The UK car market had its best June since 2019 with registrations for battery electric vehicles and other plug-in cars rising rapidly compared to 2024, according to figures published by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).
Registrations rose 6.7% to 191,316 units, lifting first half performance by 3.5% above the same period last year.
Registrations of vehicles with plugs rose strongly, as battery electric vehicles (BEVs) jumped 39.1% to 47,354 units, equivalent to a quarter (24.8%) of the market, and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) grew 28.8% to 21,382 units. The market for new hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), meanwhile, fell by 8.5% to 23,835 registrations.
Across the first six months of 2025 new BEV registrations have risen 34.6% to 224,841 units, representing 21.6% market share.
The news follows separate figures produced by New AutoMotive that BEVs captured a record 24.9% of the new car market in June. A total of 46,700 new electric cars were registered across the UK, marking a substantial 45.5% increase on the same month last year, the data suggested.
The SMMT figures also revealed that new petrol registrations declined 4.2% and diesel volumes were flat, meaning their combined share of the market is now just over half (51.6%) – with total electrified vehicle registrations (92,571) achieving a 48.5% market share.
Despite the positive figures, the market share is still below the 28% required under the ZEV Mandate. In order to boost growth, the SMMT said that applying the VED Expensive Car Supplement (ECS) has imposed “an effective fine of more than £360 million on BEVs” bought from April in this year alone and is “acting as a brake on BEV demand”.
The sector said that fiscal incentives for private BEV was “the biggest single action needed to boost demand, economic growth and the UK’s automotive manufacturing base”, which is a a key objective of government’s new Industrial Strategy.
Removing the ECS for BEVs would “deliver a vibrant domestic market”, becoming a leader not “just in decarbonisation but in affordability”.
If implemented for three years, an additional 267,000 BEVs – rather than fossil fuel vehicles – would be put on the road, driving down CO2 emissions by six million tonnes a year, the SMMT added.
Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive, said:
“A second consecutive month of growth for the new car market is good news, as is the positive performance of EVs. That EV growth, however, is still being driven by substantial industry support with manufacturers using every channel and unsustainable discounting to drive activity, yet it remains below mandated levels.
“As we have seen in other countries, government incentives can supercharge the market transition, without which the climate change ambitions we all share will be under threat.”
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