High-mileage electric vehicles are more likely to pass MOT tests than petrol cars of the same age, according to an analysis of 47.4 million tests. The findings challenge the assumption that high mileage automatically indicates an electric car is worn out, and could increase confidence in the growing secondhand EV market.

Between 90,000 and 120,000 miles, 16.5% of EVs failed their MOT, compared with 22.1% of petrol cars; beyond 120,000 miles, failure rates were 16% and 23.5% respectively. EVs had more tyre defects, while older low-mileage models had more brake problems, and MOTs do not assess battery health, degradation or charging performance, which buyers must check separately.