Upon learning that the cost to repair the battery pack would exceed the initial purchase price of his electric vehicle (EV), Canadian Kyle Hsu was taken aback. A brand new Hyundai IONIQ 5 costing around $55,000 (or $41,583 in US dollars) was purchased by him in 2022. He was involved in a minor collision less than a year later, which damaged the car’s underbelly, including gouges and bending of the battery protector cover. An unexpected and discouraging scenario costing tens of thousands of dollars resulted from that minor damage to the automobile.
The dealership informed Hsu that his battery pack was a safety concern due to the damage to the undercarriage. They warned that the battery may explode, so it had to be replaced. He spent $6,000 more than he did for the automobile when it was new since the estimate to replace the battery was $61,000 (or $46,000 in US currency). The owner of the electric car was, therefore, faced with a predicament. Alternatively, he might have contacted the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia, his motor insurer, to get compensation for his loss, but doing so would have required him to spend thousands more than he had initially planned to.
Andrea Spencer, a vehicle YouTuber, said that this should serve as a wake-up message to all EV purchasers after the horrific predicament Hsu found himself in. People purchase these vehicles without fully understanding the actual replacement cost of the car’s most crucial component. Battery packs still account for 30 percent or more of a vehicle’s total cost.
Insurance companies realize that covering electric vehicles is very expensive, and they are passing the expense on to those who use these vehicles.
Those who drive electric vehicles and believe they are “saving money” by not purchasing gas or paying gas taxes are deceiving themselves. The hidden expenses of electric vehicles surpass their purported savings.
