MAY SEES A POSITIVE UPTICK FOR NEW CAR REGISTRATIONS, BEVS CONTINUE STRONG MOMENTUM

“May has seen a slight boost for the new car market, following April’s dip, as it returned to growth with a 1.6% increase in registrations” said Sue Robinson, Chief Executive of the National Franchised Dealers Association (NFDA), which represents franchised car and commercial vehicle retailers in the UK commenting on the latest SMMT new car registration figures.

In May, a total of 150,070 new cars were registered, an increase of 1.6% from the same period last year. Sales to private buyers were down by -2.3%; fleet registrations were up by 3.7%.

Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) continue to experience growth, up 25.8% to 32,738 units. Plug-in hybrid (PHEVs) registrations also increased by 50.8% to17,898 units, and hybrids (HEVs) saw an upturn of 6.8% to 20,351 units. In 2025, 177,487 new BEVs have been registered so far, compared to 133,062 units at the same point last year, representing a 33.4% increase.

With sales of electric growing, diesel fell from 9,220 units to 7,792units (-15.5%), and petrol also saw a drop from 81,508 units to 71,291 units (-12.5%).

Sue Robinson concluded, “BEVs continue their impressive growth, up 25.8% to 32,738 units and a market share of 20.9%.

“Meanwhile, fleet has rebounded from the recent downturn, up 3.7%.

“The impact of pressures such as Employers’ National Insurance, the extension of Vehicle Exercise Duty and the Expensive Car Supplement to electric vehicles will be closely monitored moving forward as well as the uncertainty regarding the blocking/unblocking of US tariffs.

“Looking ahead, we are likely to see pressure on the new vehicle market, due to weak economic growth. We expect electric vehicles sales to continue to increase, however they still remain someway off the ZEV Mandate targets for 2025. Over many years franchised dealers have proven their resilience and this current period of economic turbulence is no difference.

“NFDA is looking ahead to the Government’s Spending Review next week and it provides a prime opportunity to clarify its objectives to reach the ZEV Mandate and wider net zero targets.”