- SMMT reports that fleets are leading the electric transition but end of private consumer incentives undermines mass market demand.
- Claims new research shows two thirds of drivers want to go electric but are held back by lack of incentives and infrastructure – with nine in 10 who’ve switched stating they would never go back to a conventionally-fuelled vehicle.
- Two thirds (68%) of non-EV drivers surveyed said they want to make the switch, but just 2% plan to invest this year and 17% in 2024 – with more than half saying they will not be ready until 2026 or later
- To spur mass market adoption, car industry calls for support for private buyers in line with incentives for businesses..
Delivering a faster and fairer mass transition to electric vehicles (EVs) is threatened by the absence of support for private buyers, according to Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).
The automotive industry trade association claims that many motorists plan to go electric but are delaying due to concerns over affordability and uncertainty regarding the availability of a nationwide charging network.
It estimates that with one electric vehicle registered every 60 seconds, they now account for more than 16% of overall sales, making Britain Europe’s second-largest zero emission car market by volume. Sales have risen from 0.7% of the new car market in 2018, yet are anticipated to account for 17.8% by the end of the year.
The SMMT says that while the shift was originally driven by private consumers, they have since been overtaken by fleets and business buyers. Following 2022’s removal of the Plug-in Car Grant – leaving Britain as the only major European market with no consumer EV incentives yet the most ambitious transition timeline – sales to private buyers have fallen from more than one in three, to less than one in four.
Two thirds (68%) of non-EV drivers surveyed said they want to make the switch, but just 2% plan to invest this year and 17% in 2024 – with more than half saying they will not be ready until 2026 or later, according to a new survey by Savanta. Two thirds (68%) of non-EV drivers surveyed said they want to make the switch, but just 2% plan to invest this year and 17% in 2024 – with more than half saying they will not be ready until 2026 or later.
The SMMT says driving up demand is made more urgent by the proposed Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate which will compel the sale of these cars and vans, but has still to be finalised with barely 100 days to go until implementation.
It reports that manufacturers are committed to delivery, having invested heavily to ensure there is wide-ranging choice in the market, with performance to meet drivers’ needs. But getting consumers to buy sooner, however, depends on financial incentives (said 68% of respondents) and ready access to affordable, reliable public charging (said 67% of respondents).
The SMMT says the success of the business and fleet markets in switching to EV must now be replicated in the private retail market. While manufacturers already provide attractive purchase incentives, these need to be complemented by government-backed incentives such as reducing VAT on EV purchases and public charging; raising the threshold for Vehicle Excise Duty; as well as mandating targets for chargepoint rollout.
Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said: “We are entering a new phase in the UK’s EV transition, in which Britain can, and should, be a leader. We have the industry, the love of new technology and the scale to succeed. Government has recently demonstrated its commitment to EV manufacturing in the UK and that commitment must be extended to the consumer. With a new – and still to be finalised – Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate due to revolutionise the market in just over 100 days, supply must be matched by demand. A comprehensive package of measures would encourage households across the UK to go electric now, boosting an industry slowly recovering from the pandemic and delivering benefits for the Exchequer, society and the global environment.”
