BERLIN (dpa-AFX) - Drivers of electric cars cause fewer accidents, but the repair of their vehicles is significantly more expensive. "On average, they are 30 to 35 percent more expensive than comparable cars with combustion engines," Jorg Asmussen, chief executive of the German Insurance Association (GDV), said Thursday. The basis of the statement is a comparison of 37 model pairs of electric car and comparable combustion engine by the GDV.

Christoph Lauterwasser, managing director of the Allianz Center for Technology, attributes the higher repair costs to several causes: Damage to batteries, for example, is expensive. In addition, there is uncertainty in the handling of damaged electric cars, which is why they are sometimes stored in quarantine for long periods or become total losses due to precautionary measures such as immersion baths in losch containers. In addition, there are long downtimes and high hourly rates in the workshops.

"We have more than 125 years of experience with internal combustion vehicles, but only about ten years with modern electric vehicles," says Lauterwasser. Heinz Gressel of GDV is therefore calling on manufacturers to provide good diagnostic data for workshops and appraisers, sustainable instructions for repairing and partially replacing damaged batteries, and precise criteria on how to deal with accident cars. In addition, batteries should be protected as much as possible from accident damage as early as the vehicle design stage.

However, at least some of the higher repair costs are offset by the significantly lower claims frequency of electric cars in the comprehensive insurance segment - i.e., in the case of self-inflicted damage to one's own car. According to the study, this is 15 to 20 percent lower than for comparable internal combustion vehicles.

In the area of liability insurance, electric car drivers caused 5 to 10 percent less damage to other cars, according to the study. On average, however, these were 0 to 5 percent more expensive than for internal combustion vehicles. Possible causes here are the higher weight and stiff bodies of electric cars.

Nevertheless, electric cars are often less expensive to insure than combustion engines. This is shown by a look at the type classes of the 37 car pairs examined. Higher type classes generally also mean a higher premium - provided there are no other differences.

In liability, the electric car had the lower and therefore cheaper class in 21 pairs. In twelve, the combustion engine was cheaper. In comprehensive insurance, the type class of the electric car was more favorable for 17 couples, while the combustion engine was in the better class for eleven. For the others, the type classes were at the same level.

The differences were partly large: In the case of fully comprehensive insurance, there is a difference of up to seven classes, and in the case of third-party liability, up to six classes between the electric car and the respective comparison vehicle. This can have a significant impact on the premium, but how much depends on other factors such as the individual no-claims bonus or the provider./ruc/DP/zb