Battery health test, certificate and extended warranties

Altelium announces today the first independent battery health test and warranty service for used electric vehicle batteries available on the forecourt in the UK. The move marks a pivotal moment for the used battery electric vehicle (BEV) market and wider transition to clean transport.

The service from Altelium, available through a digital platform, is the result of work since 2018 to develop an independent way to predict the health and risk of batteries in order to provide extended warranties on them. As the traditional sign of product confidence, extended warranties help drive sales and the absence of them for used BEVs has been a brake on the market.

Worth an estimated 96 billion in the UK, an efficient used car market is important to the economy, and also essential to accelerate the transition to electric transport. There are an estimated 2.3 million EVs on the road and many of the first all-electric fleets have started entering the used car market.

According to the SMMT, households have held on to their traditional cars longer than they normally would, with the average age of cars on UK roads at 8.4 years, a record high. Since June this year the majority of car buyers have wanted to make their next purchase electric but cost and confidence in the battery have held back sales.

The opportunity to buy a second-hand BEV will now be an option for the thousands of car buyers who felt the battery range or health couldn’t be trusted, or who wanted the peace of mind of an extended warranty.

The test is conducted via Altelium’s proprietary platform which combines data modelling from multiple sources including real world battery performance to assess the current and future health of the battery being tested.  It shows the battery’s state of health or remaining capacity, and how that compares to expected degradation for the same type of vehicles.

Altelium’s warranty programmes, underwritten with ‘A’ rated insurers through the Lloyd’s of London market, cover battery degradation and electromechanical failure, and provide cover beyond the age or mileage limits of manufacturers warranties.

GardX has signed a deal to offer the Altelium battery health tests, certificates and warranties service as part of its EVerity innovation programme for dealers.

Dave Allmark, Gardx director of business said: “Everybody benefits from these new products, the dealerships, the consumers, the environment.  There have certainly been blocks in the road to electric adoption but now uncertainty about battery health and range for second hand vehicles no longer needs to be one of them.”

Ed Grimston, chief executive, Altelium, said: “Our independent battery health tests, certificates and warranties break down the barriers to buying BEVs. Battery anxiety inhibits the used EV market and this knocks on to the new EV market. By resolving this anxiety through an independent battery health test and certificate, combined with the peace of mind extended warranties give, we have unblocked this inhibitor to the EV transition.”