The study revealed that 58% of respondents who said that they are planning to buy a new car over the next two years would consider "going electric."

This increased to over three quarters (77%) of those in the 25 – 34 year range and 81% of respondents who live in London. Londoners had by far the most positive response to the idea of owning an electric vehicle.

Despite recent press commentary about the slower than anticipated growth of consumer demand for electric vehicles over the last 12 months, future expectations within the automotive industry are very different.  Some 29 new cars powered by electricity are about to come on the road from manufacturers such as BMW, Ford, Vauxhall, Renault and Volvo over the next 18 months and this survey further demonstrates that the public has started to take the electric option seriously.

An issue of concern, however, is the lack of a national charging infrastructure, with 83% of people survey saying this would negatively affect their decision to buy an electric vehicle.

However, 78% of respondents felt that if at least 40 public charging points were in place in their local town and in supermarkets, shopping centres, railway stations and public car parks, this would positively affect the likelihood of buying an electric car.

This increased to some 91% of respondents who live in the London area showing that more needs to be done in providing charging points in the capital.

Chargemaster’s POLAR network allows electric vehicle owners to charge wherever they are, with a membership providing a HomeCharge wall box, access to POLAR’s public network of over 4,000 charging points, which are being installed over the next 12 months, access to discounted and green EV tariffs from a range of utilities and other member benefits including discounts on parking, hotels and restaurants.

David Martell, chief executive, Chargemaster Plc, said: 'With a number of major car manufacturers close to launching and promoting their EV ranges to the mass market, it is has become increasingly clear that consumers are now seriously considering purchasing an EV.  

'The survey does also highlight that car buyers remain concerned about the lack of charging infrastructure in the UK when considering purchasing an electric vehicle. Chargemaster is currently working towards solving this issue via the installation of our POLAR network, the UK’s first nationwide network of charging infrastructure. The availability of more charging options will play a critical part in encouraging these consumers to make a positive decision to go electric.'

The survey sampled 1032 people across the country.