UK New Car Sales Rebound in December

New car sales in the UK rose by 3.4% from the previous year to 144,127 units in January of 2026, slowing from the 3.9% increase in the previous month. Registrations for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles soared (47.3% to 18,557) to mark over 12% of total registrations. A softer increase was noted for hybrid electric vehicles (4.8% to 19,197), while registrations of battery electric vehicles were steady (0.1% to 29,654), over 20% of the market share. In turn, sales fell for petrol engine vehicles (-1.9% to 68,757).

New car sales in the UK increased by 3.9% year on year to 146,249 units in December 2025, rebounding from the 1.6% decline in November. Demand was led by private and business buyers, with registrations rising 16.0% and 15.3%, respectively, offsetting a 2.4% decline in fleet registrations. By powertrain, traditional internal combustion vehicles remained under pressure. Diesel registrations fell 12.5%, while petrol car sales declined 3.1%. In contrast, new energy vehicles accounted for more than half of total market share, reflecting sustained electrification momentum. Plug-in hybrid vehicle (PHEV) registrations surged 32.9%, while battery electric vehicle (BEV) sales rose 8.0% and hybrid registrations increased 3.0% year on year.

New car sales in the UK fell by 1.6% from the previous year to 151,154 units in November of 2025, erasing the 0.5% increase from the previous month. Registrations by private buyers fell by 5.5% in the period, offsetting a 0.2% increase in fleet uptake and an 18% surge in business buyer volumes, which are traditionally a small part of total registrations. Among different vehicle types, diesel engine registrations sank by 24% and petrol car registrations fell 5.9%. In turn, new energy vehicles registrations accounted for over half of the total market share, with higher sales for plug-in hybrid (14.8%), battery electric (3.6%), and hybrid (1.3%) cars.