UK sales of EVs surge despite auto sector malaise

Reduced incentives and patchy rollout of charging points could threaten growth, says industry group SMMT

New registrations of battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) in the UK climbed by 76.3pc in 2021 compared with the previous year, industry group the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) says. Overall registrations of all vehicle types were up only 1pc year-on-year from 2020 as the impact of Covid-19 and a global semiconductor shortage continued to weigh heavily on sales. BEVs’ share of new UK registrations rose from 6.6pc in 2020 to 11.6pc in 2021. But this placed the UK only ninth in Europe in terms of the market share of BEVs, according to the SMMT. “This underlines the progress still to be made, despite the UK having among the most ambitious targets of all major markets with the end