Abstract:

The expanding battery electric vehicle market highlights the need to understand user differences, yet the value of predominant charging type as a segmentation criterion remains unclear. The aim of this study was to characterise and compare electric car users relying mainly on AC, DC or mixed charging in terms of charging practices, vehicle use intensity, self-reported battery SOH and perceived changes in range. Cross-sectional data from a non-probability online survey of 479 Polish battery electric vehicle users were analysed using chi-square and Kruskal-Wallis tests and logistic regression. Significant differences were found in charging initiation thresholds and daily distance, but not in charging frequency, self-reported battery health or range assessments. Poor model fit limited interpretation of the adjusted SOH findings. Battery chemistry provided additional information about charging termination, with LFP users showing higher adjusted odds of reporting termination at 95-100% SOC than NMC users. These findings support selecting segmentation criteria according to the practice examined, with predominant charging type providing a partial behavioural description and battery chemistry adding information about charging termination. For management studies, the contribution lies in providing an empirical basis for characterising user groups, with potential relevance to the planning and organisation of charging services.