What the 2026 Europ Assistance study really says
Every year, Europ Assistance surveys nearly 1,500 Belgians about their mobility habits. The 2026 edition, carried out in January, confirms a trend that has been building over several editions: the share of Belgians ready to switch to 100% electric is no longer growing. It is stagnating, or even falling slightly.
- 38% of Belgians are considering an electric car as their next vehicle
- 62% prefer to stick with a combustion engine or a hybrid
- 77% find the purchase price too high, the main obstacle
- Only 19% think 100% electric will be a reality by 2035
Perhaps even more telling: 22% of respondents believe the transition to all-electric will never happen. And among those who are interested anyway, 71% consider the cost of installing a home charger a significant burden, and 38% of them even an insurmountable one.
Overall, sustainable mobility has been losing appeal for the fifth year in a row, according to the barometer. In 2019, 77% of Belgians said it was important to them to travel in an environmentally friendly way. In 2026, that figure has dropped to 63%. This is not a temporary dip: it is a structural trend.
The real obstacles: not always the ones you think
When Belgians are asked why they hesitate to switch to electric, the answers have often been the same for years. But something changed in 2026: some obstacles that seemed to be fading are actually growing.
Price, still in first place and holding firm
77% of respondents find electric cars too expensive. That figure was 62% in 2019 and 71% just two years ago. In other words, even with the price cuts seen on several electric models, the perception that electric is expensive is not receding, it is rising. This is partly down to the general context: inflation, the rising cost of living and the removal in 2024 of tax reductions on home chargers have strengthened the feeling that electric remains a luxury for those who can afford it.
Charging points: a real improvement, but perception lags behind
Here the paradox is striking. In August 2025, Belgium passed the milestone of 100,000 publicly accessible charging points, which puts it among the densest countries in Europe in terms of infrastructure. And yet 41% of respondents still cite the lack of charging points as their main obstacle, up two points on the previous year.
How can this gap be explained? Electric car owners report 95% satisfaction with charger availability. But those who don't have one yet rely on their impressions, on anecdotes, or on experiences that are a few years old. It is a communication problem, not an infrastructure problem.
💡 Wallonia currently has 2,782 public chargers, or 13.6% of the total Belgian network. Outside the cities, charging anxiety remains a real issue for drivers in the rural areas of Walloon Brabant, even though it is objectively much lower than three years ago.
The used battery question: a major and underestimated obstacle
One figure deserves attention, because it is rarely discussed: 71% of Belgians refuse to buy a used electric car. The main reason is distrust of battery condition. And honestly, that fear is not entirely irrational. Without a serious technical diagnosis, buying a used electric car is a bit like buying a smartphone without knowing the health of its battery. Yet most private sellers do not offer this kind of expertise.
The Belgian paradox: those who have one love it, the others won't hear of it
This is probably the most interesting finding of the barometer. In Belgium there is an almost unbridgeable gap between two groups.
Those who already drive electric
87% say they are satisfied or very satisfied with their driving experience.
87% say their next vehicle will also be electric.
70% of plug-in hybrid drivers want to switch to 100% electric next time.
Those who have never tried it
71% of combustion-engine drivers remain resistant to going electric.
More than half of Belgians have never set foot in an electric car.
More than half find electric vehicles too unfamiliar to make a decision.
This divide says a lot. The problem is not the experience of driving electric, it is the fear of the unknown before trying it. Once people drive electric, they generally don't go back.
“The electric technology is not the issue. Current owners are overwhelmingly satisfied. It is the barrier to entry, financial, psychological and practical, that holds back the undecided.” Summary of feedback from Belgian drivers, Europ Assistance 2026 barometer
The geographical divide: Walloon Brabant in the most reluctant part
The data show a clear geographical divide in Belgium. Walloons are almost three times more likely than Flemings to cite the charging point problem. 43% of French speakers say the nearest charger is more than 10 km from their home, compared with 14% in Flanders. And peri-urban and rural areas, such as a large part of Walloon Brabant, are home to the drivers most attached to combustion-engine cars, often for lack of a credible alternative for their daily use.
