Aftermarket December/January 2023

E lectric vehicle sales hit a new high in the all- important September new car market, while an extension to the Plug-in Delivery Grant offered some much-needed certainty in the rollercoaster segment. A government decision to extend the Plug-in Delivery Grant delivery period on new EVs is being welcomed across the industry. The Office for Zero Emission Vehicles (OZEV) has said it is extending the Plug-in Vehicle Grant delivery period from 12 months to 18 months. The result of this will be that eligibility will only expire if a vehicle is not delivered within 18 months of the order being recorded on the grant portal. The extension will cover vehicle orders made between 14 June 14 2021 and 31 March 2023. Semi- conductor supply issues, and other supply chain issues resulting from the 60 AFTERMARKET DECEMBER/JANUARY 2023 EVS AND HYBRIDS www.aftermarketonline.net PLUGGED INTO THE FUTURE? Records were broken, and promises renewed in the last few weeks, as the increasing distance EVs can travel was also highlighted war in Ukraine has been adversely affecting the delivery of new vehicles. Commenting on the announcement, Toby Poston, Director of Corporate Affairs at the BVRLA, said: “This is great news for a fleet industry that is still suffering from massive lead times on some of the most popular battery electric vehicles. We greatly appreciate the input from members on this issue and thank OZEV for taking decisive action to support fleet decarbonisation.” NFDA CEO Sue Robinson added: “By extending the Plug-in Vehicle Grant delivery period it is allowing consumers more time to receive their orders which may have been affected by the well documented supply constraints impacting the automotive sector. NFDA supports this decision as franchised dealers are still battling long lead times for their orders, the delivery extension is positive as it provides a safety net for customers to receive their electric vehicle on the grant at which they placed their order.” New cars sales up in September as EV total hits one million New car sales went up again in September, with registrations rising 4.6% to, 225,269 , according to the latest figures from the SMMT. While sales were 9,957 up on last year, the month saw sales still lagging 34.4% below pre-pandemic levels. The month also saw the second highest ever monthly volume of battery electric vehicle (BEV) registrations in history, up 16.5% to 38,116 units, although plug-in hybrid vehicle (PHEV) sales dropped 11.5% to 12,281, Despite this, overall plug-in vehicles made up around one in five new cars sold in September. In total, 249,575 have now been sold during 2022, a quarter of the one million