From warranty issues to tips on legislation - we show you what you need to bear in mind when buying an electric car.
Opting for an electric or hybrid vehicle is an important contribution to climate protection. However, as the topic is still relatively new, a number of questions arise, such as: Are there any special regulations? Are there (tax) concessions? What needs to be considered? To answer these questions, we provide you with the most important information on warranties, legal requirements for parking and charging in cities and municipalities, tips on tax benefits and more.
The so-called Electric Mobility Act, or EmoG for short, offers important incentives to opt for the purchase of an electrically powered car by granting electric and hybrid vehicles various privileges in road traffic.
The aims behind this:
The law grants these privileges to drivers of e-cars:
The EmoG is an important step by the German government to establish e-vehicles on German roads. More than 100 cities and municipalities are currently making use of these legal options.
However, local authorities and cities decide individually which privileges are implemented and how . This is because the law does not prescribe the special treatment of electric vehicles, but merely creates the basis for it. For this reason, electric drivers should obtain information in advance from their local authority or city council and on the internet.
Important: Only cars with an "e-license plate" can benefit from these privileges. You can find out exactly what this means below.
The additional "e-car" plate has also been introduced. This can often be found at charging stations. If a parking space equipped with a charging facility has this sign, you can even park there without refueling your electric car at the same time.
How do you recognize an electric car? Right, by the "E" at the end of the license plate, directly after the number combination. This marking is reserved exclusively for owners of electric vehicles, fuel cell cars and plug-in hybrids. You will look in vain for the "E" on other hybrid variants. The e-license plate is available on application at the registration office.
Prerequisite for an e-license plate:
The "E" was only introduced when the Electric Mobility Act came into force in 2015. This means that older electric vehicles often do not have a corresponding license plate. The purpose of the whole thing was to enable e-car drivers to benefit from the privileges of the EmoG. With the emphasis on "enable", because there is no obligation for electric car owners to apply for a license plate, nor is there an obligation to change the license plate for electric cars that were already registered before the special license plate was introduced.
Please note:
Cars registered in Germany whose license plates have an "E" on them still require the green particulate matter sticker (environmental sticker).
Electric cars registered abroad can apply for a blue sticker from a registration authority in order to benefit from the same privileges as cars with an E license plate.
Vehicle tax must be paid for all cars registered in Germany. The good news first: all-electric cars registered by December 31, 2025 are exempt from vehicle tax until the end of 2030. The tax exemption does not apply to plug-in hybrids, but here too you have to pay significantly less vehicle tax than for a pure petrol engine, for example.
The amount of tax for electric vehicles depends on the permissible total weight. For hybrid vehicles, the size of the cubic capacity (cm³) and the CO 2 emissions are decisive. When the vehicle is registered, the registration authority issues a corresponding tax assessment notice.
Buying an e-car is worthwhile:
Electric vehicles registered by 31.12.2020 do not have to pay vehicle tax for ten years.
Electric cars registered by 31.12.2025 are also exempt from vehicle tax, but only until the end of 2030 at the latest. The same applies to vehicles that have been retrofitted with an electric drive.
From 2031, the basis for calculating vehicle tax will be the gross vehicle weight. Depending on the weight class, a fixed annual amount must be paid per 200 kg.
But beware: the tax exemption does not apply to hybrid vehicles!
Even if hybrid vehicles are not exempt from vehicle tax, e-drivers still benefit from a lower tax rate than with a pure petrol or diesel vehicle. The reason for this is the car's lower CO2 emissions.
As with pure petrol and diesel vehicles, the basis for assessment is the size of the engine capacity in cm³ and the CO 2 emissions. However, there is an exemption limit of 95 grams for the CO2 value. Every gram above this is included in the calculation of the vehicle tax.
The calculation is as follows:
For petrol vehicles: €2 per 100 cm³ cubic capacity or part thereof + €2 per gram of CO2 above the exemption limit.
For diesel vehicles: €9.50 per 100 cm³ cubic capacity or part thereof + €2 per gram of CO2 above the exemption limit.
An example:
We compare the amount of vehicle tax on a pure diesel E-Class with the amount of tax on a diesel E-Class hybrid vehicle.
