Why Teslas Experience More Crashes Than Traditional Gas-Powered Cars: Unveiling the Reasons

Hertz has recently revealed plans to sell 20,000 electric cars from its fleet, opting to replace them with gasoline vehicles. The company cited driver-related accidents as one of the reasons for this decision.

Hertz CEO Stephen Scherr highlighted the increased repair costs associated with electric vehicles, and Hertz’s shift away from EV sales points to a larger issue in the industry. LexisNexis Risk Solutions researchers, analyzing insurance data, discovered challenges in maintaining EVs extend beyond rental car drivers.

Scherr’s remarks align with insights from insurance analysts at LexisNexis, revealing that individuals transitioning from gasoline-powered vehicles to electric cars exhibit a higher propensity for accidents. While drivers also experience a slight increase in collisions when switching to gas-powered vehicles, the rise is more notable with electric vehicles. The data indicates a 14.3% surge in the frequency of insurance claims, coupled with a 14.5% escalation in the severity of claims.

Incidents peak in the initial year after drivers switch to a new electric vehicle, gradually decreasing afterward, as per LexisNexis. This trend suggests a learning curve as drivers become accustomed to the new model. In contrast, transitioning from one gasoline-powered vehicle to another shows considerably fewer issues.

In the context of both Hertz and LexisNexis, the term “electric vehicles” predominantly refers to Teslas, constituting 80% of Hertz’s EV fleet and forming the majority among privately owned EVs in the US. This raises questions about whether there is a distinctive factor in Teslas contributing to a higher crash rate. Notably, LexisNexis researchers observed comparable patterns in China, where a more diverse range of EVs exists, indicating that the phenomenon extends beyond Tesla’s influence.