Investment in EV skills critical, warns IMI
The Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI) has warned that new government backing of the electric vehicle market could fall flat without an investment in EV skills.
The Department for Transport has announced a £63m investment in electric vehicle infrastructure while also reintroducing an electric vehicle grant backed by £650m of funding.
However, the IMI has highlighted the urgent need for skills support for the automotive aftermarket to drive EV adoption.
According to the latest data from the IMI, 2024 saw a six per cent drop in technicians gaining an EV certification, despite the EV parc growing significantly through the year.
Lack of understanding
Sarah Sillars OBE HonFIMI, interim CEO at the IMI said: “It’s encouraging to see the government’s commitment to addressing some of the big barriers to electric vehicle adoption with this latest investment in infrastructure. However, it seems there is a lack of understanding about the critical role of EV skills to support net zero ambitions.
“Around 26% of the UK technician workforce currently holds an EV qualification, which means it can be a postcode lottery for an electric vehicle owner or driver to find a garage that can service or repair their vehicle.
“And this is only going to get worse as the EV parc grows. Our current estimates suggest that demand is likely to outpace supply by over 29,000 technicians by 2035.”
Affordability
IMI non-executive director Ian Plummer, commercial director at Autotrader, added: “With more than half of consumers saying upfront expense is the biggest blocker to going electric, affordability is clearly the key to unlocking mass adoption.
“Support from government to ensure no one is left behind in the electric transition, including consumers and highly skilled technicians who can work safely on electric vehicles, would be a vital boost to mass adoption, if targeted correctly.”
