The number of people buying EVs has doubled in the last year
The number of people buying electric cars has doubled in the last year, according to the latest data from New AutoMotive’s Electric Car Count.
In January 2022, UK motorists bought 13,000 new electric cars, up from 6,000 in January 2021. The share of the new car market represented by fully electric cars grew from 7% to 13% over the same period.
The figures show a month-on-month decline from December’s sales figures, when 26% of new cars were fully electric.
Electric cars remain the fastest growing segment of the UK car market. January usually sees a large month-on-month drop when compared with December, and this year is no different. Year-on-year comparisons show continued growth in electric car market share and sales volumes.
According to New AutoMotive the DVLA areas and regions with the highest share of EVs are:
- Maidstone (Kent) – 38%
- Oxfordshire – 37%
- Bristol – 30%
- Newcastle – 28%
- Peterborough (Cambridgeshire) – 27%
- London – 25%
Ben Nelmes, Head of Policy and Research at New AutoMotive, said: “Electric car sales have doubled in the last year but there is still a mountain to climb to reduce the UK’s carbon emissions from cars. The 90,000 internal combustion engines that rolled off forecourts this month will continue to pollute and hit motorists in their pockets for another 14 years on average.
“During a time of rising fuel and energy costs, the government should be using every tool in the box to enable more people to access the fuel cost savings from buying an electric car. That’s why we’re calling for a California-style ZEV mandate to be introduced as early as possible with ambitious targets.
“While it is disappointing to see a drop in the market share of electric cars from December to January, these figures represent long-term growth in the number of people buying electric cars.”
Image: Shutterstock
