Glad that my ramblings were of some use 😂
I agree that the economy is in dire straights and likely to get worse whilst we have this government (which we are almost certainly going to have for at least 4 more years). The Bank of England are saying that interest rates will fall, but at a slower rate than expected, and not to the low levels of a few years ago. Inflation is likely to be higher than target which, as you say, will impact prices.
The biggest factor (car wise) will be whether or not the government wakes up to the fact that the ZEV mandates are completely unachievable. Worryingly, they don’t seem to have even the most basic grasp of supply and demand, let alone how businesses work, so it’s anybody’s guess as to how long it will take before they realise what everyone else with half a brain can already see!
In spite of inflationary pressures, I think that EV prices will have to fall in order to get private buyers interested, and I was reading an interesting article this week that good quality used diesel cars are appreciating in value, as savvy buyers are snapping them up as a long term proposition (I was in a Mercedes taxi last year that had done over 250,000 miles and still drove like new).
Insurance – are you allowing for No Claims Discount that you can transfer from your time with Motability? I’ve not looked at EV insurance, and I know that insurers don’t like them so are weighting premiums accordingly, but I looked at a £70k BMW X5 last year and it was around half what you’ve been quoted. It wasn’t an EV though.
VED (Road Tax) – yes, if you are entitled to a Motability car you will be exempt from VED on an alternative private car, including the first 5 year luxury car tax weighting.
PCPs – I can’t recall the precise wording, but I’ve done this a few times and it was dead easy. Two words of warning though. Don’t cancel during the cooling off period or that cancels the agreement and could lose you the discount. Do it just after. Secondly, be aware that whilst dealerships can’t do anything about it, they might be funny if you say up front that you’re going to do it. They get a commission for setting up the agreement and if it’s subsequently cancelled there is a possibility that they might suffer a claw back.
Having to charge an EV on public chargers 8 to 10 times a year would be 8 to 10 times too many for me (😂) but if you can charge at home at all other times then that will at least help to offset the cost and inconvenience of that.