EVs have been getting a bad press of late, whether it be the resale value or lack of private car buyers (opposed to fleet) or EU car makers feeling the heat of transition, but the market share of EV sales in the UK has reached over 20 per cent for the third month running.(Picture: Caterham Project V).

According to New AutoMotive’s latest Electric Car Count the industry is now comfortably above the legal requirements demanded by the UK’s Zero Emission Vehicles (ZEV) mandate, in part because many manufacturers have also significantly lowered their targets by outperforming CO2 emissions targets on their petrol and hybrid sales.

In October, sales of new EVs reached 20.8 per cent of the market, making them the fastest growing fuel type throughout the month, and the top six for EV sales last month were all European brands. The EV sales from Volskwagen, Mercedes Benz, BMW, Peugeot, Audi and Skoda all were between 18 per cent and 30 per cent of their total sales volume. Despite previously struggling to meet EV sales targets, Renault and Ford both outsold Tesla in October. Honda also performed particularly well, with 32 per cent of the brand’s total sales being electric.

ICE powered vehicles accounted for less than 40 per cent of overall market share for a second consecutive month. The UK’s petrol market is declining rapidly, falling 14 per cent this year compared with the first ten months of 2023.

Ben Nelmes, CEO of New AutoMotive, said: “Electric car sales are going from strength to strength in the UK. The ambitious action is being supported by the UK’s world-leading Zero Emissions Vehicle mandate, which is a market–based approach that provides big rewards for companies that sell the most electric cars. This regulation is now the foundation on which billions of investment in battery manufacturing and charge points are built.”

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