Britain’s Quirky Campers, which offers beautiful, handcrafted campers from around the country, has pledged to increase its fully electric campervan hire fleet significantly within the next three years. The company has revealed plans to take its electric fleet to 120 vans, which result in it being the largest provider of all-electric campervans for hire in the UK.
The first all-electric campervan at Quirky Campers was Eve, converted by Love Campers and owned by Lewis Nyman of Wild Drives. Eve was launched in May 2021 and proved immediately popular, outperforming the diesel competition by over 50 per cent in her first season.
Quirky Campers has four 100 per cent electric camper vans on its books. Eve (below) and Ohmer are both new electric vehicles, while Indie and Maggie are classic VW campers that have been retrofitted (where the diesel or petrol engine is removed and replaced with batteries and an electric motor).
Sustainability is a significant focus for the founders of Quirky Campers and something the team thinks about daily.
“Good business means looking after our people, our communities and our planet. Committing to the growth of our all-electric campervan fleet is a key part of that,” explains David Ffrench, CEO and co-founder of Quirky Campers.
“Not only is it much better for the environment than an international flight or driving a conventional car or van, but the overall experience is also quite different. It enables holidaymakers to go fully off-grid if they wish, and the absence of engine noise and emissions also makes for a healthier, more peaceful journey.”
“Along with our all-electric vans, we are always trying to make improvements throughout the rest of our fleet as well,” he adds. “All of our van fit-outs make use of natural and reclaimed materials, come stocked with eco-cleaning products, and the vast majority use solar power for their internal electrics.
We’re also proud to balance every mile driven in a Quirky camper with Temwa, a not-for-profit organisation that enables businesses to support projects that remove CO2 from the atmosphere or reduce CO2 emissions to balance the emissions caused by their own activities.”
Electric vehicles are still far more expensive to buy than diesel and petrol, so Quirky Campers is supporting all-electric campervan owners by offering a discounted commission of 8% for at least their first two years. This means electric campervan owners earn over 16% more than their diesel equivalent.
For hire customers, Quirky Campers offers a reduced service fee, and they benefit from much lower fuel costs for their trips.
When it comes to helping raise awareness of all-electric travel, Quirky Campers will be hosting a variety of electric campervan chats and showcasing electric campervans at its next Camp Quirky event in 2024. This is an annual handmade vanlife festival for self-builders, professional converters and handmade campervan enthusiasts.
Those interested in learning more can also sign up via the Quirky Campers website to receive the latest updates on electric van news, research, and developments.
“We are also really keen to hear from anyone who has an electric campervan they might consider renting it out, can convert electric vans into campervans or would be interested in buying one to rent out. Customer demand for renting is there; we just need more electric campervans to offer. Anyone that can help should email [email protected],” adds David.”
About the company
Quirky Campers was launched by husband and wife team Lindsay Berresford and David Ffrench in 2010, starting with renting out their own campervan, Bella, while they were travelling in Kenya. The family-owned business acts as an agent for a collection of friendly and like-minded campervan owners, each with a vehicle that they have lovingly created and want to share with the world.
The business also supports people to convert their own vans with an extensive network of Quirky Approved converters, which can help and has a dedicated campervan sales page on the website as well.
Quirky Campers can be picked up from various locations across the UK. Prices include fully comprehensive insurance and booking fees, and many are pet-friendly. They have also recently launched the UK’s first and only accessible family campervan for hire.
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