This is not a value judgement: it is a geographical reality. Driving 60 km a day to get to Brussels from Wavre, Gembloux or Rixensart, with children to take to school and shopping to do at the weekend, is not managed the same way as a daily tram ride in a big city.
The gap between the fleet market and the private market
There is a Belgian contradiction that many find hard to reconcile. On the one hand, Belgium is in Europe's top 3 most electrified countries, and in 2025 one in three new cars sold is electric. On the other, private buyers remain overwhelmingly reluctant.
How can this divergence be explained? The answer comes down to one word: tax. Electric company cars are 100% tax-deductible until the end of 2026, and their benefit in kind remains well below that of a combustion-engine equivalent. So it is companies, the self-employed and lease users who are pulling the electric market upwards, not private buyers spending their own budget.
| Profile | The reality of buying electric |
|---|---|
| Company car / business lease | 100% deductible until the end of 2026, reduced BIK: electric is often cheaper than combustion overall |
| Private buyer with private parking | Home charger possible (~€1,400), overnight charging at €0.20 to €0.30/kWh: economical over time if the purchase budget allows |
| Private buyer in a flat or without parking | Dependent on public chargers (€0.45 to €0.59/kWh), complicated logistics: a major obstacle that won't go away any time soon |
| High-mileage driver, Walloon Brabant / Wallonia | Infrastructure still insufficient away from main routes, charging anxiety on long journeys |
For a private buyer with no tax advantage, no private parking and who drives in less well-served areas, electric is objectively less attractive today than a good hybrid or a recent petrol car. That is not resistance to change, it is arithmetic.
So, electric or not for your next purchase?
It's the question our customers at Le Garage Privé ask us more and more often. And our answer is always the same: it depends entirely on your personal situation, not on statistics or political speeches.
If you have a parking space or a garage, drive less than 300 km per journey, have a budget above €25,000, and your daily journeys are regular and predictable, then electric is really worth considering. The cost per kilometre is lower, maintenance is reduced, and the driving is often a real revelation for those who have never tried it.
On the other hand, if you live in a rural part of Walloon Brabant, regularly make long unplanned journeys, live in a flat, or have a tight budget, then a well-chosen hybrid or a recent petrol car often remains the best compromise for the next two or three years. That is not an admission of failure: it is pragmatism.
⚠️ The mistake to avoid: not anticipating Belgium's low emission zones (LEZ). In 2026, Euro 5 diesels are banned in Brussels. Other cities will follow. If you are thinking of buying a used car today to keep for 5 to 7 years, LEZ compliance must be part of your calculation, whether it is electric, hybrid or petrol.
FAQ
Tax incentives mainly exist for professionals and company cars, not for private buyers. For a household buying on its own budget, the purchase price often remains prohibitive (77% cite it as an obstacle), and direct purchase subsidies for private buyers are very limited. On top of that come concrete concerns about charging points outside urban areas and about the batteries of used vehicles.
There is no universal answer. For a private buyer with parking, short and regular journeys and a sufficient budget, electric can be the best choice over time. For someone who makes long, unpredictable journeys, lives in a flat, or lives in a poorly served rural area, a hybrid or a recent petrol car is often better suited today. What matters is your actual use, not market trends.
Partly, yes. A degraded battery can significantly reduce real-world range compared with the advertised figures, and replacing a battery is expensive. But the risk is manageable: a battery state of health (SoH) diagnosis carried out by a professional before purchase precisely quantifies the degradation, so the price can be adjusted accordingly. This is what Le Garage Privé does as part of its inspection of every used electric car.
Often, yes. A non-plug-in hybrid (such as the Toyota Yaris or Corolla) uses 30 to 40% less fuel than an equivalent petrol car in urban driving, needs no charger, and is maintained almost like a combustion-engine car. A plug-in hybrid makes sense if you drive less than 50 km a day and can charge at home, but its tax advantage for companies is gradually disappearing. For mixed private use in Walloon Brabant, it is often the best compromise right now.