HomeRACE for EVsAustralian Consumers at the heart of the EV transition

Australian Consumers at the heart of the EV transition

Purpose of project
Impact of project
Project partners
IRG members

Chief Investigators

Purpose of project

This project aims to explore the issues and challenges that will face all Australian consumers during the EV transition by understanding their lived experience.

Research will focus on all consumer behavioural aspects of EVs – including but not limited to purchase, charging, servicing, service use, battery management, energy management technologies, driving and use patterns, and energy consumption. In-person, qualitative ethnographic interviews with consumers will be conducted alongside quantitative survey research to go beyond existing consumer sentiment surveys to tell us not only the what, but also the how and why concerning EV consumer behaviours in Australia. Outputs, including research insights, policy recommendations, and support in the crafting of customer messaging will be co-designed with consumers and industry to put end users at the heart of the process.

Impact of project

By providing critical consumer insights and recommendations for effective policies, behaviour change strategies, and technologies to support uptake and use of EVs the project focuses on reducing energy costs for Australian homes and or businesses and reducing Australia’s carbon emissions.

The project will also help enhance energy reliability and affordability by providing insights to networks, and infrastructure planners and managers regarding anticipated consumer demand and patterns of behaviour for EVs. The research will build on the increasing body of evidence from customer surveys and EV charging trials to identify customer priorities, values, and EV charging behaviours/preferences beyond early adopters. This will help electricity networks forecast EV uptake, charging behaviours and whether they may adopt and how they may use new technology such as V2G/V2H (drivers, motivations etc).

Finally, the project will help protect and improve equity and inclusivity for energy customers through generating consumer insights that can ensure that policy, practice, and behaviour change strategies are better oriented towards supporting and serving all Australian consumers during the transition towards EVs and to ensure that nobody gets left behind.