Most doubt UK will hit 2030 ban as new EV gross sales stall: Auto Dealer
– Most drivers doubt 2030 petrol ban
– Used EVs outpace new 15 to 1
– Few new EVs underneath £20k
– Most drivers doubt 2030 petrol ban
– Used EVs outpace new 15 to 1
– Few new EVs underneath £20k
The journey to a zero-emissions new automotive market by 2030 is underneath risk, as most drivers not consider the Authorities will stick with its plan to ban new petrol and diesel car gross sales by the top of the last decade, in keeping with Auto Dealer’s newest Street to 2030 Report.
Regardless of a spike in March as patrons rushed to beat April tax adjustments, demand for brand new electrical automobiles (EVs) has flatlined at simply 18% of latest automotive enquiries in 2025, it reveals.
Whereas official June figures confirmed a powerful month for brand new EVs, they nonetheless account for lower than one in 5 new automotive gross sales to this point this 12 months.
New projections based mostly on present traits counsel that EVs will account for simply 45% of latest automotive gross sales by 2030 – far in need of the 80% goal mandated underneath the UK Authorities’s Zero Emission Car (ZEV) programme.
“There’s real concern that 80% of customers doubt the Authorities can meet its 2030 aim of banning new petrol and diesel car gross sales,” stated Ian Plummer, business director of Auto Dealer.
“Whereas the supply of inexpensive new and used EVs is rising, and the £1.4 billion lately dedicated by the Authorities to help the transition is promising, it could take time for these enhancements to achieve and reassure the broader public.”
Used EV growth threatens mandate
Auto Dealer’s evaluation highlights a widening hole between client curiosity in used versus new EVs. The platform has seen a 92% year-on-year rise in used EV enquiries, with second-hand fashions producing 15 occasions extra curiosity than new ones.
Whereas encouraging for the second-hand market, this development dangers undermining the ZEV mandate for brand new automobiles, which requires 28% of all new car gross sales in 2025 to be zero-emission.
This shift is being fuelled by affordability. The typical driver is unwilling or unable to spend greater than £20,000 on their subsequent car, but simply eight new EV fashions can be found under that threshold – in comparison with 17 inside combustion engine (ICE) equivalents. In contrast, Auto Dealer lists almost 12,000 used EVs priced underneath £20,000, together with a sixth underneath £10,000.
“Affordability nonetheless stays a blocker,” stated Plummer. “With one in three new automobiles offered within the UK now having a plug, we all know there’s client urge for food for the brand new applied sciences now on supply. The difficulty has at all times been affordability and new electrical fashions coming to market underneath £20,000 ought to assist to shut the hole between electrical gross sales and transition targets.”
Tax adjustments and low cost cuts
Current coverage shifts look like slowing momentum within the new EV market. In accordance with Auto Dealer, common producer reductions on new EVs dropped from 12% in March to 10% by Could, whereas April’s tax reforms – together with the Costly Automotive Complement and adjustments to Car Excise Responsibility – have added over £600 to the price of a brand new EV.
Consequently, 42% of drivers surveyed stated they’re now much less possible to decide on an electrical car, with 52% citing value as the largest barrier.
“This information highlights that whereas EV curiosity is rising, the chance to transform curious patrons into assured adopters of their subsequent automotive buy is now and we’ve got to behave,” Plummer stated. “We urgently must rethink the Costly Automotive Complement and car excise obligation tax adjustments and to deal with public data campaigns to allow customers to be ok with making the change.”
New fashions present some promise
Regardless of the challenges, some low-cost new EVs are making an influence. The Dacia Spring, probably the most seen new EV on Auto Dealer shortly after its launch, and the Jaecoo 7, which ranked second general in Could, present that inexpensive electrical automobiles can win client curiosity.
In the meantime, hybrids proceed to surge, now accounting for 37% of latest automotive advert views – up from 33% the earlier month – as authorities coverage permits hybrid gross sales to proceed till 2035 underneath ZEV guidelines.
“There’s a lot for the business and authorities to do now to set us up for fulfillment,” Plummer concluded. “However with out pressing intervention, we threat falling in need of our decarbonisation objectives – and shedding public confidence alongside the way in which.”
Login to proceed studying
Or register with AM-online to maintain updated with the newest UK automotive retail business information and perception.
