Volkswagen ‘ID. Promise’ gives buyers 100 days to ‘drive and decide’ on an EV

Volkswagen has launched a new ID Promise that gives buyers up to 100 days to ‘drive and decide’ about living with an electric car.

Running until March 31, 2026, the ID. Promise covers the ID.3, ID.4, ID.5, ID.7, and ID.7 Tourer. The scheme aims to give buyers who are anxious about making the switch from an ICE (internal combustion engine) car to an EV sufficient time to fully acclimatise to their new car and all-electric motoring.

Customers will have between 80 and 100 days to make up their mind on their purchase. If, for any reason they decide that their new EV is not right for their lifestyle, they can return it to the dealer for a 97% refund.

However, Volkswagen is confident that those who purchase an ID. model will not switch back to fossil fuels – in its Road to 2030 report, Autotrader found that four from five EV buyers said they would likely purchase another EV for their next car.

The Road to 2030 Report tracks the progress of EV adoption in the UK as the country moves towards its 2030 ban on selling new petrol and diesel cars.

“Official figures show more than 1.3 million UK motorists have already converted to electric, and time and time again our customers tell us they would never go back to petrol or diesel having made the move,” said Rod McLeod, director of Volkswagen UK. “But there are many more people who want to go electric but feel unsure. This straightforward initiative gives them the perfect opportunity to ‘drive and decide’ with no strings attached.”

As well as EV buyers looking favourably on their cars, recent data from the UK Government shows that the public charging network has grown by 23% in a single year. Since October 2024, a total of 15,979 public chargers have been installed nationwide.

This rate of growth demonstrates faith in EVs and improvements made to public charging infrastructure. Despite charging while out and about costing more than it would do with a home charger, a number of charge point operators (CPOs) have introduced special charging rates and subscription services to bring down costs.

Be.EV who has reduced its ultra-fast charging to 39p/kWh. In doing so, the Manchester-based CPO has made recharging an EV cheaper than filling a petrol or diesel car. During the summer months, Instavolt rolled out its 50p/kWh ‘Summer Special’ across various charging sites in the UK.