A top economist has called on the government to introduce more measures to boost retail sales of electric vehicles.
Matthew Croucher, chief economist at the SMMT, said the recent changes to the ZEV Mandate introduced by the government had helped but were not enough.
“The recent changes made to the ZEV Mandate provide improved flexibilities, but our short-term outlooks still show a growing gap between the market and the mandate targets, so we need measures to help stimulate volumes, not just market share.
“Measures such as halving VAT on EVs, changing the VED expensive car supplement threshold, allowing manufacturers to keep employee car ownership schemes and removing VAT on public charging.”
Croucher was speaking at a Vehicle Remarketing Association meeting which looked at the big issues impacting the used car market
Phill Jones, chief operating officer at Motors said price was a major issue when it came to buying EVs.
“The choice of fuel made by a used car buyer is very much driven by price. It should be remembered that the majority of used cars being sold are under £10,000 and yet there are very few EVs practical for daily use in that price bracket, but they are coming.
“We have carried out research among drivers that shows most drivers expect their next car to be a hybrid or an EV. Once they become more affordable, more EV sales will happen.”
Derren Martin, representing Percayso said demand for hybrids was growing.
“We’re seeing both data and feedback from dealers showing that hybrids are seen as a practical stepping stone to an EV and prices are rising accordingly – up 3.73% so far this year.
However, it’s also worth noting that although stock levels of EVs being held by dealers are up 16% in 2025, values continue to fall slightly, indicating that demand still needs to match supply. Some dealers do remain probably overcautious about buying EVs.”
