The UK Government has confirmed it will adopt Euro 7 regulations for new road vehicles in Great Britain, introducing mandatory battery health and durability requirements for electric vehicles and plug in hybrids for the first time. Under the new rules, electric cars must retain at least eighty percent of their original usable battery capacity after five years or 100,000 kilometres, equivalent to around 62,000 miles, and at least seventy two percent after eight years or 160,000 kilometres.
For electric vans, the durability benchmarks require seventy five percent capacity retention after five years and sixty seven percent after eight years. The legislation will come into force from 29 November 2027, with small volume manufacturers given until July 2030 to comply.
The introduction of common standards aligns British vehicle rules with the international Global Technical Regulation 22 framework, establishing a single reliable benchmark across manufacturers and model ranges. Industry leaders and leasing bodies have welcomed the move, noting that requiring onboard battery health data to be easily accessible through dashboards and diagnostic ports gives the second hand vehicle market the transparency it needs.
Independent battery certification, such as that provided by our partners, AVILOO, removes the guesswork for used car and van buyers, helping dealers, remarketers, and prospective owners compare vehicles on equal terms and trade pre owned electric vehicles with lasting confidence.
The EV Cafe Crew take:
John Curtis: Welcomed the clarity that mandatory battery durability brings, observing that many everyday drivers will be surprised to learn batteries are legally mandated to retain 80% capacity after five years or 100,000 kilometres, directly debunking myths that EV batteries fail after three years.
Sara Sloman: Praised the stricter standards for levelling the playing field, noting that making Euro 7 so demanding for diesel engines will force commercial fleets and manufacturers to look seriously at heavy electric trucks as viable alternatives.
Paul Kirby: Expressed disappointment that commercial vans were granted a lower five-year retention benchmark of 75% and an eight-year rate of 67%, pointing out that 67% sits below the 70% to 80% warranty levels already offered by reputable manufacturers.
Sam Clarke: Warned of a potential future "Batterygate," raising concerns that without rigorous independent oversight, vehicle manufacturers could easily manipulate software buffers and definitions of usable versus gross capacity to artificially meet compliance thresholds.