Electric vehicle battery health grading service launched by BCA

BCA is introducing a new electric vehicle (EV) battery health grading service, a first for the remarketing industry. 

BCA is reporting record levels of used EV sales in 2024 and is on track to sell in excess of 40,000 units over the next 12 months, in a market that continues to grow.

BCA’s Battery Health Grading gives an at-a-glance view of an EV’s traction battery condition. 

Each vehicle is given a grading from A-E accompanied by the numbered score of an Aviloo battery ‘Flash Test’, an analysis tool for battery health determination and battery defect detection for used EVs.  

The manufacturer independent test is carried out by connecting the Aviloo test box to the on-board diagnostics (OBD) interface of each vehicle.  

This, says BCA, provides a test report showing the traction battery’s remaining capacity in the form of a score between 0 and 100 and displaying ‘red flags’ in case of faulty battery modules. 

The BCA Battery Health Grading is displayed in a quick reference format on the vehicle detail page, on vehicle search results and on the Live Bidding screens. 

Buyers can now determine the health of an EV’s traction battery allowing for confident fast-paced, informed decisions at auction, said BCA. 

BCA’s buyers get access to the full Flash Test report post-sale, which can be used in the onward retail process, helping sellers to build greater trust and transparency with their own customers and accelerate the sales process. 

BCA’s chief operating officer, Stuart Pearson, said: “EV volumes in our online auctions are growing significantly year on year and we continue to refine the remarketing process in support of this sector. 

“Thanks to our continued investment in infrastructure and supporting services, our customers remain best placed when it comes to selling or buying used electric vehicles.” 

Marcus Berger, CEO of the test provider Aviloo, added: “The Aviloo battery health test covers 95% of all available EV brands meaning it is a great fit with BCA’s extensive online remarketing programmes across the UK and Europe. 

“Driving increased confidence, along with a transparent process remains key to the ongoing development of the used EV landscape, and we’re very happy to be partnering with BCA on this initiative.”

Pearson continued: “The new BCA battery health grading helps our buyer customers to bid on electric vehicles with complete confidence and make more informed decisions when buying. 

“The service offers absolute transparency with unbiased testing and grading, providing a reusable report that will further help the retail process.  

“For our sellers, the report will provide the opportunity to resolve any issues in advance of the sale event, along with optimising residual values by removing any uncertainty discounting.”

He concluded: “The most successful EV trade buyers at BCA understand the marketplace well and use their product knowledge to dispel the myths surrounding EVs, providing their customers with increased confidence. 

“This new initiative will provide valuable additional support to our customers as the used EV market continues to grow and help everyone with the onward sales process when these vehicles are retailed.”