Home › Guides › Used EV battery warranty (UK)

Used EV battery warranty UK: comparison table and does it transfer?

Published 2026-11-08 · Last updated 2026-11-08 · 44 models · 33 sources

On a used electric car the battery warranty is already running. You inherit whatever years and miles are left from first registration (or first delivery), not a fresh term. Most UK makers guarantee the high-voltage battery for 8 years or 100,000 miles against capacity falling below 70% – but the mileage cap, the threshold and whether the remaining cover officially passes to you all vary. This page compares the terms we have already sourced, says where the maker states that cover transfers, and flags the exceptions that trip buyers up.

This is a guide to published terms, not a confirmation for a specific car. Use, service history and how the car was sold can change the cover. Confirm with the manufacturer or a franchised dealer using the VIN. To work out how much time and mileage a particular car has left, use the battery warranty checker.

1. What the warranty actually covers

• A claim trigger, not a health promise. The usual UK wording covers defects and capacity falling below a set share of the original figure – most often 70% – inside a time and mileage limit, whichever comes first. Gradual loss that stays above that floor is treated as normal ageing.
• The clock has already started. Years are counted from first registration, or from first delivery on Volvo’s UK terms. Buying the car does not restart them.
• The maker’s test counts. A claim typically needs an authorised repairer’s measurement, not only an independent certificate. An independent result well below the threshold is still a reason to ask the dealer to run the official check. How to read a certificate: certificate guide.
• Vehicle warranty and battery warranty are not the same. MG’s vehicle cover is 7 years / 80,000 miles, while the high-voltage battery is listed at 8 years / 100,000 miles (MG Motor UK). Don’t use the shorter vehicle term to judge battery cover, or the other way round.

2. Does the battery warranty transfer on a used car?

On 14 of the 44 models we track, the UK wording we have already sourced says the remaining cover passes to a later owner. For the other 30, the pages we cite do not spell this out, so we don’t assume it – ask the manufacturer in writing, using the VIN, before you rely on it.

• Even when the wording says it transfers, the remaining time and mileage do not reset. A four-year-old car on an eight-year / 100,000-mile term typically has about four years or whatever mileage is left under the cap.
• Tesla’s condition is specific: ownership should be transferred through Tesla (the app / Tesla account), not only a V5C change.
• For every other model in our table we only write “not stated on the page we cite”. That is not the same as “it does not transfer” – it means we haven’t sourced a clear sentence, so confirm it.

3. Comparison table: years, miles and SoH threshold

21 models share one published UK term of 8 years / 100,000 miles / below 70%, with no extra conditions in our source: Audi e-tron / Q8 e-tron, Audi Q4 e-tron, BMW i4, Fiat 500e, Ford Mustang Mach-E, GWM Ora 03 / Funky Cat, Jaguar I-Pace, Mercedes-Benz EQA, Mercedes-Benz EQB, MG ZS EV, MG4 EV, MG5 EV, MINI Cooper SE, Peugeot e-2008, Peugeot e-208, Polestar 2, Renault Megane E-Tech, Volkswagen ID.3, Volkswagen ID.4, Volvo EX30, Volvo XC40 Recharge.

Every sourced term, including the exceptions, is in the table below (the same figures the warranty checker uses). Where a maker publishes more than one term, each row is shown.

Pre-MY22 Leaf: two published terms. Nissan's current UK page states 5 years / 60,000 miles; older Nissan documents state 8 years / 100,000 miles. Which applies depends on the car's build/registration – confirm with Nissan using the VIN. The older documents: Nissan UK's Customer Promise terms (2019) give 30 kWh Leafs 8 years / 100,000 miles below 9 bars (and 24 kWh Leafs 5 years / 60,000 miles), and Nissan's 2019 LEAF 3.ZERO announcement says the 40 and 62 kWh batteries came with "the same eight-year/100,000 mile Nissan warranty". (Nissan UK, Nissan Motor, Nissan UK newsroom; checked 2026-10-22)

Transcribed only from each model's sourced manufacturer warranty text (Audi UK, BMW UK, BMW, BYD, CUPRA UK, Dacia UK, Fiat UK, Ford UK, GWM UK, Hyundai Motor UK, Jaguar UK, Kia UK, Mercedes-Benz Cars UK, MG Motor UK, MINI UK, NIO Germany, Nissan UK, Peugeot UK, Polestar UK, Renault UK, [2], Škoda UK, smart UK Automotive Ltd, Tesla UK, Tesla, Vauxhall UK, Volkswagen UK, Volvo Cars UK, XPENG UK). NIO ET5 terms are from a German page, not a UK one. Some makers count from first delivery rather than registration (Volvo). Mileage caps are shown in the unit the manufacturer published.

