UK car registrations down 29.5% due to shortages and ‘pingemia’ Car News

The UK’s post-pandemic recovery for the new car market suffered a setback in July, according to the latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), attributed to supply chain shortages and frustrations caused by “pingemia”.

A total of 123,296 new cars were registered in July. This is a decrease of 29.5% from the same period in 2020, when registrations increased significantly as showrooms opened for the first full month of operation after the original lockdown.

Performance in July was down 22.3% from the decade average, said the SMMT, which says the semiconductor shortage and “pingdemic” (staff shortage resulting from the government’s research program Covid contacts) had an impact on supply and demand.

The registration figure means that July 2021 was the lowest July for car registrations since 1998, before the current two-plate registration system was introduced. The decline mainly occurred in large fleets, where registrations were 28.7% below the average recorded over the past decade. Growth is expected to continue to slow in August, a historically quiet month for car registrations.

Registrations of plug-in vehicles continued to grow and battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) contributed 9.0% of total registrations with 11,139 units, while plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) accounted for 8.0% with 9,900 units. . The SMMT predicts that BEV adoption will increase, accounting for 9.5% of all registrations by the end of 2021.

“The automotive industry continues to struggle with semiconductor and workforce shortages, which limits our ability to translate a strengthening economic outlook into a full recovery,” said SMMT CEO Mike Hawes.

“The next few weeks will see changes in self-isolation policies that will hopefully help companies in the industry deal with staff absences, but the semiconductor shortage is expected to remain an issue until. less the rest of the year.

“As a result, we have slightly lowered the market outlook for 2021. The silver lining, however, remains the growing demand for electrified vehicles as more and more consumers react to these new technologies, driven by a choice of increased products and fiscal and financial incentives. and a pleasant driving experience.

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