Insights

Battery certificates and state of health (SOH) checks are at the forefront of a growing used electric vehicle (EV) market. How will they help answer the big used-EV questions from retailers and buyers? Tom Hooker, Autovista24 journalist, investigates the subject. For the modern used-car buyer, it has become commonplace to access a plethora of information about any model online. This research can be done through portals or directly from retailers. Yet, the sector is in the midst of a big shift. As battery-electric vehicle (BEV) and plug-in hybrid (PHEV) registrations increase across new-car markets, the supply of used EVs rises. This presents a new challenge for retailers. They need to convince consumers to buy EVs, while also learning how to accurately price them and make profits. Battery SOH checks could be a solution to this challenge. They can provide customers with peace of mind while revealing a car’s history, value, and selling potential to retailers. ‘EVs are not degrading the same way as petrol or diesel vehicles. Mileage is not sufficient to have a clear view of the current health of an EV. That means for the exact same mileage, you can buy two EVs with a very different fate,’ BIB batteries CEO Pierre-Amans Lapeyre told Autovista24. ‘Knowing the SOH, you can have the history, the current value and the future. It gives you what should be the real residual value of the vehicle. I would much rather have the SOH of an EV than know its mileage, because from what we have seen on the market, two vehicles with the exact same SOH could have a completely different mileage,’ he added. Fostering used-EV uncertainty ‘Nowadays, you can advertise a car with photographs, with descriptions, and with diagnostics. Everybody can do that. So, I think as an industry we have solved the problem fairly well with the technology available,’ outlined Roland Gagel, CARA board member at the Used Vehicle Retail Summit. Roland Gagel, CARA board member ‘We see that this market is very rational, buyers are looking for transparent offers and want to see pictures and descriptions,’ he added. Gagel then explained that BEVs are a different prospect, with the most important aspect of the car being the battery. He highlighted that current advertisements of used EVs are not clear enough and can foster uncertainty among potential buyers. Late entrants to the EV space could be particularly impacted. Convincing late adopters Gagel explained that when buying or selling a three-year-old petrol or diesel car at 70,000km, you can assume it has a well-maintained engine. This means you can easily drive the car for ten more years. However, the buyer confidence around longevity is very different for electric devices. Mobile phones are one such example. ‘We are not talking about the early adopters, the people who already wanted to have an EV five years ago,’ said Gagel. ‘We are talking about the people who now start to think about it and will maybe finally be convinced. They know that after four or five years, their mobile phone is dead, and the battery is not okay. So, what does that mean for my three or four-year-old EV? ‘I am maybe going to want to resell it after eight or nine years and want to buy another one. So, we have this problem, which is very often the range, because in the end, that is what the driver feels.’ There are tools available to help drivers understand more about the lifespan and health of their EV. Most models now show average energy consumption on their infotainment screen. This can be divided by the total energy storage of the battery, which provides the real, approximate range of the vehicle. So, customers can be provided with a wealth of information on the condition of a used EV. However, how this information is used and shared by the retailer makes all the difference. Limited certificate usage Gagel showed an example of an online used-car portal from a remarketing company. Here, the price of a BEV was marked down by €2,000 without any information on why the model’s price had been reduced. Additionally, Gagel searched the mobile.de website for a popular German BEV. With certain parameters selected, he got 160 results. Out of this, 50 had a battery SOH certificate. However, in most cases, the actual SOH value could not be found in the description. ‘Imagine you sell a car without mileage, and the buyer calls the dealer to know the mileage. What do you do with such an advertiser? Just skip it and go to the next,’ he commented. Gagel then went on to show the carmaker’s own website for its used cars. He selected two of their BEV models, which gave him 2,600 search results. However, only 40 of these models had a battery certificate shown on the portal. Lapeyre also noted the lack of SOH certificates on online adverts. ‘There are a lot of studies about the fear of individuals buying EVs, they do not trust the lifespan of the battery. I would say around 50% of dealers today put SOH on their vehicle adverts. You will not sell your EV if you do not have this information,’ he stated. Regulatory impacts The introduction of new regulations could also help improve the clarity between used EV sellers and potential customers. SOH checks would be a pivotal technology in achieving this clarity. For example, the upcoming Euro 7 regulations state that passenger cars must retain at least 80% of their original battery capacity after 5 years or 100,000 km, whichever comes first. Then, after 8 years or 160,000 km, the battery capacity must be at least 72%. Furthermore, the regulation states that EVs must have SOH monitors onboard. Data from these monitors must be displayed to users, retrievable from diagnostics, and included in the vehicle's Environmental Vehicle Passport. ‘The regulation that comes with Euro 7 and the battery passport will foster