Car sales: Electric vehicle uptake target remains distant despite fuel price spike

Government targets for sales of new electric cars are still far from being met, despite a leap in demand likely helped by the Iran war fuel price surge.

Figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) showed the strongest May for sales of new cars since 2019 - before the COVID pandemic.

The industry body said sales were up 7.1% compared to May 2025 at 160,662, with households delivering much of the growth.

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Crucially, the share of battery electric vehicles (EVs) rose to 27.3% of the market last month, taking it to 23.9% year-to-date.

Both figures, however, still remain short of the 33% level demanded of the sector this year under the government's Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate.

The mandate requires vehicle manufacturers to ensure a rising percentage of their annual new car and van sales are fully zero-emission, with the ultimate goal of all new cars and vans being zero-emission by 2035.

The ZEV target last year stood at 28%.

It has never been met but the industry has escaped threatened fines through mechanisms within the mandate, such as CO2 offsetting and the sale of lower-emission petrol and diesel cars that can bring the mandated level down and count towards the target.

A government review of the EV sales quota was announced in March following a tough 2025 - with 2026 also providing its challenges including renewed pressure on buyer budgets from the tough economy including the effects of the Iran war.

The results of the review are due early next year.

Weak demand for EVs - built around concerns over high prices and weak public charging infrastructure - has prompted many within the industry to scale back their own electric ambitions, with discounting to attract buyers hurting profitability.

A prolonged period of high fuel costs due to the Iran war could lead to a production outlook rethink, but it remains true that power prices will also have to go up to compensate for elevated natural gas costs.

According to figures last month from the sustainable transport lobby group, Transport and Environment, drivers of petrol-powered cars were on average paying £50 a month more to run their vehicles compared to EV owners.

That sum would be higher for diesels due to the fuel costing more per litre at the pumps.

The SMMT said more models, including from often-cheaper Chinese manufacturers, and continued showroom price reductions were also a driving force behind the acceleration in EV sales.

The body's chief executive, Mike Hawes, said: "Britain's car buyers are responding to a market offering more choice than ever, from both new and familiar brands, resulting in a robust May.

"The EV transition is progressing, but consumer uptake still lags behind even today's targets, let alone the ambition set out in the latest Carbon Budget.

"While industry shares the long-term ambition, the pathway to net zero must be credible. It cannot come at the cost of lost competitiveness and deindustrialisation. A review of the transition is now urgent to ensure ambition matches market realities and we have a sustainable path to road transport decarbonisation."

Commenting on ZEV sales lagging behind target, Ben Nelmes, chief executive of the EV campaign group New AutoMotive, said: "Today's figures show a growing market and real consumer and private buyer momentum behind electric vehicles.

"It is disappointing that SMMT continues to claim manufacturers must hit 33% EV market share this year. That is simply not how the ZEV mandate works. The policy includes substantial flexibility mechanisms that significantly reduce the operative compliance threshold for 2026.

"The 33% figure is a statutory headline, not the target manufacturers are actually being held to", he said.

A Department for Transport spokesperson said: "Manufacturers and industry are on track to meet their targets - but we recognise manufacturers are facing challenges.

"That's why we're investing £7.5bn to help industry and drivers go electric and have introduced flexibilities, allowing manufacturers to meet the mandate in several ways - not just through ZEV sales."

(c) Sky News 2026: Car sales: Electric vehicle uptake target remains distant despite fuel price spike