New electric car registrations were up 17.8% last year over 2022, however, total new car sales were up 17.9% leading to a surprise decline in market share for electric cars.

Plug-in hybrid cars grew both in volume, up 9.3%, and market share, accounting for 7.4% of the market, for the whole of 2023.

Even though the Tesla Model Y was the best selling car overall in December, the year ended poorly for electric cars with sales of 27,841, down 34% on the same month in 2022. However, last year’s December was seen as an anomalous high, mainly pushed by a peak in Tesla registrations.

The overall new car market increase was driven by company car purchases which were up nearly 40%, while new car sales to private buyers were almost unchanged in 2023 over 2022.

Car dealers who spoke to Electrifying.com said that retail demand for electric cars is nowhere near as high as that in the company car market, where tax savings reduce costs significantly. 

Several also reported that the mid-year switch to the ICE ban (from 2030 to 2035) significantly reduced demand for electric cars.

However, the same dealers said they expected increased discounting of electric cars this year as car manufacturers put incentives in place so they could hit the Government’s ZEV Mandate target which requires car makers to register at least a 22% electric car mix of their total sales in 2024 or face steep fines.

Figures from data firm New Automotive have shed light on the number of pure electric cars sold by each brand. 

Tesla continued to top the charts for electric car sales with more than 47,500 cars registered in 2023, however, it also recorded the largest drop in new car numbers, down nearly 5,500 on 2022.

Other brands seeing significant falls include Nissan and Peugeot each dropping nearly 3,000 electric cars and Renault falling nearly 2,500 units.

MG, the second largest electric car brand, recorded the largest increase in new cars in 2023 jumping 13,410 units over 2022 to 29,153 during 2023. The HS, which is available as a PHEV, was the fourth best selling car for the month, beating any Ford, Vauxhall or VW model.

After MG, it was the premium brands that dominated the electric car growth chart. Audi increased by 10,747, BMW was up 7,511 and Mercedes was up 6,574 electric cars in 2023. This trio was closely followed by Volvo, Polestar and VW.

Model Y was best seller for the month