Electric vehicles

Electric car finance: what's different in 2026?

Battery depreciation, home-charging installation, and the Benefit-in-Kind advantage all reshape EV finance maths. A practical field guide.

6 min read·By Alex Fielding·14 October 2026

EVs now make up roughly 22% of new UK car sales and the used EV market has finally reached scale. But financing one still involves a few things that don't apply to petrol or diesel. Here's the plain-English guide.

PCP is still the default

Battery depreciation was the historical worry for EV PCP, but improved battery warranties (typically 8 years/100k miles) and stronger residual values in 2026 mean GMFVs are now competitive with petrol equivalents.

Benefit-in-Kind: the elephant in the room

For company-car drivers, BiK on pure EVs is capped at 3% in 2026-27. That is significantly cheaper than the 25%+ BiK on many petrol company cars, and often makes company EV finance pay for itself.

Home charging: bundle it or don't?

Some lenders now bundle a home wallbox installation into the finance monthly. It's convenient but usually 15-25% more expensive than paying a separate installer up front. Worth doing the maths.

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Used EV finance considerations

Ask for the battery state-of-health test result before signing. Anything above 85% SoH is fine; below 80% will cost you at return if you're on PCP. Independent EV inspection services (~£150) are worth every penny on used EV purchases.

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