Electric vehicle batteries should now last 20 years or more on average, new data from Geotab indicates.

The findings bust the long-held myth that EV batteries are less reliable than their ICE counterparts

The company analysed the battery health of almost 5,000 fleet and private EVs, representing nearly 1.5 million days of telematics data, and found significant improvements over the past five years.

EV batteries degrade, on average, by 1.8% per year – compared to 2.3% when Geotab last performed a wholesale analysis of EV battery health in 2019.

And the best-performing EV models on sale today have battery degradation rates of just 1.0% annually; this number will only come down as battery technology improves.

The data shows the vast majority of EV batteries will outlast the usable life of the vehicle, while the findings also bust one of the long-held myths around electric vehicles – that batteries are less reliable than their ICE counterparts.

“With these higher levels of sustained health, batteries in the latest EV models will comfortably outlast the usable life of the vehicle and will likely not need to be replaced,” said David Savage, vice president for the UK and Ireland at Geotab.

Savage said that while electric vehicle critics may still use battery reliability “as a stick to beat EVs with”, the data will hopefully put battery myths to bed.

“The fact is that a 1.8% decline in battery health is unlikely to have a significant impact on most drivers’ daily vehicle needs, and this number will only come down further with new EV models and improved battery technology.

“People should feel confident that many current EVs are suitable and cost-effective to replace a range of light, medium and heavy-duty ICE vehicles.”

Interestingly, the research found high-use batteries did not show significantly higher battery degradation than others, meaning that EVs offer better value the more they are driven.

Potential contributors to why some vehicle models, on average, degrade faster than others are battery chemistry and thermal management of the battery pack.

A Geotab report from earlier this year found that two-thirds of UK light vehicles operated by private and public sector organisations are ready to go electric.

The ‘Taking Charge: On the Road to an EV Future’ research analysed driver data from 1.3 million vehicles across seven countries over 12 months, and also suggested that fleets could save an average of £13,279 per vehicle over seven years when replacing ICE vehicles with EVs.

Geotab has also spotlighted how comprehensive telematics data can enable accurate state-of-health information, helping fleets make the best use of electric vehicles.

Its EV Battery Health report reveals how telematics data insights allow fleets to know the real battery capacity of their EVs, understand the rate of degradation and get the most value throughout their life cycle.