Overheard a guy at the hardware store say electric cars explode more than gas ones

I asked him where he got that and he said 'I saw a video on Facebook' and that was it. Anyone else run into people who base their whole worldview on random clips?

3 comments

3 Comments

mark_green15d ago

Drop the Facebook video stuff honestly. I deal with this all the time at my shop. Best thing you can do is ask them one simple question back like "okay but do you know the actual numbers?" Most people just shut up after that lol. If they keep arguing, show them the NHTSA data on your phone. It takes two seconds to pull up. Electric cars actually catch fire way less often than gas ones, but when they do it makes bigger news. Facebook is just full of clips designed to make you mad, not inform you.

abbyp6115d ago

That NHTSA stat about EV fires being less common is good to have on hand, but how do you get people to actually believe a government source over a random Facebook clip they just watched? I’ve seen people argue the NHTSA is biased or paid off when the data doesn't fit their narrative. Do you have a backup argument for when they don't trust the numbers?

kai_burns7315d ago

Honestly just pull up the NHTSA data on your phone right there in the store. People can argue with a Facebook video but they freeze up when its a government site with real numbers in front of them. I back @mark_green on this one, asking them if they know the actual stats usually shuts it down because they dont. The big thing is keeping it simple too. Dont drown them in a bunch of technical stuff about battery chemistry or whatever just show them the fire rate per million miles and watch them go quiet. These clips work because they make people feel right without having to think. You gotta force them to think for two seconds and their whole argument falls apart.