The Electric Car Scheme has reported a 300% rise in demand for second-hand electric cars on salary sacrifice on the back of lower prices and increased availability.

The EV sal-sac provider said used EV demand had jumped over the past year, with orders of second-hand electric cars on its scheme now making up roughly half of all orders.

This has coincided with a significant increase in availability, with more than 500 used EVs now available on salary sacrifice through the scheme; an increase of over 200% in the last month alone.

The firm’s research indicates that price remains the biggest barrier to uptake of new EVs, with 54% of Brits singling out affordability.

This is leading drivers to turn to the used car market; SMMT figures show that battery electric vehicles are the fastest-growing category of used vehicles, increasing 58.5% year on year in Q1.

Their popularity has been boosted by further savings available through salary sacrifice, with savings of up to 50% on top of lower prices.

To demonstrate the power of used EV salary sacrifice to improve affordability, the Electric Car Scheme has analysed the difference in cost between three popular models of EVs and found that for an employee earning £40,000 a year, the savings can be close to 50%.

For the Škoda Enyaq which, on a standard lease for a new model, costs around £567 a month, the cost falls to £292 a month for a used model on salary sacrifice; a saving of 49%.

The Volkswagen ID.4 similarly falls from £506 to £296 a month, a fall of 42%, while the Mercedes EQA sees a saving of 36%, falling from around £528 to £339.

Thom Groot, CEO and co-founder of the Electric Car Scheme, said: “We know that affordability is the biggest barrier to people getting an EV, so it is not surprising that as the price falls and availability increases, more and more people are opting for a used model. It also speaks to the increasing quality of EVs and tech that these models possess, with more people than ever feeling confident in making the switch.

“A strong second-hand market is key to the growth of EV uptake and reaching ZEV goals by 2030, so this is a positive step. Salary sacrifice is going to be key to this, and the growing demand is an indication that it is increasingly recognised as the best way to get an EV, used or otherwise.”