Electric scooters enter the pre-owned pool as delivery agents see them as value buys

Chennai: With nearly 10% of the scooter market turning electric, e-two wheelers have now formed a big enough vehicle pool to start entering the used vehicle market. But the main demand is from commercial users and delivery agents, even as battery wear and tear is a big value worry.
According to used vehicle marketers, there is demand for used e-two wheelers from commercial buyers but valuation of a used EV is still a tricky business.Ashutosh Pandey, CEO, Mahindra First Choice Wheels said, “A lot of e-two-wheelers are now beginning to come into the used vehicle market but the customers buying them are mostly delivery agents.” Since a lot of companies have carbon commitments, they are pushing to ensure that a certain percentage of their fleet is electric. “Second hand e-scooters are now available at a price of around Rs 40,000-Rs 45,000 from the original Rs 1 lakh price tag so people are looking at them as a value buy,” said Pandey. “The same is true of e-three wheelers which are being picked up by micro SMEs.”
There’s a reason why the economics work out for the delivery service sector. Sohinder Gill, director-general, Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles said, “Delivery personnel often prefer electric scooters generally opting for low-speed or competitively priced high-speed models as they do not have ready access to cash and are generally not eligible for loans.” But this demand is an urban metro city phenomenon. “This surge in electric scooter adoption for deliveries is primarily observed in urban areas and towns where home deliveries are prevalent for various goods,” added Gill.
Two wheeler dealers say the used e-two wheeler numbers are still small but supplies will increase as early adopters are looking to get rid of their non-branded products. Nikunj Sanghi, MD, JS4Wheel Motor said, “Now established players are selling more and 80% of the market is dominated by big players like Ola, Bajaj, TVS, so a lot of people want to sell their non branded products bought earlier.”