Electric cars have been in the news for suddenly catching fire, but so far there has not been enough evidence to demonstrate battery-powered vehicles are uniquely vulnerable. Car fires are relatively commonplace, but the media often highlights electric car fires.
Investment bank UBS said if all the vehicles on board were damaged or destroyed, assuming an average selling price of €100,000 , this would lead to a first-quarter loss for VW of about €400 million.“The exported vehicles are high-price, high-margin products, therefore the incident could have a meaningful financial impact on Q1 numbers.
“However, we would expect financial compensation by an insurance company in such a scenario. Even if the vehicles can be recovered, the shipment to the customers could be meaningfully delayed, with a small negative impact on Q1 numbers,” UBS said. Meanwhile, if the electric cars on board were the cause of the blaze, that would have a big negative impact on the future of transporting inter-continental electric car exports.
As electric cars become more ubiquitous, a series of myths and unproven risks or disadvantages have built up. Spontaneous fires were said to be a threat because of laptop, tablet or phone fires and their similar design. Extreme climate could unsettle batteries, including large temperature swings and elevated levels of dust and particulates. The need for high voltage fast charging stations was said to be a potential fire risk.