An electric car driver has said their electric car is costing them money even though they’re not currently driving it.
The driver, who went only by the letters JM, has been without their Jaguar I-Pace for five months after a minor crash earlier this year.
They added they were given a petrol-powered Ford Fiesta which they are having to pay to refuel at the same time as paying for their Jaguar’s lease payments.
They added that “no one” could tell them when their electric car, which costs nearly £70,000, will be returned.
Writing to the Guardian, JM said: “In March, I had a very minor accident in the all-electric Jaguar I-Pace that I lease from a company called Tusker via a salary sacrifice deal. The scheme includes the car’s insurance.
“The problem is that after the crash, which was my fault, the car was taken away and, five months on, I still haven’t received it back.
“I would have expected to be without the car for a short period, but this is really dragging on. No one seems to be able to tell me when my car will be returned.”
In response, the Guardian’s Miles Brignall said motorists were regularly waiting months to get their cars back after minor incidents.
Mr Brignall explained: “Motorists are often waiting months to get their cars back on the road after minor shunts because of global parts shortages.
“And the problem appears to be getting worse rather than better. If you have an electric car in particular, I’d be driving it very carefully, as dealers often struggle to fix them.”
Mr Brignall added that Tusker had told him that his repaired I-Pace should now have been returned to him.
However, JM’s experience is one which is concerning not just for electric car drivers, but mechanics who are paying thousands to retrain.
Some mechanics are worried that electric cars could cause half of Britain’s garages to close.
Speaking to the Sun, mechanic Eric Smith said claimed half of all the UK’s independent garages could shut.
His comments were echoed by Bilal Khan, a mechanic who said it will cost him and his employees thousands of pounds to retrain.
He said: “I looked into getting training back in 2018 and it cost around £8,000. I have two staff members working for me, so to get everyone qualified it would be more than £20,000.”
Mr Khan said many mechanics didn’t have the money to spend on retraining because of the cost of living crisis.
Furthermore, he said every garage would need specialist equipment to move and work on the cars.
He explained: “It isn’t just the staff training that’s extortionate, you also need specialist equipment which is stupidly expensive. You can’t put an electric car on a regular ramp, you need a specialist lift.
“The general public will suffer too. Electrical vehicles are lower maintenance than petrol or diesel cars but if they break, it’s very expensive to fix them.
