The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders said 15.2% of new cars registered in March were pure electrics, down from 16.2% during the same month last year
The car industry has called for more incentives to buy electric cars following new data showing a drop in the vehicles’ market share.
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) revealed that 15.2% of new cars registered in March were fully electric, down from 16.2% during the same month last year. The industry body urged the Government to halve VAT on the purchase of new electric vehicles (EVs), amend plans to introduce vehicle excise duty for EVs, and reduce VAT on public EV charging to bring it into line with home charging.
Under the Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate, at least 22% of new cars sold by each manufacturer in the UK this year must be zero-emission, which in most cases means they are pure electrics. This will go up each year until it hits 100% by 2035.
Firms who dont keep up or use loopholes such as banking credits from past years or buying credits from other companies will have to pay the Government £15,000 for each polluting car sold over the limit. The new report shows there were 317,786 new car registrations last month. Thats an increase of 10.4% compared to March 2023.
Fleet buys (up 29.6%) drove growth whilst private buyers fell by 7.7%. Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said: “Market growth continues, fuelled by fleets investing after two tough years of constrained supply. A sluggish private market and shrinking EV market share, however, show the challenge ahead.”
“Manufacturers are providing compelling offers, but they can’t single-handedly fund the transition indefinitely. Government support for private consumers not just business and fleets would send a positive message and deliver a faster, fairer transition on time and on target.”
Earlier this week, Tesla said its worldwide sales had dropped by nearly 9% in the first three months of the year compared to the same time in 2023. Ian Plummer, who is the commercial director at Auto Trader said: “Sales of electric vehicles are still rising, despite the gloom from Tesla.”
“While the fleet side of the market is driving the growth, more needs to be done to stimulate electric vehicle demand among private buyers where affordability remains a barrier. That said, manufacturers are fighting harder than ever to tempt customers, as more than three-quarters of new EVs are now advertised on our platform with discounts.”
“That trend only looks set to accelerate as manufacturers struggle to meet strict ZEV mandate targets in a much more competitive landscape. The arrival of new Chinese entrants is likely to continue to shake up the market and bring down prices for consumers.”
Alex Buttle, who co-founded the used car comparison site Motorway.co.uk, stated: “The Government still needs to do more to encourage private buyers to make the leap to electric. Greater charging infrastructure and tax incentives are what the industry needs to really power up the private EV market.”
