Car research and safety specialists Thatcham Research will lead a funded project focused on electric vehicle collision repair to learn more about their impact on claims and associated costs.
The not-for-profit organisation is running the project because little research has so far been done into how electric car insurance and repair processes differ when compared to those for an internal combustion engine (ICE) car.
Thatcham will work in partnership with LV= General Insurance and draw upon real-world claims data to inform the project’s findings.
During the first part of the project, Thatcham will focus on identifying where the claims workflow is different for EVs, revealing potential pain points.
Thatcham will also quantify its findings to inform where more detailed work may be required in the future.
According to the organisation, one of the key barriers to wholesale EV adoption is the battery. The project will seek to learn how batteries - which are expensive vulnerable elements of an EV - impact the repair of an electric car either directly or indirectly as a result of a collision.
Vehicle salvage, dismantling and recycling specialist Synetiq will also play a role in the project. Thatcham says the firm will bring “essential insight into the readiness of the market for financially and environmentally sustainable EVs post-accident”, with a particular focus on batteries.
Commenting on the new project, Thatcham’s head of engineering, Adrian Watson said: “In many circumstances, EV accident repair is no different from ICE vehicles. But under the hood lie everyday essentials, such as safe, cost-effective, timely post-accident repair, and the surrounding claims process so critical to putting any new vehicle on the road.
“It’s vital that the industry comes together to ensure customer expectations of owning, insuring, and repairing an EV can be met—and that the experience can be better than they’re used to with an ICE.”
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