NEW research has revealed the cost of running an electric car is almost £1000 cheaper than running a petrol car.
The cost of running an electric car for a year is 47% cheaper than a petrol one revealed comparethemarket.com.
On average it costs £2,062 to run a petrol vehicle for 12 months compared to the drastically cheaper electric vehicle at £10,91, creating a difference of £971.
Dan Hutson, head of motor insurance, comparethemarket.com, said: “The popularity of electric cars continues to accelerate as these vehicles now make up around one in ten new car sales.
“Motorists who’ve made the switch will be glad to see our figures show electric vehicles cost roughly half as much to run as their petrol alternatives.
“These drivers benefit from substantial savings in fuel bills, insurance and tax – as well as doing their part for the environment.”
The research analysed the cost of insurance, fuel and road taxes with drivers of electric vehicles’ car insurance amounting to more than of the annual running costs.
Petrol car running costs are substantially higher due to drivers paying an average of £640 for their car insurance and £1,212 on fuel every year.
Despite cheaper running costs, a second hand electric car would cost £22,813 therefore taking more than 20 years for the lower running costs to cover the purchase of an electric vehicle.
Mr Hutson added: “These drivers may also want to think about switching to a new Electric Vehicle Tariff for their home energy.
“EV Tariffs are designed to help motorists cut their energy bills by making it cheaper to charge electric cars overnight.”