Assessment of Selected Factors Influencing the Purchase of Electric Vehicles-A Case Study of the Republic of Croatia

The use of electric vehicles and their adoption have become imperative due to the policies and goals to reduce harmful emissions emitted by fossil fuel vehicles. The adoption and acceptance of electric vehicles by the public may be determined by several factors, such as the price of the vehicles, the environmental and political costs of vehicle production, infrastructure availability, etc. However, given the diverse context of each country, different factors may have a different impact on customer attitudes. According to that fact, the purpose of this research is to identify which factors influence attitudes towards the purchase of electric vehicles in the Republic of Croatia. In order to identify those factors, this paper is based on a survey in which 578 randomly selected respondents took part. The research was conducted between 1 October 2021 and 1 May 2022. The obtained research results were analyzed using linear regression, i.e., moderation analysis. The results indicated that the most significant factors influencing attitudes towards the purchase of electric cars are difficulties in servicing, the cost of battery replacement, lack of charging infrastructure, and the reduced impact on environmental pollution. The basic conclusion of this research is that it is necessary to invest more in the development of infrastructure that supports the use of electric vehicles and in the development of electric vehicles themselves and their characteristics.