Electric cars involved in more accidents than regular cars

Over the past five years, the number of fire and explosion accidents per 10,000 electric vehicles has significantly increased in just one year. The damage caused by these accidents has also been much greater for electric vehicles than non-electric vehicles. According to the Korea Insurance Development Institute on Sunday, from 2019 to 2023, there were 53 accidents involving electric vehicles where damage was covered due to fire or explosion, translating to 0.93 accidents per 10,000 electric vehicles.

In comparison, from 2018 to 2022, there were 29 such accidents, or 0.78 per 10,000 electric vehicles. This represents an increase in accident frequency by 0.15 per 10,000 vehicles over the past year.

The fire and explosion accident rates were found to be similar for both electric and non-electric vehicles. From 2019 to 2023, there were 6,256 fire and explosion accidents involving non-electric vehicles, with an accident rate of 0.90 per 10,000 vehicles. However, the damage caused by these accidents was significantly higher for electric vehicles. Over the five years ending last year, the average damage per fire or explosion accident for electric vehicles was 13.14 million won, 1.9 times higher than the 6.93 million won for non-electric vehicles. The Korea Insurance Development Institute explained that this disparity is due to the high cost of electric vehicle parts, such as high-voltage batteries, electronic control devices, and sensors, as well as the longer average repair period.

The overall accident frequency, including fire and explosion incidents, was about 25% higher for electric vehicles than non-electric vehicles. The total number of accidents involving self-insured electric vehicles was 62,266, equating to 1,096 accidents per 10,000 electric vehicles. In contrast, during the same period, non-electric vehicles experienced 6,142,573 accidents covered by private car insurance, with a rate of approximately 880 accidents per 10,000 vehicles. The average damage per accident was 2.96 million won for electric vehicles, 66% higher than 1.78 million won for non-electric vehicles.

According to the Korea Insurance Development Institute, the higher accident rate of electric vehicles compared to non-electric vehicles can be attributed to several factors. "Electric vehicles typically have longer average driving distances due to their favorable fuel efficiency, which increases their exposure to accident risks," the institute noted. Additionally, they analyzed that "the rapid acceleration capability inherent to electric vehicles also appears to contribute to the higher accident rate."


Joo-Young Jeon aimhigh@donga.com