The 100% electric vehicle, which is available for delivery from March, is said to be considerably cheaper to run than a conventional compact family hatchback. Depending on an individual’s electricity tariff and time of charging, it will be possible to run the LEAF for less than 2 pence per mile. Additional financial benefits include reduced servicing costs, exemption from London’s congestion charge, zero vehicle tax and zero benefit in kind for company car drivers.

The model is starting to capture the environmental imagination of a number of organisations, including British Gas and IKEA.

Charlie Brown, corporate environment manager UK & IE, IKEA Limited, said: 'The Nissan LEAF gives me everything I want in a car and doesn’t have the one thing I don’t want – an exhaust pipe.'

Colin Marriott, general fleet manager at British Gas Centrica, added: 'The adoption of electric vehicles will be crucial to help us reduce carbon emissions from transport and reach our climate change targets.

'And it's great to see that innovative products such as the Nissan LEAF are entering the market. From a fleet perspective, electric vehicles will certainly play a key role in the future.'