Toronto, Ontario — Excited to dive into the world of electric vehicle (EV) recycling? With the current state of insurance, an EV might be written off completely if its battery is dented, warped or slightly scratched.
According to an article first published by the Times Live, this stems from a general inability to assess or repair battery packs after accidents, resulting in write-offs even if the vehicles have been barely used.
Consequently, this has resulted in battery packs piling up in scrap yards, further worsened by them often costing half of an EV–you get more value from buying a new EV than replacing a damaged battery.
While several OEMs including Ford and General Motors have promised repairable EV battery packs, many are assembled in a way that makes repairs significantly tougher, with Tesla Model Ys gluing these battery packs into the car’s structure.
The decision by OEMs to refuse to disclose diagnostic data has resulted in insurers writing off vehicles as a precaution, according to Peter Gruber, owner of Gruber Motor Co.
“An insurance company is not going to take that risk because they’re facing a lawsuit later on if something happens with that vehicle and they did not total it,” he said.
