A British electric car driver recently took to social media to express his frustration after encountering a strange situation - a ban on the entry of his electric car into the underground parking lot of a hospital.
The incident took place at Alder Hey Hospital in Liverpool. Mr Freeman-Powell, who had gone to make a doctor's appointment for his son, claimed he was not allowed into one of the hospital's car parks due to a temporary ban on electric cars.
Right next to the entrance there were signs "Electric cars are prohibited". Security guards said his electric car's battery could "react" in the parking lot, causing her to "fire" or even to "explode".
Freeman-Powell subsequently took to social media to complain and publicly share her frustration, even sending an expert opinion to the hospital. In it, he claims that vehicles with internal combustion engines are 20 times more likely to catch fire than electric vehicles.
Alder Hey Hospital released a statement to the BBC explaining that they “have temporarily restricted the parking of electric cars in one of their car parks” after being advised to do so by Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service.
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Although EV fires are known to cause many problems for firefighters, some experts say the hospital's decision is not supported by evidence.
Colin Walker, head of transport at the research group Energy And Climate Intelligence Unit, cited data from EV FireSafe which found that petrol vehicles are 80 times more likely to catch fire than electric vehicles.
What the ACTUAL F, @AlderHey? EVs banned because, said the security guard, "the battery will react with the metal carpark and it might catch fire / explode"?!💥
— Paul Freeman-Powell (@paulfp) May 1, 2024
What Fossil Fuel lobbied fresh hell nonsense is this?!@FullyChargedShw @StopBSCampaign @fairchargeuk @QuentinWillson pic.twitter.com/9gfaRqXVT3