge your battery to between 20 and 50%, don’t leave it exposed to high temperatures for months and… that’s it! It’ll be ready to go in a flash when the time comes to drive it again.

It has been reported by various studies that some vehicle manufacturers have increased the range figures advertised compared to the results from real life tests. This is due to several factors that can cause the battery to decrease on a journey, such as hills and temperature that may not have been considered in the EV manufacturers original tests.

It will cost approximately £18.00 to charge a 60kWh electric car based on an average domestic electricity rate in the UK of roughly 30p per kWh. However, it is important to note that these figures are only an estimation based on averages, and energy prices vary and can go both up and down. If you wish to find your cost per kWh, please speak to your electricity provider.

The rise of energy prices will mean that it is more expensive to charge your electric vehicle, especially at public charge points which tend to have an increased rate compared to a home charging point. With the recent increase in the prices of both petrol and diesel, it is still considered more money efficient to power an electric vehicle than its fuel counterpart.