https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2025/04/16/electric-cars-breaking-down-more-than-petrol-vehicles-aa/
"Motoring association says belief in better reliability of EVs is a ‘common misconception’
Electric cars break down more often than petrol and diesel vehicles, the Automobile Association (AA) has warned.
Jakob Pfaudler, boss of the breakdown service, said electric vehicles (EVs) were prone not only to punctures and flat batteries, but also to a host of specific problems such as jammed charging cables and technical glitches.
He said: “There’s a common misconception that electric vehicles break down less frequently than petrol and diesel vehicles.
“Currently, at least, that is not the case. The breakdown rate is, in fact, slightly higher for electric vehicles than for internal combustion-engine vehicles.”
Edmund King, AA president, added that EV drivers were often flustered by the technology and respond to warning lights by immediately shutting down their cars on the roadside.
That is unlike petrol motorists, he said, who were more likely to drive to the nearest garage when confronted with an oil pressure alert.
However, Mr King added that around 90pc of breakdowns involving EVs could be dealt with at the roadside versus 86pc for regular cars, with technicians able to fix problems such as computer glitches through a simple reboot.
Instances of EVs catching fire because of issues around their lithium-ion batteries were also rare, he said, while call-outs for vehicles running out of charge have fallen from 7pc of AA’s total to around 2pc. That is largely thanks to the increased roll-out of chargers across the UK, although the percentage is still twice the amount for conventional cars running out of petrol or diesel.
The AA said it had been forced to spend more than £10m over the past two years to train its 3,000 employees to a level where they can assist EV drivers and deal with the cars’ high-voltage equipment.
The firm has also invested in a programme analysing data and software from EVs to better understand issues surrounding the health of motors and batteries.
However, Mr Pfaudler said he was reluctant to commit too much money to EVs given the recent drop in sales.
He said: “EVs still don’t have a very high penetration in the UK. We need to make sure we don’t train people with something they will only apply once in a blue moon.”
Dealing with EVs that cannot be fixed at the roadside is also a headache, since the vehicles have no neutral gear and cannot be towed.
An AA technician invented what the organisation called a free-wheeling hub, which can be fitted to the rear wheels and allows them to turn.
The weight of EV batteries also means some cars cannot be moved using the AA’s standard towing trailer, which is limited to a two-tonne load. It has forced into investing in upgraded equipment capable of towing a 3.5-tonne vehicle as a result."