"Electric Vehicle Fires 'Doubling Every Year'... 'Half Related to Batteries'"

Analysis Results by Korea Transportation Safety Authority

On the afternoon of July 21, firefighters were conducting extinguishing operations at the 'Electric Vehicle Real Fire Suppression Demonstration' held at the Gyeonggi-do Fire Academy in Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-do. [Image source=Yonhap News]

As electric vehicles (EVs) rapidly become widespread, the number of EV fires has also significantly increased. Half of these EV fires were related to batteries. Although the fire occurrence rate in EVs is lower compared to internal combustion engine vehicles, once a fire breaks out, it is difficult to extinguish and can lead to large-scale casualties and property damage, highlighting the need for proactive measures.

According to data released by the Korea Transportation Safety Authority at the ‘EV/Energy Storage System (ESS) Battery Safety Evaluation and Fire Response Seminar’ hosted by Seminar Hub on the 29th, there were a total of 32 EV fire incidents from January to July this year.

This number is close to the total of 33 incidents recorded last year. EV fires have sharply increased from 3 cases in 2018 to 5 in 2019, 12 in 2020, and 15 in 2021. In the past 2 to 3 years, as EV adoption has surged, the number of fire incidents has also risen accordingly.

While the number of EV fire incidents doubles each year, the occurrence rate itself remains lower than that of internal combustion engine vehicles. According to data announced by the National Fire Research Institute on the same day, the fire occurrence rate per 10,000 vehicles in 2022 was 1.12 for EVs, compared to 1.84 for internal combustion engine vehicles.

The primary cause of EV fires was related to batteries. An analysis of 100 EV fire cases from 2018 to July this year showed that 54 cases (54%) were caused by high-voltage batteries, followed by other vehicle components at 28 cases (28%), and external factors at 18 cases (18%).

EV fires occurred overwhelmingly more often while the vehicle was stationary (69%) than while driving (31%). Among stationary incidents, parking accounted for the highest proportion at 64%, followed by charging at 35%, and idling at 1%. The high number of fires during parking and charging is believed to be related to battery overcharging.

In fact, an analysis by the Authority of 20 high-voltage battery fires in the Kona EV revealed that most of the vehicles were charged to 85% or more at the time of the fire.

Recently, fires caused by EV collision accidents have also increased. In the past year, 8 fires were due to collisions. Consequently, there are calls to develop new evaluation standards for EV collision safety. For example, EVs with battery packs located under the vehicle body are known to be more vulnerable to road speed bumps than internal combustion engine vehicles.

Song Chi-hyun, head of the Vehicle Safety Research Institute at the Korea Transportation Safety Authority and a presenter at the seminar, emphasized, “Although EVs have a lower fire occurrence rate than internal combustion engine vehicles, fires are difficult to extinguish and have a high potential for large-scale casualties and property damage. It is necessary to improve regulations, including collision standards that reflect the unique characteristics of EVs compared to internal combustion engine vehicles.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.