Many companies are purchasing electric cars, but what about private car owners? According to data from insurer HUK Coburg, skepticism and mistrust continue to dominate.

The vast majority of private car owners in Germany continue to steer clear of electric vehicles when purchasing a new car: According to an analysis by HUK Coburg, the share of purely electric cars in the private vehicle fleet was only three percent in the first quarter, and quarter-on-quarter growth was only 0.1 percent.

"Electric cars are barely making any inroads in the crucial private car market," said HUK CEO Klaus-Jürgen Heitmann. These figures refer exclusively to battery-powered, fully electric cars; hybrids are not included. The source is the company's own data: With over 14 million vehicles, the insurer is the market leader in car insurance in Germany, and a six-figure number of private car owners register new vehicles annually. There are significant regional differences: In Bavaria, Lower Saxony, and Baden-Württemberg—federal states with strong automotive industries—the share of electric cars is more than twice as high as in Saxony-Anhalt and Saxony.

The company's "E-Barometer" only considers these privately insured vehicles. The Federal Motor Transport Authority's registration statistics, however, also include all types of company vehicles, from executive cars to rental cars.

According to the "E-Barometer," one reason for the snail's pace in the spread of new electric cars could be the growing used car market: When switching from a combustion engine to an electric motor, 61 percent of buyers opted for a used electric car in the first quarter, while only 39 percent opted for a new car.

In addition to the analysis of insurance data, a representative YouGov survey of 4,222 participants over the age of 18 was conducted. According to the survey, a majority remains skeptical about fully electric cars: 42 percent consider electric cars to be good or very good vehicles, while 51 percent consider them less good or not good at all. Only 15 percent said that, in principle, an electric car is the only option for them. And 60 percent said they have greater reservations about purchasing a used electric car than a car with a combustion engine.