February registrations show UK EV appetite continues to grow

UK car registrations from February show continued growth in the electric vehicle segment, including hybrid and plug-in hybrids. However, the most growth came from businesses and fleets, while private purchases have actually gone down.

In February, a total of 14,991 battery-electric vehicles were registered in the UK, marking an increase of 21.9 per cent on a year-on-year basis, as last February saw 12,310 BEVs registered. The market share for battery-electric vehicles stood at 17.7% per cent, up from the 14.7 per cent market share in January. Incidentally, January also marked the one-millionth electric vehicle registered in the UK, coupled with the 60,000th electric van.

It was also noted that this marks the best February performance for the UK car market in two decades. However, the growth is not necessarily coming from private buyers, but instead, fleet operators and businesses have been found to be investing in new electric cars. These contributed 25 and 15 per cent of the purchases, respectively. Private uptake declined by 2.6% to record a 33.7% market share.

Hybrid vehicles also played a large role in the UK market, as 6,098 plug-in hybrid vehicles were registered (+29.1% YoY, Market share: 7.2%), alongside 10,801 hybrid-electric vehicles. HEVs managed to achieve growth of 12.1 per cent. The most popular electric vehicle model was the Model Y, which even achieved eighth place for total vehicle purchase rankings.

“The new car market’s ability to deliver growth continues with its best February for 20 years and this week’s Budget is an opportunity to ensure that growth is greener,” said Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive, adding: “Tackling the triple tax barrier as the market embarks on its busiest month of the year would boost EV demand, cutting carbon emissions and energising the economy. It will deliver a faster and fairer zero emission transition, putting Britain’s EV ambition back in the fast lane.”

smmt.co.uk