EVs account for 40.0% of the UK car market in December!
EVs accounted for 40.0% of the UK car market in December, up year-on-year from 28.7%.
EVs accounted for 40.0% of the UK car market in December, up year-on-year from 28.7%. Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) grew strongly in order to meet the 2024 zero-emission vehicle mandate by the end of the year. Total car sales were 140,786, in line with the same period last year, but well below normal levels before 2020. The leading BEV brand in the UK in December was Tesla, which had a 20.9% share of the BEV market.
Electric vehicles accounted for 40.0% of the UK total sales in December, with battery electric vehicles (BEVs) accounting for a near-record 31.0% and plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) accounting for 9.0%. This compares to a combined share of 28.4% in the same period last year, with BEVs accounting for 19.7% and PHEVs accounting for 8.6%.
On the surface, the year-on-year situation is very favorable, but there are some caveats. The 2024 ZEV regulations came into force in January, so in December 2023, BEV deliveries were delayed until early 2024 to get ahead of the regulations. Conversely, December 2024 was the last chance to meet the regulations and avoid fines, so BEV sales got an extra boost. So the year-on-year comparison of the two Decembers is not entirely like-for-like.
Overall, BEVs account for 19.6% of UK sales in 2024 (and PHEVs account for 8.6% at 167,178 sales). BEVs account for 16.5% of sales in 2023 (314,684 sales) and PHEVs account for 7.5% (141,311 sales).
The UK first introduced ZEV regulations in 2024, requiring automakers to meet the important target of “22% ZEV sales” for the full year. The reason “22%” is in quotes is that the target is a bit aspirational – there are a lot of workarounds allowed for ease of implementation, especially in the first year of the scheme. One of the workarounds is to give extra credits to non-pure electric vehicles (PHEVs, HEVs, and even pure fuel vehicles) for improved emissions reductions, and another major workaround is for manufacturers to trade ZEV credits to make up the shortfall.
Taking into account the workarounds mentioned above, a 19.6% pure electric vehicle share for the full year in 2024 effectively means that the entire auto industry passes the 2024 target of “22%” ZEV regulations. As a result, there are a lot of ZEV credits available to buy and sell between manufacturers, and it seems that no manufacturer will need to pay the government a fine of up to £15,000 per vehicle.
In 2025 and beyond, the ZEV scheme will be further tightened. The “extra bonus” for PHEVs and HEVs will be less significant, and the key target of “28% zero emission vehicles” has clearly been raised.
As a result, the UK’s zero emission vehicle regulations now set a minimum threshold for the speed of future electric vehicle transitions. The 2025 target is tightened further, with the key target being “28% zero emission vehicles”, and less room for maneuver.