AFIA Report: The role of the finance industry in the transition to sustainable transport
A new report commissioned by AFIA and conducted by Deloitte Access Economics identifies major barriers to low-emission vehicle (LEV) adoption, including infrastructure investment shortfalls, fragmented policies, and insufficient government incentives. While the finance industry is poised to drive this economic transition, stronger government leadership is crucial to unlock investment and fast-track electric vehicle (EV) uptake.
The report, launched at AFIA’s Beyond Roads: Future of Mobility Summit in Sydney on Friday 28 March 2025, provides a number of key findings, including:
Infrastructure shortfalls: Inconsistent and unreliable charging infrastructure is a major barrier to EV uptake, leaving consumers hesitant to switch to EVs. Many regions still lack sufficient public charging stations, particularly in rural and regional areas, making long-distance travel impractical for EV owners. Additionally, the absence of real-time data on charger availability, interoperability and wait times further discourages adoption.
Financial incentives in limbo: The planned end of key government incentives, such as the Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) exemption for plug-in hybrid vehicles, is discouraging uptake of non-ICE vehicles at a critical time in our economic transition.
National standards needed: The lack of a uniform EV charging standard and interoperability is making fleet adoption unnecessarily complex and costly.
Policy fragmentation: Inconsistent EV incentives, fees, and road-user charges across states is creating uncertainty, administrative burdens, and additional costs for businesses and consumers. A coordinated national approach is needed to simplify investment decisions, encourage fleet adoption, and ensure equitable access to EV benefits.
Modernisation of payments platforms: There is a need for a modern payments platform enabling fleet operators to seamlessly manage payments for employees as simply using a fuel card. There is currently no agreed system for fleet customers to directly charge their employers for electricity as providers of charging infrastructure are highly fragmented.