Long and winding electric road to COP26

– AA to bust myths on electric vehicle rally of Scotland

– COP26 is time to change

– All drivers, petrol, diesel or electric can make a difference

– Petrol or diesel two-car family can save £700 pa by changing driver style

Now is the time to re-evaluate our driving habits, according to the AA president, who will be embarking on an EV tour of Scotland just before the COP26 summit.

The focus of the World will soon be on Glasgow when world leaders convene to discuss the climate crisis. However, the AA president said that all drivers can make a difference daily to their driving environmental footprint and save money.

All drivers can make a difference

Edmund King, AA president, said: “COP26, which the AA is proud to support, is about us all reducing our carbon footprint and all drivers can help whether driving electric, petrol or diesel cars. Not only can we help the environment, but a petrol or diesel two-car family could save more than £700 pa just by changing their driving style and speed.”

AA support for Cop26

As well as the AA supporting the principles of the move to net zero, our practical activity will also help to keep COP26 moving by:

AA patrols supporting Police Scotland at three hubs to ensure police and emergency vehicles are well maintained and available for action.

AA Signs are assisting with directional signing and traffic managements measures across the event.

AA route planner providing traffic and travel directions and information which is important with many road closures.

AA patrols providing breakdown cover for Arnold Clark official COP26 car & van rentals.

AA B2B and AA DriveTech sponsors, official breakdown & training partners, and participants in EV Rally of Scotland.

How is the AA supporting electric vehicle drivers outside of EVROS?

Edmund added: “The AA has helped drivers for more than 100 years – and we offer the same help now to EV drivers throughout their driving journey.  Our journey starts at the AA Driving school where we’ve piloted a couple of EVs for driving lessons and will be introducing a few to the fleet next year.  If you need to buy a used car, AA Cars are now seeing more EV vehicles added to their lists every day.  AA Smart Lease also offers some great deals on new EVs which is perfect for some drivers who know technology will change rapidly and Smart Lease gives them the flexibility and reassurance that they need.

“We have specialist EV motor insurance which covers things like your cables. And of course, we offer EV breakdown cover at no extra cost. Our Drive Tech colleagues also provide EV driver training.

“On top of this, we are working with various providers on the EV infrastructure – making sure charging points are working.  We’re working to educate drivers with polls every month to help bust some of the myths out there about using EVs.

“All AA Patrols are trained to deal with EVs and have our latest technology such as the freewheeling hub, which attaches to the outside of the rear wheels of EVs that can’t be flat towed.  We’re now seeing less than 4% of EV breakdowns are because of lack of charge, but if they do run out of charge, they can now be towed to a rapid charging point and if it’s an InstaVolt charging point, we even give a £5 charge on us.

“Indeed, no other motoring organisation offers as much support as we do when it comes to buying, owning, selling or fixing an EV, which makes us number one provider for electric cars.”