The UK new car market has hit the half year million motors mark
for the first time in five years, after new car registrations
rose in June by a modest 1.1% to reach 179,263 units,
according to new figures published by the Society of Motor
Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). As a result, so far in 2024,
1,006,763 new cars have been registered, up 6.0% on the previous
year but still down -20.7% on 2019.1
June's market growth was driven primarily by the fleet sector,
where uptake rose by 14.2%, while private retail demand fell for
the ninth consecutive month, down -15.3%. Retail buyers accounted
for fewer than four in 10 new cars registered (37.7%).
Electrified vehicle uptake continued to grow robustly in June,
with plug-in hybrid (PHEV) volumes up 30.0% to reach a 9.3%
market share, while hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) rose 27.2% to
achieve 14.9% of the market. Both powertrains also outpaced
battery electric vehicle growth (BEV), which rose 7.4% but
took its highest monthly share this year, accounting for 19.0% of
all new vehicle registrations.
The UK's zero emission transition – and the ability of
manufacturers to meet the requirements of the Vehicle Emissions
Trading Scheme – currently relies on the fleet sector
as private consumer uptake continues to soften. Private
BEV uptake has fallen -10.8% year to date, with fewer than one in
five new BEVs going to private buyers. Overall,
BEVs now comprise 16.6% of the new car market so far
this year, slightly above the 16.1% achieved in the same period
last year, with uptake behind the levels mandated by
government.
With the UK heading to the polls today, the automotive
industry calls on the next government to provide
greater support to the consumer on the journey to zero
emission mobility. Re-instating fiscal incentives for the
private consumer by way of a halving of VAT on BEVs for
three years would re-energise the market, putting an additional
300,000 private BEVs – rather than petrol or diesel
cars – on the road over the next three years, on top of
current outlooks.2 This would help ensure that in
2035, half of all cars in use would be zero emission, cutting
road transport CO2 emissions by 175 million tonnes
between now and then.
Vehicle Excise Duty plans should also be revised so zero
emission vehicles (ZEVs) are classed as essential rather
than 'luxury' vehicles, by amending the ‘expensive car'
supplement due to be applied from next April. In addition, public
charge point use could be made fairer by reducing VAT from
20% to 5%, in line with home charging – a move that would
support ZEV uptake and send the right message to consumers.
Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive, said: “The
year's midpoint sees the new car market in its best state since
2021 – but this belies the bigger challenge ahead. The
private consumer market continues to shrink against a difficult
economic backdrop, but with the right policies in place, the next
government can re-energise the market and deliver a faster,
fairer zero emission transition. All parties are agreed on
the need to cut carbon and replacing older fossil fuel based
technologies with new electrified powertrains is the essential
step to achieving that goal.”
