WILL ELECTRIC CAR SALES HIT THE UK'S REQUIRED 22% TARGET IN 2024?

The UK was due to end the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans in 2030, but in September 2023 Prime Minister Rishi Sunak put back this date by five years to 2035. As a result, many UK motorists who might have been considering switching to an EV in the next few years may now be delaying this change.

However while there has been a delay to the phase-out date for the sale of ICE vehicles, the ZEV (Zero Emission Vehicle) Mandate came into force this month, which mandates car manufacturers to ensure that 22% of their new car sales in 2024 are zero emission (and 10% of van sales have to be zero emission), with an increasing percentage of EV sales required each year up to 100% in 2035. So on the one hand the Government is saying there's no need to buy an EV yet, but on the other hand it's saying that 22% of new car sales have to be EVs in 2024. How will this translate to EV registrations?

Although a small number of manufacturers may hit or exceed the 22% target (Tesla, a company that only sells EVs, being an obvious winner), many manufacturers are likely to fall short of the target because they currently don't have enough EVs in their model ranges. There are ste...