Electric cars set for record year amid overall market drop

More new electric cars are expected to be sold this year than the whole of 2010 to 2019 combined, despite an overall new car market slump. 

The Society of Motor Manufacturer and Traders (SMMT) is forecasting that buyers will take up around 287,000 of the latest zero-emission capable cars by the end of the year - around one in six new cars.

That would mean sales of new electric and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) exceeding their total sales for the nine years from 2010 to 2019 (271,962). 

The SMMT is also forecasting that electric cars will outsell conventional diesel and mild-hybrid diesel cars next year. 

October saw PHEV sales grow to a 8 per cent market share (8382 cars), while electric cars equalled their September market share of 15 per cent (16,155 cars), partly helped by the diesel and petrol fuel crisis. 

Plug-in vehicles now account for 17 per cent of all new car registrations in 2021. 

When combined with hybrid electric vehicles this means that more than a quarter of the new car market, has been electrified year-to-date.

However, the overall new car market experienced its weakest October since 1991 as the semi-conductor shortage continues to hit supply. Sales dropped by 25 per cent compared to October last year.

James Fairclough, CEO of AA Cars, said that sales figures are being depressed by a chronic shortage of new vehicles.

"Months of delays and interruptions on production lines mean many dealers simply aren’t receiving enough new cars to meet customer demand,” he said. 

Alex Buttle, co-founder of used car marketplace Motorway.co.uk, added: "Car buyers have difficult purchasing decisions to make."

"Ongoing supply chain issues and ever-growing manufacturer waiting lists mean buyers could be waiting six to 12 months for delivery of their new car. This has driven people to turn to the used car market instead which continues to be extremely buoyant at all ends of the buying spectrum." 

The SMMT now expects 2021 to finish on 1.66 million sales, just 1.9% up on 2020.

A partial recovery, however, is forecast for 2022, with industry anticipating 1.96 million new car registrations next year, driven by the continued demand for plug-in vehicles.