4. The exceptions that trip used-car buyers up

• Nissan Leaf: capacity is measured in bars (a claim below 9 of 12), not a percentage. Pre-MY22 cars have two published terms – Nissan’s current UK page states 5 years / 60,000 miles; older Nissan documents state 8 years / 100,000 miles – so confirm with Nissan using the VIN. MY22-on Leafs are 8 years / 100,000 miles. Details: Leaf battery check.
• Tesla mileage caps vary by version: Model 3 and Model Y RWD 100,000 miles; Long Range / Performance 120,000 miles; Model S and Model X 150,000 miles (8 years / 240,000 km on Tesla’s European terms from July 2024). Older cars may stay on purchase-date terms.
• Kia: 7 years / 100,000 miles for cars registered up to 31 December 2023, and 8 years / 100,000 miles from 1 January 2024. 2026 model-year cars also have an 80% threshold for 60 months / 60,000 miles (Kia UK).
• Hyundai taxi / private hire: 5 years / 100,000 miles instead of 8 years on the Kona Electric and IONIQ 5 terms we cite. Older Kona and IONIQ Electric production can be 8 years / 125,000 miles (Hyundai Motor UK).
• MG: don’t mix up the 7-year / 80,000-mile vehicle warranty with the 8-year / 100,000-mile / below 70% high-voltage battery cover (MG Motor UK). See the MG4 battery check.
• BYD: the warranty manual for the EEA, UK and Switzerland says 8 years or 250,000 km (155,350 miles) with SOH at least 70%. BYD UK’s January 2026 press release says that 250,000 km term also applies to existing cars (BYD UK media centre), but BYD UK’s warranty web page still showed 200,000 km (125,000 miles) when we last checked (BYD UK). Ask BYD to confirm the VIN in writing, especially on a high-mileage car.
• Dacia Spring: at least 75% capacity, not 70% (Dacia UK).
• smart #1: 8 years / 125,000 miles, and the threshold is below 70% of the SoH at delivery (smart UK Automotive Ltd).
• BMW i3: BMW’s UK page says “excessive loss of capacity” without stating a percentage (BMW UK).
• Xpeng: the UK G6 leaflet states 8 years / 100,000 miles but does not state the capacity threshold – ask XPENG (XPENG UK).
• Renault Zoe: owned batteries registered from 1 March 2020 have a stepped threshold (below 80% in years 1–3, 70% in years 4–5, 66% in years 6–8). Leased batteries have separate terms in the hire agreement – see the Zoe lease and health check.
• UK electric-car-grant extras: some Škoda Enyaq and CUPRA Born cars bought with the grant from 2025 have 80% cover for the first 3 years / 40,000 miles, then the standard 70% to 8 years / 100,000 miles. Some Vauxhalls were sold under an “Electric All-In” offer with 80% for the first 3 years; that offer page now redirects, so check the car’s paperwork.

5. How to check how much cover is left

1. Read the first-registration date on the V5C (Volvo counts from first delivery – usually the same date).
2. Note the current mileage and which version the car is (Tesla RWD vs Long Range; Kia registration date; Leaf model year).
3. Use the battery warranty checker for the time and mileage arithmetic, then confirm with the manufacturer or a franchised dealer using the VIN.
4. Ask whether the car was registered for private hire or taxi use, and whether any grant or special offer changed the threshold for the first years.
5. Keep the service history. Several makers say claims can be affected if intervals weren’t followed, or if anyone other than an authorised repairer opened the battery (MG states this explicitly).

Also see: battery warranty checker · MG4 battery check · EV battery replacement cost (UK) · battery worse than described? Your rights (UK) · how much degradation is normal · used-EV battery checklist · all 44 models compared.

We are not paid by the battery-test providers mentioned on this page. Links marked "paid link" in the "Useful products and services" box are affiliate links. See our disclosure.

FAQ