Experts have demanded the UK does not follow the European Union’s decision to slap hefty tariffs on Chinese electric cars which would have a major impact on buyers.
Ian Plummer, commercial director at AutoTrader, the leading marketplace for new and used cars, admitted it was “disappointing” the EU had decided to slap tariffs on vehicles produced in China after weeks of threats.
However, he admits a similar rule in the UK will “limit options for consumers” and keep prices high.
He claims that “open competition” among firms would help remove the “green premium” and encourage drivers to take up electric models.
The UK has yet to decide whether it will issue tariffs on Chinese vehicles which are expected to massively undercut EVs on sale from traditional manufacturers.
Ian explained: “The European Union’s decision to impose tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles is disappointing, and we hope the UK isn’t tempted to take similar action.
“UK drivers already face a lack of affordable choices when it comes to electric cars, so it doesn’t make sense for us to limit those options even further for consumers.
“We need to bring more buyers into the market by cutting down the ‘green premium’ which means EVs are usually 35 percent more expensive than diesel or petrol cars.
“We’ll only do that with open competition to foster innovation, not by reducing choice for consumers.”
The EU has confirmed Chinese manufacturers will have to pay tariffs of almost 50 percent when selling vehicles in member states.
The European Commission said it will provisionally apply extra duties of between 17 and 38 percent on imported cars from next month.
This is on top of the existing 10 percent tariffs already in place for firms to contend with.
The EU claimed that the EV supply chain was “heavily subsidised in China” which could be a threat to the industry.
