UK car market rebounds on bumper demand for EVs

(Sharecast News) - New car sales motored ahead in April, industry data showed on Tuesday, driven by strong demand for electric vehicles amid surging fuel prices.

According to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, new car registrations rose 24% to 149,247 last month, the best outturn since April 2019, when just over 161,000 units were sold.

April is traditionally a quiet month for car sales, as it follows March's plate change. However, the SMMT said this year's print had benefited from an especially weak April 2025, when buyers brought purchases forward ahead of higher vehicle taxes coming into effect.

Driving the growth this April were EVs. A total of 39,084 new battery EVs were registered, a hike of 59.1% year-on-year, while sales of plug-in hybrids rose 46.4% to 20,597. More than 2m EVs have now been registered, the SMMT confirmed.

In contrast, demand for petrol cars was 8.2% higher at 63,541, while diesel registrations eased 1%.

Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said: "April's rebound is welcome, but underlines just how significantly fiscal changes can influence the market.

"Two million EV registrations is a considerable milestone, although natural demand is still well below the level demanded by the mandate. The mounting cost of compliance threatens to limit consumer choice, overall decarbonisation and the sector's competitiveness, so the need for a rapid review of the transition to align policy with market realities is unchanged."

Jamie Hamilton, automotive partner and head of EVs at Deloitte, said higher fuel prices were encouraging more drivers to move away from petrol cars.

He continued: "With 88% of UK consumers expecting fuel prices to be higher next month, it is clear why interest in EVs is proving resilient, as drivers look for lower running costs and greater price certainty. We would expect momentum behind EV uptake to remain strong over the coming months while fuel costs remain high."

Fuel prices at the pump have jumped in recent weeks after war in the Middle sent global energy prices soaring.