Electric Car Sales Reach Record High in UK, Overtaking Diesel

Electric vehicle (EV) sales reached record highs in the UK last year, even with total new car sales driven to their lowest level in three decades by supply chain disruptions. Nearly a third of all new cars sold in December 2022 were EVs and they made up almost 17 percent of vehicle sales throughout the year, overtaking new diesel car sales for the first time ever, reported The Guardian.

The best-selling new EV was Tesla’s Model Y, which reached third place on the overall Top 10 best selling new cars in the UK, according to This is Money.

CEO at New AutoMotive Ben Nelmes said EV sales in December 2022 were “seriously impressive” and represented a major turning point in the move away from fossil fuel cars, Business Green reported.

“This is the result of years of government support through consumer and fiscal incentives, as well as a clear long-term ambition to end sales of fossil fuelled cars by 2035,” Nelmes said, as reported by Business Green.

According to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) overview of new car sales in the UK for 2022, total sales were just over 1.6 million, down two percent from the previous year. That is the lowest it’s been since 1992, The Guardian reported.

 Semiconductor chip shortages and global supply chain disruptions that began with the pandemic were still affecting car manufacturers into 2022. But from August to the end of 2022, total new car sales picked up speed. By December, new car sales had increased by 18 percent, according to the SMMT.

“Manufacturers have really struggled to be able to make vehicles in sufficient quantities they need, primarily due to semiconductor shortages, but there are other parts chain shortages behind that as well,” said SMMT CEO Mike Hawes, as reported by The Guardian.

Hawes said the SMMT was predicting this year would be one of “recovery” with 15 percent growth for new car sales.

Hawes said the biggest worry for those considering purchasing a new EV is “charging anxiety” — the concern that there won’t be enough charging stations to keep their vehicle powered up — which deters some drivers from shifting away from fossil fuel-powered cars.

“Manufacturers’ innovation and commitment have helped EVs become the second most popular car type,” Hawes said, as Business Green reported. “However, for a nation aiming for electric mobility leadership, that must be matched with policies and investment that remove consumer uncertainty over switching, not least over where drivers can charge their vehicles.”

There were 36,752 public EV charging stations in the UK at the end of November 2022, up 33 percent from November 2021, according to data company Zap-Map.

The recent EV sales data were called “a symbol of progress, a sign that we are starting to take the climate crisis seriously” by Mel Evans, an activist with Greenpeace UK, reported Business Green.

“But the numbers released today have an even better story to tell,” Evans said. “Only around a third of cars sold in December were petrol driven, and diesel has almost disappeared from the statistics.”The UK government has a goal of phasing out all sales of new gas and diesel cars by 2030 and for all new passenger vehicles to be zero emissions by 2035. A Zero Emissions Vehicle Mandate is also being developed that would require car manufacturers to make a minimum amount of EVs in the future.