Fossil fuel spikes spurring switch to EVs

  Posted by: user_amy      27th May 2026

The volatility and spiking of petrol and diesel prices is making almost a quarter of UK drivers say they are more likely to switch to or keep driving an Electric Vehicle (EV) when they get their next car.

In a CTEK survey of more than 1,000 UK drivers, by Find Out Now, 23% said they are more likely to drive electric next. Drivers in their thirties are the most influenced (31%) by high petrol and diesel prices with older drivers less motivated to switch to EVs (16% of 65-74-year-olds and 15% of those 74-plus).

One in five (20%) purely petrol or diesel drivers in the survey say they are more likely to switch to electric due to the global rises in the price of oil. More than half already behind the wheel of a fully electric car (BEV) are even more resolved to stick with electric as their next car.

Viktors Nikolajevs, UK Key Account Manager at EV chargepoint manufacturer CTEK, said: “The turmoil in the global oil markets has led us towards a £2 litre of diesel on UK forecourts. Today’s Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) drivers have ever more reason to consider electric.

“Increasingly the household budget sums add up in favour of EVs, whether that’s buying new with the help of the Government’s purchase grant or used thanks to the increasing availability of great quality EVs with miles on the clock.

“To help accelerate the switch, much more provision of public charging must be a priority to empower drivers without the ability to charge cheaply at home. Our survey shows a growing desire to drive electric and more charging provision is a key enabler of turning that into more EVs on our roads.”

The CTEK survey also found almost as many drivers considering a brand new car likely to look for a new EV (30%) as an ICE car (33%). Of those who will be in the market for a new EV, a third of them – or one in ten UK drivers – will want a fully electric BEV. Stripping out the don’t knows, 16% of UK drivers want to get a new BEV next.

Men (12%) are more likely than women (7%) to be primed to buy a new BEV. And drivers in their thirties are the most likely (13%) of the age groups. This echoes what was found by CTEK’s Find Out Now survey in 2025, when what CTEK dubbed the thirtysomethings of ‘Generation E’ were the driving force of the switch to electric driving.

Turning to used cars, the survey found more drivers still likely to buy a petrol or diesel ICE car. But excluding the don’t knows, more than a third (35%) of drivers anticipate buying a used EV – including BEVs (11%), PHEV plug-in hybrids (9%) and BEV hybrids that can’t be plugged in (15%).

Majorities of drivers will stick to their current car type but for those making a change in how their driving is fuelled, the more likely next brand new car is a step towards greater electric mobility. Excluding the don’t knows, almost a quarter (24%) of PHEV drivers will buy a new BEV, more than a third (35%) of HEV drivers will go to a BEV of PHEV.

Viktors said: “Many drivers are content for now to stick with the driving fuel they know. But spiking petrol and diesel prices are challenging that inertia and tipping more drivers into calculating that it will pay to go greener.”