The UK recorded its one millionth electric vehicle (EV) sale last month, as reported by new figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), which began its recording in 2002. In January, a total of 20,935 battery electric vehicles (BEVs) were registered in the UK, representing a year-on-year rise of 21% and bringing the total of BEVs sold to the milestone of 1,001,677.
While the EV market share for January grew year on year, this is still below the previous year’s performance of 16.5%. While fleets and business demand grew by 41.7% in January, private registrations fell by over 25%, sparking calls for VAT to be halved on electric vehicles to boost consumer demand. The volatility in BEV supply has been expected and will likely continue, due to the current lack of significant EV buying incentives for the UK’s private consumer market after the Plug-In Car government grant was retracted last year.
EV VAT rate
The mooted halving of VAT would cost the Treasury an average of just £1,125 per car, which is less than the cost of the previous grant and would partly mirror the tax exemption already offered to consumers on other carbon reduction technologies, such as heat pumps.
Mike Hawes, chief executive of the SMMT, commented, “It’s taken just over 20 years to reach our million EV milestone – but with the right policies, we can double down on that success in just another two.
“Market growth is currently dependent on businesses and fleets. The government must therefore use the upcoming Budget to support private EV buyers, temporarily halving VAT to cut carbon, drive economic growth, and help everyone make the switch.
“Manufacturers have been asked to supply the vehicles, we now ask the government to help consumers buy the vehicles on which net zero depends.”
At Custom Labels, we manufacture a variety of high-quality label solutions tailored for the EV industry. With a new technology business park housing EV battery industries set to open just 200 yards from our UK facilities, we are strategically positioned to expand alongside the growing EV market.
Our range of labelling and tagging solutions includes asset tagging, allowing for the tracking of asset details, testing, calibration, and lifecycle management through a QR code-linked database. Additionally, we offer ultra-durable graphic overlays (fascia labels) designed to convey essential information about EV charging points to end users.
If you have any EV labelling or tagging requirements, or if you have any queries, please don’t hesitate to contact our sales team on 01278 433800 or email us at sales@customlabels.co.uk.
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