Skip to main content

Moneybarn: 1,800% increase in UK electric car registrations over five year period

Nearly 10,000 electric cars are now registered in the UK with Japanese and German manufacturers dominating most popular brands in the UK, according to a five-year analysis on the development of the Electric vehicle industry by Moneybarn. These findings have been revealed following the government’s plan to ban the sale of all petrol and diesel vehicles from 2040.
November 2, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
Nearly 10,000 electric cars are now registered in the UK with Japanese and German manufacturers dominating most popular brands in the UK, according to a five-year analysis on the development of the Electric vehicle industry by Moneybarn. These findings have been revealed following the government’s plan to ban the sale of all petrol and diesel vehicles from 2040.


The growth in sales suggest that Electric vehicles (EVs) are no longer considered niche specialist vehicles with most popular manufacturers bringing out their own versions. In 2016, figures showed that Japan’s Mitsubishi’s Outlander had the highest market share of 7,572, followed by Nissan Leaf, 5,535. Germany’s Mercedes C Class came next with 5,164 followed by the BMW 3 Series 4,637. The lowest market share of 1,378 is held by is Germany’s Volkswagen Golf, which is 116 less than France’s Renault Zoe, whose market share is at 1,494.

Figures from the Department of Transport registrations of Ultra Low Emission Vehicles (ULEVs) have increased by 1,864% since 2011 which has seen the number of EVs registered on Britain’s roads rise from 2,129 five years ago to almost 100,000 at the end of last year. In addition, the increased demand from the British public for ULEVs is reflected by government initiatives and budget plans. The recent Clean Growth Strategy proposal suggests there will be an investment of £1 billion ($1.3 billion) to support the take-up of electric and other low-emission vehicles.

A standardised green score from the Council for Energy-Efficient Economy has revealed that most of the best cars for efficiency and emissions are purely electric models and the list of the most highly-rated is dominated by Asian Toyota, Mitsubishi and Nissan.

Simon Bayley, sales and marketing director of Moneybarn, said: “It’s a potentially exciting time for the UK car industry. Electric and alternative energy cars have now moved into the mainstream and are here to stay. With the government investing £1b in this sector there is an alignment between manufacturers and government that will hopefully encourage consumer purchasing for years to come.”  

A full breakdown of the number of registrations from 2011 to 2016 is available on the %$Linker: 2 External <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 0 0 0 link-external website false https://www.moneybarn.com/emission-impossible/ false false%>.

Related Content

  • June 12, 2018
    Birmingham has highest number of ULEVs in UK
    The city of Birmingham is home to the highest number of ultra-low emission vehicles (ULEVs) in the UK, according to new research: there were 12,247 licenced models as of Q4 last year, says number plate specialist Click4reg. Its analysis of the top 20 UK local authorities was carried out ahead of government plans to host a zero-emissions vehicle summit in September 2018. The event is due to focus on vehicle technology to tackle carbon emissions and improve air quality. The research showed that Peterbo
  • September 13, 2018
    UK government reveals £400m EV charging network boost
    The UK government is providing £400m to create an electric vehicle (EV) charging point infrastructure, in partnership with the automotive industry. UK prime minister Theresa May says the government will ensure charge points can be easily accessed and available at motorway service stations and other petrol stations. There will also be £1.5bn for the development of ultra-low emission vehicles (ULEVS). Speaking at the country’s first Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) Summit in Birmingham, May unveiled an ‘am
  • November 7, 2017
    MoneySuperMarket: 49% of British public surveyed have never considered buying EV or Hybrid Car
    49% of the of the British public have stated that they have never considered buying an electric car (EC) or hybrid car, according to recent research by MoneySupermarket.com. These findings come from a survey carried out by the comparison site on 1,000 UK car owners to determine whether the British public is prepared for the electric switch following the government’s plans to prohibit petrol and diesel vehicles by 2040. It examined the cost, the number of charging points and public opinion.
  • August 6, 2018
    Bristol advances towards 2050 emissions target
    Bristol City Council will install 120 electric vehicle (EV) charge points and convert part of its fleet to electric in a bid to become carbon neutral by 2050. The UK council also intends to transition at least 10% of its vehicles to electric by 2021. The scheme will take place across the West of England and is being funded by £2m grant provided by the Office of Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV) through the Go Ultra Low West project. Go Ultra Low West’s stated aim is to provide the infrastructure and enviro