Which lenders offer discounted finance to buy electric vehicles?

For anyone looking to purchase an electric vehicle as their next car, there are not only an increasing number of models entering the market, but also options for financing.

At least half of all Australian car buyers already finance the purchase of a car with a loan.

Several banks and lenders are offering competitive and discounted rates on loans to help purchase electric vehicles to people who don’t have the necessary upfront capital to afford one.

Electric vehicles are increasingly seen by financial lenders as a strategic and profitable opportunity which aligns with consumer demand, environmental goals, and the potential long-term growth in the EV market.

Banks know that incentives like cheaper loans can attract environmentally conscious customers and position them as forward-thinking.

And as EV technology continues to improve, and electric vehicles are manufactured with longer ranges, making them even more attractive, any perceived risks associated with EV loans will be reduced for the lender.

Here are some of the lenders currently offering discounted loans for EVs:

Bank of Australia

The LEV Car Loan for low emissions vehicles such as hybrids or fully electric vehicles offers alower fixed interest rate of 6.95% for loans up to 7 years. Cars can be brand new or up to 7 years old.

This compares with their loan rates for new internal combustion vehicles of 7.95% and 8.95% for used cars.

Bank of Australia also provides their LEV loan for internal combustion vehicles which produce less than 125 g/km tailpipe C02 according to the Green Vehicle Guide.

They also waive the $150 loan establishment fee for low emissions vehicle loans, and offset any carbon emissions the car makes over the loan period.

The Banks says these offsets are eligible under the National Carbon Offset Standard (NCOS) and are currently used to forward-purchase certified emissions reductions from a project in Victoria focused on the conservation and protection of endangered species including the Brush-tailed Phascogale.

CBA

The Commonwealth Bank offers a secured personal loan rate of 5.49% for fully electric and hybrid vehicles that emit less than 120g C0₂ emissions per kilometre, for up to 7 years. The bank considers these loans less of a risk because they are guaranteed by an asset, such as the car, so they offer a lower interest rate, and the bank uses this asset as security.

This rate is a 0.5% discount on their secured loans for other vehicles.

Westpac

Westpac advertises a loan rate of 7.49% to purchase electric and hybrid vehicles, for up to 7 years. The actual rate however could be between 5.49% and 12.49% depending on credit history.

This is a 0.5% discount on a standard personalised interest rate.

The car can be new or used, a dealer car or a private sale, so long as it’s less than 7 years old.

Westpac charges $250 as a loan establishment fee and a monthly loan fee of $12.

As an extra incentive Westpac provides 1,250-kWh of charging to use up to 12 months across the Chargefox public charging network for anyone who currently takes out a loan for an EV. This roughly equates to about 7,000 km worth of free charging.

NRMA

The NRMA offers a 5.49% rate on loans for new or used fully electric vehicles, for up to 7 years. This amounts to a 1.5% discount on their standard car loan rates.

There is a $499 application fee for this loan, but no monthly account keeping fees.

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Bendigo Bank

Bendigo Bank offers Secured Green Personal Loans with a fixed interest rate of 4.99% to purchase electric vehicles, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, hybrid vehicles and ‘A’ rated vehicles which emit less than 110g of CO2 per kilometre.

They also charge an application fee of $150, a document preparation fee of $100, a security processing fee to lodge the car against a security which is dependent on application, along with a $5 monthly service fee.

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Macquarie Bank

Macquarie offers electric car loans for fully electric cars, not hybrids. New and demo vehicles are charged a variable interest rate of 6.74% and a fixed interest rate of 6.84%. Used cars are charged a variable interest rate of 7.44% and a 7.54% fixed interest rate.

Further discounts apply for people who already own property and can provide higher deposits.

Macquarie also has a loan establishment fee of $250 and a monthly administration fee of $8.25 a month.

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Clean Energy FinanceCorporation

The CEFC also offers discounts on electric and plug-in hybrid car loans through Taurus Motor Finance, Firstmac, and Plenti.

This has knocked 0.5% off Plenti’s secured car loan rate of 9.49%, bringing the interest rate down to 8.99% for loans of 3-7 years.

Plenti has no loan establishment or monthly fees.