the transparency of the SOH. The regulation will start in 2027, so in the used-car sector, you will see it from 2028 with the first short-term rentals,’ noted Gagel. ‘But I think the real effect will come in 2029 and 2030. So, we have five years to go to sell used cars without the battery pass and Euro 7,’ he added. Increasing consumer transparency ‘There is an unsourced fear about the end of warranty for EVs. When they end, people are freaked out, and it is not rational,’ said Lapeyre. According to a 2024 McKinsey & Company survey, 31% percent of prospective EV buyers say they are likely or very likely to consider a used EV for their next vehicle purchase. For those EV sceptics, 49% were concerned about unclear battery degradation. So, the industry cannot wait another five years to start improving the used EV sales experience and calming EV concerns. ‘The key point for us is how to get this into a B2C sale and how to show the positive part of the batteries. How do we convey this message? How can we train the salespeople to sell this off to the consumer? That will be very important for the industry,’ said Gagel. ‘On the dealership side, I think they need to provide their clients with battery certificates. They need to train their salespeople so that they can show and express the value of an EV to their clients,’ commented Lapeyre. ‘What can you do as an industry? For me, it is very clear, used-car offers need to become more transparent. They are not transparent today,’ said Gagel. ‘In the end, if the buyers do not have clear information about the battery, they will assume there is a problem. The clearer we are and the more we are pushing in the direction of transparency, the more likely it will be that BEVs will recover from their residual values. ‘It is not just good to measure the vehicle, but we have to make sure it gets into the vehicle description, so the customer knows we have good cars to sell,’ concluded Gagel.

As electric vehicle (EV) battery market developments continue, focus is shifting to the beginning and end processes of the journey, and especially skills. Autovista24 special content editor, Phil Curry, reports from the recent Battery Cells and Systems Expo. Batteries are perhaps the most important component in an EV. The ability to store and release energy in an efficient manner is critical for driving range and vehicle performance. As the technology advances, the market expands. Seasoned suppliers and new startups battle for a share, aiming to launch the best products, services, and and supply chains. This was evident at the recent Battery Cells and Systems Expo, a two-day conference and exhibition held in Birmingham, UK. The event brought together manufacturers, suppliers, academics and users to discuss the growing battery market. Building on battery skills While the UK looks to build its battery supply chain, from materials processing to assembly in gigafactories, it needs a workforce dedicated to this task. Tom Spencer, director at beet Industrial Communications, commented that skills are becoming more important than ever in the battery industry. Around 75% of the supply chain is based in China. This has caused other markets to look at the technology as a sovereign infrastructure capability. ‘The question for the UK market, with gigafactories being built, is where to find staff,’ Spencer told the audience. Tony Harper, director at Tony Harper Consultancy Services, added that when initial funding was released to the automotive sector in 2017 to develop a battery industry in the UK, little was spent on skills. ‘As we approached the second phase of the build-up plans, it became increasingly clear that it was not tenable for us to support the growth of the industry and not support skills,’ he commented. ‘So we went to those building the gigafactories, and asked them what they needed. ‘They highlighted the fact that thousands and thousands of people would need to be found and trained in a variety of positions to support battery development, manufacturing, and supply.’ Different approaches Steve Doyle, CEO at EVERA Recruitment, broke down the number of people needed in different areas. He highlighted that the Faraday battery challenge, part of the UK research and innovation challenge fund, identified that 270,000 people will be employed by the EV and battery market by 2040. Of these, 90,000 will be in newly created jobs, and 30,000 of these will be in the gigafactory and supply chain markets. However, he added that the issues stem from finding the right people to place in these jobs. ‘If you want to recruit for a gigafactory, you cannot recruit from the gigafactory next door, because it does not exist yet,’ he told the audience. ‘You first have to break the manufacturing processes down. You have powder handling, slurries, deposition, coating, calendaring, slitting, electrolyte filling, welding, and so on. And people doing these jobs exist today. While academic institutes are doing a great job of training the next generation, we can recruit for today,’ he went on to say. Doyle offered additional examples of how existing roles are similar to the workflows needed in EV battery production, such as looking at the coating and deposition sector. ‘We even found that electrolyte filling processes could be linked to a company that was putting soy sauce into sachets,’ he added. Looking to China There is also the potential to recruit from China, which has a large number of gigafactories. ‘There are executives in China who understand the market, understand the talent, and speak good English. It is the same with scientists in the country. So let us get some of that knowledge by partnering with China and learn from them,’ Doyle added. Chinese gigafactories are also run more efficiently, giving the UK a potential