UK new car registrations hit record low in April

Figures published today by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) show that UK new car registrations plummeted 97.3 per cent year-on-year in April. This marks a record low for the new car market as the coronavirus pandemic forced the nation into lockdown for the entire month, with showrooms closed and car buyers housebound.

Just 4,321 new cars were registered in the month, some 156,743 fewer than in April 2019. The decline was the steepest of modern times, and is in line with similar falls across Europe, with France, where the market is 88.8 per cent down, and the Italian market, which fell 97.5 per cent in April.

Many April 2020 deliveries were to key workers and front line public services and companies. Fleet orders represented by far the bulk of the market, taking 71.5 per cent market share, equivalent to 3,090 units, while private buyers registered just 871 cars – a year on year fall of 98.7 per cent. The distortion was reflected across all segments and fuel types, with the numbers of new petrol and diesel cars joining UK roads down 98.5 per cent and 97.6 per cent respectively, as plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) declined 95.1 per cent and hybrids (HEVs) 99.3 per cent. Meanwhile, the niche battery electric vehicles sector saw a smaller percentage decrease of 9.7 per cent, as some pre-ordered deliveries of the latest premium models were able to be fulfilled.

Despite showrooms being closed for the month of April, companies managed to support key workers, critical companies and frontline services. Meanwhile, the industry has continued to keep service and repair workshops open to maintain vehicles that are so crucial in keeping key services, goods and people moving safely across the country.

Downgraded 2020 forecast

The news comes as SMMT releases its latest new car market forecast for 2020, downgrading previous expectations to just 1.68 million registrations. This puts the sector on course to record its worst performance since 1992’s 1.59 million units, below the levels seen during the financial crisis and some 27 per cent lower than the 2.31 million new cars registered in 2019. Despite this, the BEV market is expected to double in 2020 to 77,300 units as new model introductions bolster the market.2

“With the UK’s showrooms closed for the whole of April, the market’s worst performance in living memory is hardly surprising,” comments Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive. “These figures, however, still make for exceptionally grim reading, not least for the hundreds of thousands of people whose livelihoods depend on the sector. A strong new car market supports a healthy economy and as Britain starts to plan for recovery, we need car retail to be in the vanguard. Safely restarting this most critical sector and revitalising what will, inevitably, be subdued demand will be key to unlocking manufacturing and accelerating the UK’s economic regeneration.”