The UK’s electric vehicle market hit the brakes in November, delivering its weakest growth in almost two years as the Chancellor’s looming pay-per-mile tax sowed uncertainty among buyers, and left Tesla nursing the sharpest fall in registrations.
New figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) show that just under 40,000 battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) were registered last month — only a 3.6% rise on November 2024, and a dramatic slowdown for a sector expected to accelerate rapidly towards the government’s net-zero goals.
It marks the softest year-on-year expansion since late 2023, when global supply chains were still snarled, and leaves BEVs on a 26.4% market share, short of the government’s 28% target for this stage in the transition.
The slowdown comes after weeks of pre-Budget speculation in which Treasury sources aired, and then confirmed, plans for a new EV excise duty (eVED). From April 2028, BEV drivers will pay 3p per mile and plug-in hybrid drivers 1.5p per mile, replacing the fuel duty revenue lost as motorists ditch petrol and diesel.
For a typical BEV driver covering 8,500 miles a year, the charge equates to £255 in road tax, a significant shift from the current near-zero cost regime.
The SMMT warned the move risks “endangering the UK’s net-zero transition”, adding that demand could collapse at the very moment it needs to surge. The Office for Budget Responsibility estimates the change could mean 440,000 fewer EV sales over the next five years.
Mike Hawes, chief executive of the SMMT, said the warning lights were flashing: “This should be a wake-up call. We cannot take sustained EV growth for granted. We should be encouraging drivers to switch, not punishing them for doing so.”
Fresh data from New AutoMotive suggests Tesla was the sector’s biggest casualty, with UK registrations down almost 20% month-on-month to 3,800 vehicles, slipping to just 2.5% market share.
Chinese rival BYD, which has leaned heavily into hybrids and plug-in hybrids, more than tripled its UK registrations over the same period.
The divergence reflects a broader shift in buyer sentiment: plug-in hybrids were the fastest-growing powertrain in November, up 14.8%, while petrol and diesel continued their structural decline.
Alongside the new EV mileage tax, Rachel Reeves extended grants for new EV purchases until 2030, with some new Renault and Mini models now qualifying for the maximum £3,750 discount.
But with cost perceptions still the biggest barrier to uptake, analysts warn the government has work to do.
Jamie Hamilton, automotive partner at Deloitte, said: “The new mileage charge will increase the running costs of EVs and may slow uptake. The industry must now redouble efforts to communicate the long-term value and investment behind the transition.”
With global carmakers betting billions on electrification and the UK’s own ZEV mandate gathering force, ministers will be hoping November’s slowdown is a blip — not the beginning of a much steeper decline.
