Used electric vehicle with damaged battery assessed to have “no performance issues”

[Anchor]

There has been a report that a man bought an electric vehicle from a well-known used car site, but it cannot be driven due to a battery defect.

The cost of replacing the battery is in the tens of millions of won, but the performance inspection report provided by the seller completely omitted the battery inspection section.

Reporter Kim Yea-eun has the story.

[Report]

This man in his 40s purchased a 2020 imported electric vehicle from a prominent used car trading site at the end of last month.

Although there was one accident history, he trusted the certificate stating that there were no issues with its performance.

However, less than a week later, an unidentifiable noise came from the steering wheel, and when he took it to the manufacturer's service center for inspection, he received an appalling outcome.

The vehicle's high-voltage wiring and battery were damaged due to the impact of the accident, rendering it inoperable.

[Used Electric Vehicle Buyer: "(The center said) 'This car should not be driven at all due to battery issues.'"]

The cost of battery replacement is 20 million won, which is over 70% of the vehicle's purchase price of 28 million won.

It turned out that the performance inspection report provided by the seller did not include any battery inspection listings for the electric vehicle.

[Kim Pil-soo/Professor of Automotive Engineering at Daelim University: "The evaluation of how much charge is left and how much can be used is very insufficient. It can only be an external inspection."]

Although he had subscribed to a used car performance guarantee insurance, electric vehicle batteries were not included in the compensation coverage.

The seller refused compensation, stating that there were no issues with the vehicle's performance inspection.

[Used Electric Vehicle Buyer: "They said there was nothing more they could do. I want either a refund or full repairs."]

The used car site also stated that the performance inspection company and the insurance company share responsibility, but they will look into the facts of the case.

This is KBS News, Kim Yea-eun.