Newly released government statistics have revealed a stark disparity in road safety outcomes, showing that collisions involving hybrid vehicles are significantly more likely to result in death than those involving traditional petrol or diesel cars.
Fatal Disparity in Crash Data
An analysis of Department for Transport (DfT) figures for the past year found that 122 people were killed in accidents involving hybrid cars. During the same period, 777 fatalities were recorded in crashes with petrol vehicles.
When the relative numbers of vehicles on the road are accounted for, the data becomes even more concerning. With petrol cars outnumbering hybrids on UK roads by nearly 20 to one, the fatality rate per vehicle is approximately three times higher for hybrids. There are currently fewer than one million hybrid cars registered in the UK.
Complexity and Weight Cited as Key Factors
Road safety experts have pointed to the inherent design of hybrid vehicles as a potential contributing factor to the increased risk. Nicholas Lyes, from the charity IAM RoadSmart, explained to The Mail on Sunday that "Plug-in hybrids are often heavier and more complex vehicles" due to their dual powertrain systems, combining a traditional combustion engine with a large battery pack.
Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, responded to the findings by stating, "It's high time we had a specialist resource to address road safety risk", highlighting a need for focused research into emerging vehicle technologies.
EV Infrastructure Growth Slows Amid Tax Changes
This safety analysis emerges against a backdrop of slowing growth in the UK's electric vehicle charging network. A recent report indicated there were roughly 87,200 public chargers across the country by the end of November, a net increase of just 13,500 over the previous year.
This represents the slowest pace of expansion in a decade, with growth projected to fall below 20% in 2025, down from 37% in 2024. Industry observers partly attribute this slowdown to waning consumer confidence in electric vehicles, a situation exacerbated by Chancellor Rachel Reeves's Autumn Budget announcement of a new pay-per-mile road levy.
The new tax, set to commence soon, will charge EV drivers 3p for every mile driven, while hybrid motorists will pay 1.5p per mile. Colin Walker, head of transport at the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, warned the Guardian that this policy, coupled with a potential weakening of the zero-emission vehicle mandate, could "incentivise the sale of plug-in hybrids rather than EVs" and risk "undermining consumer confidence" in cleaner transport.
