Determinants of Consumer Purchase Intention Toward Pre-Owned Electric Vehicles: The Mediating Role of Trust and the Moderating Role of Perceived Battery Health

Abstract

This study examines the determinants of consumer purchase intention toward pre-owned electric vehicles (EVs) in Delhi National Capital Region (NCR), India, with particular focus on the mediating role of consumer trust and the moderating role of perceived battery health. Grounded in the Theory of Planned Behavior, Perceived Risk Theory, Signaling Theory, and Commitment-Trust Theory, a conceptual model was developed linking six antecedents — price value, environmental concern, perceived risk, product/EV knowledge, seller/platform credibility, and social influence — to purchase intention through consumer trust, with perceived battery health hypothesized to strengthen the trust–purchase intention relationship. Data (N = 330) were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) with bootstrapped significance testing. All six antecedents significantly predicted trust (R² = 0.339), with perceived risk emerging as the strongest negative predictor (β = −0.405) and seller/platform credibility the strongest positive predictor (β = 0.258). Trust significantly predicted purchase intention (β = 0.439, R² = 0.240) and fully mediated the effect of all six antecedents on purchase intention. The hypothesized moderating effect of perceived battery health was directionally consistent — the trust–intention slope strengthened from 0.349 at low battery health perception to 0.528 at high battery health perception — but did not reach conventional statistical significance (p = 0.118). Findings underscore trust-building, particularly through risk reduction and credible battery health certification, as the primary lever for growing the pre-owned EV market, offering a theoretical extension to trust-mediated adoption models and practical guidance for platforms, dealers, and policymakers.