insight into how it can develop a more streamlined and skilled workforce. This would fill the skills gap more quickly, whilst reducing costs. ‘Currently, a gigafactory in the western world operates with 100 heads per gigawatt hour. So a 40gWh factory will need 4,000 people. Of those, half will be operatives, 20% will be support staff, and 30% will be the engineers and the scientists,’ he continued. ‘In China, the very efficient gigafactories are now running at 25 heads per gigawatt hour. They also work a 72-hour week, something that is standard in the country. They have a quarter of the staff working twice as many hours. We will never be able to compete with that. ‘So, while we train up a UK workforce, let us assimilate those skills from China into the UK. This is about building a workforce today, bringing in talent, learning from that, and creating around it,’ stated Doyle. Recycling efforts While battery development remains in constant flux, attention is increasingly turning to end-of-life challenges as well. EV batteries will not last forever. Once their state of charge deteriorates below usefulness, they will need to be replaced. As a battery contains potentially toxic materials, it needs to be disposed of carefully. However, recycling key components not only reduces the environmental impact but could also improve sustainability and reduce raw material requirements. ‘The majority of EVs in the UK today are larger vehicles, such as SUVs. For this reason, the batteries they use will be bigger, and this gives more scope for materials recycling,’ Dr Diogo Vieira Carvahlo, innovation lead for batteries at the Battery Innovation programme, told the audience. ‘However, the overall UK trend is for smaller cars, so whether EVs will follow this path, requiring smaller batteries, remains to be seen.’ ‘The main cathode active material for recycling comes from manufacturing scrap at the moment. This trend is likely to continue into 2030. By this point, the UK needs to be able to handle 17kt of battery packs for recycling,’ he outlined. Carvalho emphasised the need for the UK to handle recycling of battery material itself. This, he added is essential if the country is to play an important part within the global battery market. ‘If the UK wants to have a strong supply of catalytic material in the UK, and become self-sufficient for that, then it will need to ensure that disposed batteries remain in the country, so it can transform some of that ‘black mass’ to this material type. But to ensure it can do this, timing is important,’ Carvahlo stated. Opportunities ahead Despite looking at certain materials that would be in high demand, Carvahlo highlighted that the recycling industry needs to cover the entire materials chain. ‘The UK also needs to be able to handle low-value material, which will come into the market very quickly. You may be interested in catalytic materials, but all other elements need to be worked in,’ he noted. ‘It is important not just to look at the battery cells as a big opportunity, but the packs, the modules, the casings and all of that other material that you need to build up.’ There is a need for the battery market to concentrate on certain materials, which can feed back into the manufacturing process. Limitations on these components will mean buying in raw materials and becoming reliant on a larger supply chain. ‘We need to have circular solutions for materials such as copper and aluminium, which are critical to the UK. We will have significant stock shortages of these materials for future EV applications and other electrification opportunities,’ explained Alexander Thompson, battery materials manager at EMR Group. ‘We need to recover these materials at a suitable grade to be able to go back into the original application, rather than downcycling.’ Supporting local demand Thompson went on to discuss the importance of onshoring, which has become a growing influence in the global political landscape in recent years. Europe has seen an increase in this practice, while the US is pushing for more onshoring, with the introduction of tariffs to bring companies back to the country. ‘In the UK, we need to make sure that we have materials to support that demand from existing gigafactories, but also new players wanting to come into that market,’ he said. ‘We also need to make sure we can cover the rest of the supply chain, sourcing materials from Europe. This is even more important with new directives coming in covering mandated recycled content targets.’ There is also a potential issue surrounding traceability, with a need to ensure that materials used are treated in an ethical manner. ‘We need to make sure that recycled materials are not going to parts of the world where material security will be jeopardised,’ commented Thompson. ‘Also, from an OEM liability perspective, it is important that when batteries do reach the end of their usable life, they are recycled responsibly. All safety aspects must be taken into consideration.’ Materials forecast The average lifespan of an EV can give an idea of the processes that need to be put in place to build up a resilient supply chain for materials. ‘The average electric vehicle will last for around 10 to 15 years. So we can see today what the battery feedstock will be like in 10 years, and this gives us high certainty on the materials available going forward. It also means we can see what we will need more of in the future,’ Thompson added. ‘But looking at the data today, even if we recycle 100% of that at 100% efficiency, we still do not meet the demand that will be coming. We would not be able to do a fully circular solution until 2040. So we need to work together to bridge that gap and understand how we can utilise recycled content and virgin content together,’ he concluded.

