New scrappage scheme will offer €5k for cars over 13 years old if owners go electric

DRIVERS WILL BE offered €5,000 scrappage grant if they get rid of a vehicle over 13 years old and get an electric vehicle.

The new €10 million pilot EV scrappage scheme aims to encourage drivers to make the switch to electric vehicles.

It will open for applications from 1 July. 

Transport and Climate Minister Darragh O’Brien will bring his plans to cabinet today which will apply the incentive to drivers to dispose of diesel and petrol engine vehicles. 

The €5,000 grant is in addition to the existing €3,500 EV purchase grant, which drivers can already avail of. It will only be available on fully electric vehicles and does not apply to second-hand cars.

The new scheme brings the total support for people switching to an electric vehicle up to €8,500 per vehicle.

The government is ringfencing 65% of the funding, or €6.5 million, for people outside of Dublin, Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford to target those living in areas with fewer public transport options.

The remaining 35% or €3.5 million will be allocated to applicants within Dublin, Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford.

Speaking to reporters outside Government Buildings this afternoon, Minister O’Brien said he does not expect to see car dealers inflate their prices as a result of this scheme. 

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He said he has been given assurances from the industry via the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) that prices will not be inflated.

He stressed that the scheme is a pilot and will be closely monitored, with approximately 2,000 vehicles targeted initially. 

Speaking to The Journal about the idea for a new scrappage scheme last year, O’Brien conceded that the government won’t hit a target to get one million electric vehicles on the road by 2030.

The target was first set in 2019, but since then, it has been revised downward and essentially dropped.

At the time, O’Brien confirmed he was exploring the potential around establishing a scrappage scheme for electric vehicles, which had never existed before in Ireland.

Last week, Ireland’s Just Transition Commission, which is charged with monitoring the fairness of climate action in the state, advised the government to create more targeted supports for electric vehicles and charging.

The Commission’s recommendations included prioritising supports for low-income, high-mileage and car-dependent households.

With reporting from Jane Matthews

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