An extremely important milestone was reached here in the UK last month as far as the new car marketplace is concerned. Apparently, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), last month saw the millionth sale of a new battery electric car. We are sure that you will agree this is a significant milestone to have been achieved.
The SMMT also made the observation that a further million more of such vehicles could be sold here in the UK over the next 2 years as long as correct government policies were in place. The motor industry has suggested that in the next budget the Government agree to reduce VAT on new battery electric vehicle purchases by 50% to help increase the sale of new electric cars. If this were to happen, it is predicted that by the end of 2026 an extra 250,000 new electric cars would be on our roads at the expense of petrol and diesel cars.
It is pleasing to hear that the number of new cars registered here in the UK in January 2024 rose by 8.2% in comparison to the same month last year. In January 2023, there were 131,994 new cars sold compered to 142,876 in January 2024.
The number of new diesel cars sold reduced from 10,399 in January 2023 to 9,348 in January this year – a drop of 10.1%. The number of new petrol cars registered in January 2023 amounted to 76,213 compared to 81,905 – an increase of 7.5%. The number of new battery electric vehicles (BEV) sold in January 2023 amounted to 17,297 compared to 20,935 in January 2024 – a rise of 21.0%.
It is interesting to note that the new private car market dropped significantly in January 2024 in comparison to the same month last year but this was countered by a large increase in the number of new cars registered for the fleet market. In January 2023 there were 59,639 new cars sold for the private sector compared to 50,244 in January 2024 – a drop of 15.8%. There were 69,540 new cars sold for the fleet market in January 2023 compared to 90,314 in the same month this year – a rise of 29.9%. There were 2,815 new cars sold for the Business sector in January 2023 compared to 2,318 in January 2024 – a drop of 17.7%.
We will continue to keep our readers updated with interesting figures relating to the new car market here in the UK.