Europe’s used-car market is under pressure from numerous shifting dynamics. What will the situation be by the end of this year? A panel of Autovista Group experts outline what to expect with Autovista24 editor Tom Geggus in a new webinar. So far, 2025 has been defined by uncertainty amid geopolitical tensions, economic instability and trade troubles. This has put Europe’s used-car market under increasing pressure. How have these adverse factors influenced outlooks? Are residual values (RVs) still expected to decline towards the end of 2025? How is this impacting market dynamics and powertrains? What does this mean for new brands entering Europe? These questions were at the forefront of Autovista Group’s latest webinar. On the panel was Ana Azofra, regional head of valuations for Southwest Europe and Poland. She was joined by Dr Anne Lange, director of research and innovation. Completing the panel was Robert Madas, regional head of valuations for Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, as well as Central and Eastern Europe. https://youtu.be/rNEY6mK-bC8 Economic pressure Amid political and trade tensions, economic uncertainty has been rife so far this year. This has been reflected in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD’s) latest economic outlook. In June, the organisation’s expectations for worldwide GDP growth in 2025 fell to 2.9%, down from 3.3% expected in January. Outlooks also fell across the Euro area and the US, down to 1% and 1.6% respectively. Only China’s GDP outlook remained steady at 4.7%. However, inflation rates in the EU have fallen, down to 2.2% in May. While this appears promising, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) hit an all-time high in April, with a similar result in May. So, the same items have become more expensive, negatively impacting spending power. This harms buyers’ ability to make an automotive purchase, which is a larger financial decision. Businesses are also hesitant to invest because of this precarious position. ‘The trade conflicts massively impact the automotive industry,’ Lange explained. ‘There are investment decisions to be made by businesses, whether to, for example, ensure production plans. Supply chains are disrupted as well by geopolitical tensions.’ Meanwhile, manufacturers are still looking to meet emissions targets, even with the softening of regulations. Meanwhile, electric vehicles (EVs) are still undergoing rapid technological advancement. This requires enormous amounts of investment, putting profit margins under pressure. Understanding market dynamics So, how have RVs of three-year-old cars at 60,000km been performing in this uncertain landscape? ‘We can observe generally some market normalisation and stabilisation,’ highlighted Madas. ‘What is remarkable from our point of view is some positive developments.’ France, Germany and Austria have stood out, with RVs presented as a percentage of new-car list price becoming more stable. This followed declines at the end of 2024 and the beginning of 2025. Elsewhere, Spain and Switzerland have seen continued negative corrections. This has primarily been the result of list price increases. ‘We must not forget that RVs were greatly inflated in the years 2021 and 2022 in the wake of the supply crisis. So, what we have been observing the last two years has been more of a market normalisation.’ Overall, values remain relatively high compared to before COVID-19. A wide range of RV results are expected across Europe by the end of this year. Drops above 3% are forecast in Italy, Belgium, Poland, Switzerland, Norway and Hungary. Portugal. France, Romania, Germany, Slovenia and Croatia can expect declines of between 2% and 3%. Lower RV impacts are forecast in Spain, Finland and the Netherlands, with drops between 2% and 1%. Lastly, Austria and Sweden can expect to see smaller drops of under 1%. ‘The positive takeaway is that the most significant adjustments are anticipated over the coming months in the second half of 2025. Minor corrections are projected for 2026 and 2027, with some markets even returning to positivity,’ Azofra said. Pressure on powertrains and brands In 2024, battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) experienced negative trends across all used-car markets under observation. While the outlook for BEVs has improved slightly this year, the powertrain remains under pressure. There will be an increasing supply of used models registered in 2021 and 2022. OEMs are also under pressure to hit new-car CO2 targets, which increases the likelihood of discounting. In turn, this can impact RVs negatively. Meanwhile, full hybrids (HEVs) have enjoyed ongoing success on the new and used-car markets. In Spain and France, the powertrain’s value retention exceeds that of petrol, diesel, plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) and BEVs. However, the powertrain could be at a turning point, with used-car price adjustments anticipated across many markets. New HEV registrations have soared over the past five years, driving up the supply to the used market. Alongside this, new brands are offering increasingly competitive HEVs in Europe. The RV performance of these brands is dependent on market strategy and used-car demand. Chinese models are often traded at lower price points, although they are often capable of similar performances. A brand’s origin is no longer a key driver of used-car market performance. Enjoyed Residual value pressure, shifts in market dynamics, and EV momentum? Then sign up for Autovista Group’s next webinar: Cracking the code: Chinese EV brands in Europe. It will take place on 17 September 2025 at 09:30 BST / 10:30 CET. Register for your free place now.