Car dealers do not want innovation bonus only upon registration

Electric cars are more popular than ever. This is not only because they guarantee comfortable and sporty driving pleasure. On top of that, the government is promoting the environmentally friendly alternative to combustion engines with various instruments. In addition to extensive tax benefits, for example, the so-called “innovation premium” ensures that almost everyone can now afford a car with an electric motor. However, the buyer still has to pay in advance. Car sellers are now demanding that the bonus be paid out as soon as the order is placed.

Long waiting times dampen joy of car buying

Planning to buy or lease a new car? If you are interested in a combustion engine with a diesel or gasoline engine, you can certainly get into your new vehicle shortly after the purchase. The situation is different, however, if you are interested in an electric car or a plug-in hybrid. Since these modern drive technologies are in extremely high demand and the rampant chip shortage is still having a serious impact, long waiting times are inevitable here. It is not uncommon to have to wait a year or even a year and a half for your new car after ordering it.

This frustrates not only potential buyers, but of course also the associated dealers. Despite high demand, they are unable to sell any cars. If the automotive industry has its way, new incentives will have to be created to encourage potential buyers to buy new cars and put up with the waiting times. One idea is that the so-called innovation premium should be paid out now. Otherwise, those ordering cars with electric motors or plug-in hybrids face the loss of government support.

Will the purchase premium be dropped next year?

Customers are unsettled for several reasons. On the one hand, there is the understandable question of whether far more modern electric vehicles will not already be presented or even come onto the market within the long waiting periods. Much more important than this question, however, is that of the security of the innovation premium. The government support, which currently extends to a level of 9,000 euros (e-car) or 4,500 euros (plug-in hybrid), is in fact to be modified in 2023. What this means in detail is still uncertain at present. It is precisely this uncertainty that is currently keeping customers from buying such a car.

Since the premium cannot be applied for when the vehicle is ordered, but only when it is registered, the worst-case scenario is that the entire innovation premium is forfeited. The supposed bargain that many electric cars currently represent would then become an expensive pleasure. It is therefore hardly surprising that the German Association of Motor Trades and Repairs (ZDK) is now calling for a swift remodeling of the innovation premium. This would have to be distributed already with the purchase, so that for the buyer incentives are created.

Looking into the crystal ball

A recent survey of car dealerships revealed that the planned “rethinking” of the innovation premium would have a negative impact on the buying behavior of interested customers. The ZDK asked how potential buyers of electric cars behaved at the beginning of the year. According to statements from the sales outlets surveyed, around 50 percent of potential buyers had decided against making a purchase. The uncertainty is too great as to what the price of the vehicle will be after a year’s wait, when the innovation premium may be eliminated.

Thomas Peckruhn, vice president of the ZDK said in this regard:

“Neither the dealers nor the customers are currently in a position to calculate a correct vehicle price, because it is not certain what subsidy can then be expected”

Tremble must probably especially all those who are thinking about the purchase of a plug-in hybrid. After all, these are environmentalists for some time a thorn in the eye. After all, many owners of the station wagon solution neglect the option of using the vehicle’s electric motor. Instead, they benefit from government support and drive the car as if it were a classic “gasoline-powered” vehicle. A discontinuation of the subsidy for these vehicle types could therefore be quite conceivable.