In three years, a quarter of the cars sold in Italy will be electric cars. The revelation comes from the second edition of the eReadiness study by PwC Strategy & for the 6 European countries Italy, France, Germany, Spain, Norway and Switzerland. A survey that involved over 4000 consumers, more than 100 company fleet managers, with a fleet of at least 100 vehicles, and 30 dealerships representing 29 different brands.
The scenario depicted by the research – confirmed by market data for the first six months of 2021 – clearly shows a strong interest on the part of consumers and companies in EVs, with over 55% of private individuals interviewed declaring themselves interested in buying an electric car. in the next two years. Within the company, 100% of the fleet managers interviewed declared that they want to add or increase the share of electricity by 2023.
“The identikit of those who buy electric cars – the researchers explain – is on average a middle-aged person, living in the city, with an income higher than the owners of combustion cars. The preferred purchase channel continues to be the dealership but the online channel for future purchases is growing, with 6 out of 10 respondents who would be willing to buy the car online guided by practicality and transparency on the price. However, the desire to see and test the car live and the need to receive assistance from the seller in configuring the car and ancillary services remain to slow down the online purchase. In the last year, the level of satisfaction during the shopping experience of electric cars has dropped – they conclude to PwC Strategy & -, which remains lower than that recorded for buyers of traditional vehicles. The cause is partly due to customer dissatisfaction in managing the installation of the charging wall-box. Since about 50% of customers buy a private charging system, in addition to the car, it remains crucial for OEMs to manage this phase effectively ”.
In any case, according to the research, the main barriers to purchase are the high initial cost, the limited autonomy of the battery and the time required for recharging, but also the concern for the environmental impact linked to the production of the batteries. In short, there is always a lot of room for improvement for the electric market.
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