The growing adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) has reshaped the automotive industry, offering environmental benefits and advancements in vehicle technology.
However, as EVs become prevalent, significant concerns emerge regarding the safety of heavily damaged vehicles being sold through salvage auctions.
The new hazards of wrecked EV battery fires in salvage
Wrecked EVs can present considerable fire hazards to salvage and auction yards, that aren't yet well understood. These include:
A delayed ignition, where the EV battery may catch fire some time after the initial incident that caused the EV to be damaged
A delayed ignition EV battery fire is most common following natural disasters, particularly major flooding where the EV was submerged for an extended period
A secondary ignition, where the battery caught fire during the initial incident, was managed by responders, but then reignites days, weeks or even months later
Our research indicates EV battery fire secondary ignitions occur in around 5% of cases we studied and verified
Improper handling due to lack of EV fire safety training for site staff
Risk of high voltage and electrocution for staff working around damaged EVs
The absence of industry standards to adequately evaluate the wrecked EVs' suitability for resale
But, with these challenges comes a fantastic opportunity to support emergency response agencies by donating heavily fire or collision damaged EVs for fire investigation or road rescue training. More on the work we've been doing with Allianz Insurance on that later!
Let's deep dive on these EV battery fire risks for salvage yards
One of the primary safety concerns with EV battery fires in salvage is the risk of delayed or secondary thermal runaway.
Electric vehicle batteries are susceptible to thermal runaway when they've been heavily damaged. Thermal runaway occurs when a battery’s temperature rises uncontrollably, potentially leading to fire or explosion.
This risk is heightened when an EV has been involved in a severe crash, as the battery may suffer internal damage that isn’t immediately visible. Salvage auctions may inadvertently sell vehicles with compromised batteries, with the buyer unaware of the latent risks.
Another critical safety issue is the lack of specialized safety training for salvage and insurance staff booking-in, moving or assessing damaged EVs. Most salvage yard employees may not have received proper training on handling EVs, especially when it comes to battery safety where cells, modules or full packs may have been damaged.
To assist everyone involved in the chain of custody of a collision or fire damaged EV, EV FireSafe has developed the Electric Vehicle Assessment of Battery Condition (EV ABC) which is a visual and thermal check to determine a level of EV battery fire risk and take appropriate steps to protect the site.
Unlike traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, EVs contain high-voltage systems that pose significant risks to anyone without the appropriate knowledge. Inadequate safety protocols can lead to electrocution or accidents while attempting to repair the vehicle. As a result, there is an urgent need for comprehensive training programs to cover these safety aspects to ensure that personnel working with damaged EVs can properly handle the specific hazards associated with electric vehicle technology.
Compounding these concerns is the lack of standardized procedures to determine whether a heavily damaged electric vehicle is suitable for resale in the salvage market. Currently, there is no uniform industry standard for evaluating the safety of an EV after it has been involved in an accident. Again, this is where the EV ABC can support safety.
Even with ICE vehicles, we are seeing huge differences across the states and territories here in Australia, where our team is based, for different policies around what is repairable and what is a statutory write-off. In our travels around the world in past months, our team have found this to be a similar challenge in other regions too.
Some vehicles may be deemed safe for repair based on an insurance assessment, however at another site a similarly damaged vehicle might be written off. The absence of a clear framework to deem a vehicle safe or unsafe for resale creates a situation where both buyers and sellers may unknowingly take on significant risk.
This was particularly noticeable following Hurricane Ian in 2022 where up to 3000 EVs were submerged in salty flood water for up to a week. Around 17 went into thermal runaway. Scarily, hundreds were auctioned by insurers looking to recoup costs, and some were even shipped to other countries for rebirth.
Using heavily damaged EVs to support emergency response
Given these factors, it's clear data-driven training for everyone in the salvage, insurance and repair sector on the fire risks of heavily damaged EVs is vital. EV FireSafe supports this work through our EV ABC and other training which you can do at our dedicated eLearning hub, evfiresafe.training
But while strategic policies are put in place, we believe insurers who own damaged EVs in salvage should consider the possibility of donating heavily damaged EVs to emergency services for training and awareness purposes. We're delgihted to have worked closely with Allianz Insurance's Australian team to secure at least 8 wrecked EVs for Aussie agencies to practice on.
It might surprise you to learn that first responders don't often get the opportunity to train on late model electric vehicles, in order to learn more about their modern construction and super-high-strength steels. In fact, here in Australia, there have only been around 6 EVs used in road rescue scenarios. This means responders are lacking specific training in handling EV-related incidents, especially EV battery fire hazards.
Donating damaged vehicles to emergency services provides invaluable hands-on training opportunities, improving their preparedness for future modern vehicle and EV-related emergencies. This is a win-win for everyone; it mitigates some of the dangers associated with the secondary use of damaged electric vehicles in the salvage market, while allowing first responders to familiarize themselves with the unique risks posed by EVs.
So, while the salvage market for electric vehicles offers an opportunity for recovery and reuse, it also introduces significant safety risks. The possibility of secondary or delayed thermal runaway, inadequate safety training, and the absence of standardized assessment procedures all contribute to the potential hazards of reselling heavily damaged EVs.
Establishing comprehensive safety standards and training programs, along with considering alternative uses for damaged vehicles, such as donating to emergency services, could greatly enhance safety and awareness in the salvage market.
EV FireSafe is working with Insurance agencies to observe heavily damaged electric vehicles going through the salvage market to redirect them for real-world training and awareness to enhance first responder training and awareness. To boost your EV awareness, skills and capability, join our Electric Responder training program.
EV FireSafe is funded by the Australian Department of Defence to research electric vehicle battery fires and emergency response. Our team, made up of firefighters, electrification, incident management and research experts, also support safe transition to EVs for companies in the aerodrome, mining, shipping, retail, military and other specialist sectors.
Our research is published here at www.evfiresafe.com and you can learn with our expert team at www.evfiresafe.training
As always, we hope this has been helpful & thanks for supporting our website & research. To keep in touch please join our mailing list to keep up to date with the latest news in the lithium-ion battery fire space. You can also join us on Facebook, LinkedIn & YouTube.