The UK’s highest-mileage drivers could save all of the oil expected to be extracted from new licences if they ditched fossil fuels and went electric instead.

All oil extracted from the North Sea by the 2040s would be saved if the top 25% of high-mileage UK drivers made the EV switch

New AutoMotive, an independent transport research organisation, has investigated the impacts and characteristics of high-mileage car drivers. And its new ‘Switch First, Save Fast’ report looks at what can be done to encourage them to switch to electric.

The report, available here, states that supporting the electric vehicle switch amongst higher-mileage drivers would target those not electrifying and put EVs in the hands of those who will drive them most.

According to the report:

• The top quarter of high-mileage UK drivers produce more than half of the country’s car emissions – and could dramatically speed up reaching net zero by going electric.
• If the top 10% were to switch to an electric vehicle, they could save annually all the oil that the UK expects to extract from new licences.
• But if the top 25% switched, this would save the UK annually all the oil it expects to extract from the North Sea by the 2040s.

Not only would this diminish the need for new fossil fuels, switching to more efficient, greener and cheaper electrified travel would cut fuel costs by more than 80%, saving an average high-mileage driver £1,000 per year.

However, New Automotive points out that initiatives are much needed to support high-mileage drivers going electric. These could include a ‘feebate’ scheme, where those who buy the most polluting cars pay a fee and those who buy the least polluting get a rebate.

Other suggested policies include information campaigns, social leasing and scrappage schemes – to ensure that the electric car is replacing the miles of the petrol or diesel car for which it has been traded.

Ben Nelmes, CEO of New AutoMotive, said: “High-mileage cars are the low-hanging fruit of the UK’s transition to net zero. The cars that pollute the most are those that spend the most time on the road, and they need to be switched for electric cars if we want to see quick results of the EV transition. These drivers are bearing the brunt of fluctuating fuel prices and they produce the most emissions.

“Supporting the switch to electric amongst higher-mileage drivers would put money back into the hands of those most affected by high fuel prices and help free the UK from expensive imported oil.”

The report was published in collaboration with a study by US environmental group Coltura, which discovered similar trends for US drivers. Here, the driving patterns are even more concentrated, with the top 10% of drivers responsible for 35% of vehicle emissions.

New AutoMotive’s full ‘Switch First, Save Fast’ report – which includes more data on impacts and characteristics of high-mileage drivers and what can be done to encourage them to switch to electric – is here.