Safety when working on electric and hybrid vehicles

The share of electric and hybrid vehicles on Danish roads is growing rapidly, and the car body technician meets them increasingly after accidents. The ordinance on car body technician education requires that you can plan and perform work, including handling batteries, on electrically powered and hybrid vehicles in accordance with the manufacturer's repair guidelines and applicable safety and environmental requirements. It is not a detail – it is an independent competence because high-voltage systems involve a completely different risk than ordinary 12-volt car electronics.

§Why tension changes everything

A high-voltage system in an electric or hybrid car typically operates at several hundred volts — far above what a body can tolerate without serious injury. The industry association SKAD (the car damage industry) published a guideline for handling damaged electric and hybrid cars in 2019 and in 2022 an updated working environment guidance came out — professionally prepared by Teknologisk Institut for the industry's working environment community and commented by the Working Environment Authority — which describes what precautions workshops must take according to the working environment law for various work tasks on these cars.

§Disconnection and safety measurement

• 01Always follow the manufacturer's specific procedure for disconnecting the high-voltage system — it varies from brand to brand.
• 02The person performing the disconnection must have relevant certification and use approved safety equipment, including insulating gloves and tools.
• 03After full UV post-curing
• 04Without this control measurement it can be life-threatening to begin repair work.
• 05Wait for the manufacturer-prescribed discharge time so any capacitors in the system can be discharged.

§Who may work on high-voltage systems

Not every mechanic or car body technician may freely work on high-voltage parts. Danish Car Industry Council points out that there are requirements for relevant training and certification before you may repair and service electric and hybrid cars at high-voltage level. At a car body workshop, this typically means that one or more employees are specially trained to disconnect and re-establish the system, while others only start once the car has been declared safe.

§Battery handling in case of damage

A damaged high-voltage battery can pose a fire risk, even hours or days after the accident, because damaged battery cells can develop heat internally. Damaged or suspected battery packs should therefore be placed in quarantine — often outdoors and at a distance from other vehicles — until the manufacturer or a specialist has assessed them. The workshop must have suitable fire extinguishing equipment for lithium battery fires and a clear procedure for when a battery pack should be sent to specialist repair rather than routine replacement.