A lack of electric vehicle (EV) charging station availability has the potential to derail automotive OEM plans to accelerate the transition to electrified fleets, according to a new study from J.D. Power.
The American data analytics firm said that nearly half of people it surveyed named lack of EV charging stations as the top reason for rejection of EVs as their next car purchase. Additionally, those drivers surveyed said that public charging infrastructure was a concern already due to the consistent low satisfaction scores among consumers.
“Most EV owners will say charging is one of the greatest benefits of ownership, because 85% of it is done at home,” said Stewart Stropp, executive director of EV intelligence at J.D. Power. “But it’s the exceptional use case — like a vacation road trip — that’s holding shoppers back. Proactively taking ownership of the public charging experience is a huge opportunity for automakers to differentiate. The recent announcements by Ford and GM to establish a charging collaboration with Tesla are particularly noteworthy.”
Both American carmakers were among several companies that came out earlier this month in support of Tesla’s North America Charging Standard (NACS) connector for EVs. Ford and GM’s support for NACS set off shockwaves throughout the automotive industry causing a domino effect where numerous third-party hardware charging station vendors, software vendors and other automotive OEMs all came out in support of the technology.
"The growth in public charging isn’t keeping pace with the rising number of EVs on the road,” Stropp said. “While owners are impressed by what automakers are offering, they’re also thinking about how, when and where they’ll be able to charge their vehicles away from home. A resounding effort to build out and improve the public charging infrastructure will emphatically increase EV purchase consideration.”
Appeal still rising
Despite concerns over enough EV charging stations and the reliability of these stations, the J.D. Power study found that those looking to buy a new car were likely to purchase an EV rose to 61% in 2023, up from 59% last year.
The modest year-over-year increases are still happening despite rising interest rates, lack of charging availability and inflation. However, rising gas prices and greater model availability are positively influencing EV adoption, the company said.
Other key findings from the company’s EV study include:
- EV experience helps consideration.
- EVs become a favorable car for long commutes.
- California leads those likely to buy an EV.
- Gen Z is the fastest-growing segment likely to buy an EV.
- EV buyers are not just considering Tesla vehicles.
