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Do electric car batteries lose charge if not used for a period of time?

I live in the London suburbs and drive 5000 miles per year (mostly in London with most return journeys no longer than 130 miles) so I am thinking about an electric car when I replace my current car. My question is about whether the car batteries will lose charge over time if I leave my car in an airport car park for two weeks while I am on holiday. Could this potentially leave me with not enough charge to get home?

Asked on 22 October 2019 by Mark Bullock

Answered by Andrew Brady
Yes - it's known as 'vampire drain' in EV circles. The amount of charge that'll be lost depends on the vehicle but I wouldn't have thought it'd be a considerable amount over two weeks. I wouldn't expect an electric car to lose more than one per cent of battery capacity per day when parked up.

If you cover no more than 100 miles per day and have easy access to a charging point at home or work, then an EV is ideal for you.

Is an electric car right for me?
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