Last month was the best February for new car sales in the UK in 22 years, in accordance with the most recent trade figures, which present big yearly progress in the sector off the again of a wholesome uptick in retail registrations.
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) says 90,100 automobiles had been registered in the shortest month of the yr, a major 7.2% enhance over 2025 – pushed primarily by a 17.6% enhance in sales to non-public consumers, who took house extra than 35,000 automobiles.
There was a smaller, 2.8% enhance in fleet sales, making up effectively over half of the market, which extra than offset a 12.7% downturn in the a lot lower-volume enterprise phase.
However, whereas the market grew total, February marked the second month of decline for the market share of electrical automobiles, which accounted for simply 24.2% of registrations, in contrast with simply over 1 / 4 final yr – regardless of a 2.8% uptick in registrations.
The SMMT attributes that dip, in half, to a surge of EV sales in the run-up to the imposition of new tax charges final April and notes that producers had been pushing EVs onerous in the ultimate months of 2025 in a bid to adjust to the Zero-Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate.
The commerce physique additionally says that as a result of February is a number of days shorter than different months, volumes are inherently decrease and so any modifications are typically exaggerated.
Despite inexperienced shoots of a long-awaited market restoration in February, the SMMT notes that volumes are historically stifled as consumers have a tendency to attend for the March numberplate change to take house their new automobiles, and it says subsequent month’s figures can be “pivotal” – significantly for electric cars.
It mentioned: “With year-to-date BEV market share at 22.0%, two thirds of the 33% share mandated for 2026, March is ready to be a pivotal month. Manufacturers have already invested billions in new fashions and reductions to drive demand, now with assist from authorities’s Electric Car Grant, however circumstances have modified past expectation since the regulation was set.
“A holistic review of the transition is needed – and must be completed urgently as buyer confidence is anticipated to be weakened further amid plans to introduce a pay-per-mile tax for EVs (eVED) from 2028.”
While electrical car progress tailed off in February, plug-in hybrid sales soared by 43.5% to offer them a file 11.6% share of the market, and hybrids took 13.1%. That got here on the expense of pure-petrol automobiles, which dipped to 46.5% regardless of a small uptick in demand. Diesel’s decline continued, with sales lowered by 3.8% for a market share of simply 4.5%.
