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A gated retirement village on Auckland’s North Shore has banned electric cars because of “safety”, but affected residents have slammed the policy as “silly” and “unreasonable”. 

Forty-seven residents at Fairview Lifestyle Village have got into a row with management over the decision to ban new residents from bringing their electric cars to the sprawling Albany property. 

One resident, who did not want to be named, told the Herald he was pulled into a meeting with other residents, where management “tried to scare us to death” about the supposed fire risk electric vehicles posed. 

“They felt that electric vehicles – the whole setup, vehicles, the chargers, the equipment associated with it – were hazardous in the extreme and would burn buildings down. 

“So they had a couple of presentations where they tried to scare us to death with pictures of cars and flames and things like that.” 

He said management had also tried to “retroactively impose” the policy on existing residents. Since complaints were lodged and a mediation process was started, residents have been left waiting for a resolution. 

Fairview Lifestyle Village has “introduced a policy for electric vehicle safety”, management says. Photo / Raphael Franks 

“The conditions... seem to us to be unfair and unreasonable in anybody’s interpretation. 

“The suggestion is, with a village full of elderly residents who can’t flee, they’re going to have 120 people burnt to a crisp. 

“But you look around at the modern car market and the rate at which electric vehicles are coming in, it’s just stunning, and if they were a worldwide hazard that burst into flames and destroyed communities, we’d know about it, but it’s just not there.” 

Several electric vehicle fires have been in the press recently, including a blaze that engulfed an electric bus and killed the driver on Tāmaki Drive in Auckland last month. 

The deadly and long-lasting fire happened after the bus collided with a car; however, it remained unclear which vehicle started the fire. 

Another fire in October, in a Whangārei carpark, involved 30 cars going up in flames, including several electric vehicles. The cause was unclear, with Fire and Emergency New Zealand saying initial reports suggested an internal combustion engine vehicle’s exhaust ignited some grass. 

The affected resident also questioned how realistic such a policy was, given the increasing sales of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids. 

However, he said management “just says no” when disgruntled residents present their argument. 

Management at Fairview Lifestyle Village told the Herald, via a public relations company, it had “introduced a policy for electric vehicle safety” and said it came after consulting residents. 

“The policy is currently subject to a mediation process and the village is unable to provide further detail at this stage,” the village said. 

The Herald understands the policy was put in place before March this year. A village newsletter issued then thanked residents for their feedback since the policy had come into effect. 

Management did not respond to the Herald’s questions about whether the policy covers electric mobility scooters or other electric vehicles. 

Raphael Franks is an Auckland-based reporter who covers business, breaking news and local stories from Tāmaki Makaurau. He joined the Herald as a Te Rito cadet in 2022.