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The E 300 d 4MATIC Estate , for example, a diesel vehicle from Mercedes, has an engine capacity of 1, 993 cm³ and CO2 emissions of 155 g/km, which is 60 grams above the exemption limit. The calculation is therefore Displacement: 20 x €9.50
CO2 emissions: + 60 x 2.00 €
Vehicle tax = 310 €
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The E 300 de 4MATIC Estate, a plug-in hybrid, also runs on diesel. This has a displacement of 1,950 cm³ and CO2 emissions of just 37 g/km, which is below the exemption limit. So the calculation is: Displacement:20 x 9,50 €
CO2 emissions: -
Vehicle tax = 190 €
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The savings here therefore amount to €120 per year.
Being able to use the company car provided for private use is a great thing. And if it's an electric car, you're also doing something good for the environment - a win-win situation on all levels!
But be careful: The private use of a company vehicle is considered a non-cash benefit and must be taxed accordingly on a monthly basis. This means that the monthly gross salary is increased by this non-cash benefit.
However - and this also speaks in favor of e-vehicles - the taxable non-cash benefit for electric and hybrid cars is significantly lower than for pure gasoline and diesel vehicles.
The more charging cycles the battery allows, the slower it ages. Manufacturers generally give a guarantee of eight to ten years or 100,000-160,000 km on the battery. This means that the capacity of the battery will not fall below 75% of the initial value within this period.
Below we show the amount by which the monthly gross salary increases with an (electric) company car:
Basis of assessment (BMG) for a classic car (diesel or petrol):
100% of the gross list price (BLP)
BMG for an electric car:
25% of the BLP for a BLP up to €60,000 (purchase before January 1, 2024) or €70,000 (purchase after December 31, 2023)
50% of the BLP for a BLP over €60,000 or over €70,000
BMG for a plug-in hybrid vehicle:
50% of the BLP, provided that
In each case, 1% of this BMG must be taxed as a non-cash benefit.
The decisive factor here is always the date of purchase - regardless of whether it is a new or used car.
Travel between home and work is also part of the calculation of the non-cash benefit.
In general, the following calculation applies to all vehicle types:
(0.03% of the BMG) x (distance between home and work in km)
This means: Thanks to the reduced assessment basis (1/4 or 1/2) for electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles, you can also save good money on mileage tax!
Assuming the BLP of an electric company car is €38,990.00 and the distance to the workplace is 20 km:
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Example calculation electric car Gross list price: € 38,990.00
Rounded down to the nearest €100: €38 ,900.00
BMG: 25% of the BLP: € 9,725.00
Monetary benefit 1% of the BMG = € 97.25
Private use:
Monetary benefit 0.03 % of the BMG for 20 km
Journeys home = 2.9175 €/km x 20 km
Place of work: = 58.35 €
Total: 97.25 € + 58.35 € = 155.60 €
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Rounded down to the nearest €100: €38 ,900.00
BMG: 25% of the BLP: € 38,900.00
Monetary benefit 1% of the base vehicle price = € 389.00
Private use:
Monetary benefit 0.03 % of the BLP for 20 km
Journeys home = 11.67 €/km x 20 km
Place of work: = 233.40 €
Total: 389.00 € + 233.40 € = 622.40 €
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Whereas in our example, € 622.40 per month must be taxed in addition to the gross salary for a conventional car, the gross salary for a purely electric vehicle only increases by € 155.60 per month.
The battery is the heart of an electric car. Range, efficiency and performance - everything stands and falls with a good battery. However, a lack of confidence in the reliability of the battery is often still a reason to buy a petrol or diesel car instead of an electric car. But that doesn't have to be the case!
Manufacturers such as VW, BMW, Peugeot, Hyundai, Jaguar, Audi, Mercedes, Nissan and Opel guarantee the battery when you buy an electric car:
Only a few brands deviate from these guarantees. Car manufacturer KIA, for example, guarantees a service life of at least 84 months and a minimum mileage of 150,000 km with a remaining storage capacity of at least 65 percent. Tesla, on the other hand, even promises a range of at least 240,000 kilometers for its Model S.