With £2 a litre diesel now the norm and petrol prices stubbornly hovering above an average of 170p, it seems many motorists are turning to used electric cars as a solution. 

With EVs having suffered steep initial depreciation in many cases, Solera CAP HPI data is showing a remarkable comeback for many popular models. One example is the MINI Cooper Electric, with the average trade value of a three-year-old, 30,000-mile example leaping by 28.3 per cent in the last six months, amounting to an increase of nearly £3,000. 

The Tesla Model 3, Polestar 2 and Cupra Born have all done well for themselves, enjoying value increases of around 20 per cent for three-year-old/30,000-mile examples. 

These market moves might suggest that, as we recently pointed out, it is probably better to get a cheap used EV sooner rather than later. Increasing EV interest is an ongoing trend reflected in enquiries (e.g. requests for quotes or test drives) on our sister site Carwow, which rose by 28 per cent between March and the end of September 2026. In the same period, diesel car enquiries plummeted by 33 per cent. 

Anyone running an EV will have been thus far insulated from the increasing running costs drivers of petrol and diesel cars have suffered. And while the war in Iran is leading to an increase in electricity prices as well as petrol and diesel, the Ofgem energy price cap has only risen by 3.6 per cent. In any case, if you charge an EV at home and have a tariff with a cut-price overnight rate, your day-to-day car running costs will still be extremely low.