One millionth electric vehicle registered in the UK

Britain’s one millionth electric vehicle has hit the road – a key milestone on the journey to a carbon zero future.

A total of 20,935 fully electric cars were registered last month, up 21% compared to the same month last year, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). This takes the overall total since 2002 to 1,001,677.

However, the recent growth is being driven by fleet sales, with sales to private buyers actually falling.

The UK new car market in general grew 8.2% for January with 142,876 new cars registered – an uplift of 10,882 units on January 2023, the best performance for the month since 2020, and the 18th consecutive month of growth.

“It’s taken just over 20 years to reach our million EV milestone – but with the right policies, we can double down on that success in just another two,” said Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive.

“Market growth is currently dependent on businesses and fleets. Government must therefore use the upcoming Budget to support private EV buyers, temporarily halving VAT to cut carbon, drive economic growth and help everyone make the switch.

“Manufacturers have been asked to supply the vehicles, we now ask government to help consumers buy the vehicles on which net zero depends.”