Strong demand pushes UK car registrations through the two million barrier
THE introduction of the new 65 registration plate proved a spur to car buyers in the UK as latest figures show the number of new car sales reached a September record.
In total, 462,517 cars were registered in the UK; up 8.6% on the same month last year.
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said there was also increased demand across all fuel types, and from private, fleet and business buyers.
The strong demand also saw the number of new registrations pass two million for the year to date. The total number of cars registered so far in 2015 is 2,096,886; up 7.1% on the same point last year.
It is the first time the two million landmark has been passed in September since 2004.
Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said: “September is traditionally one of the year’s biggest months for new car registrations, and last month set an autumn record. With plenty of attractive, affordable deals available on the new 65-plate, Britain’s car buyers – whether private, fleet or business consumers – were busier than ever.
“The market reached pre-recession levels some time ago, and we anticipate some levelling off in the coming months. It is too early to draw conclusions, but customer demand for diesel remained strong, accounting for one in two cars registered.”
The latter fact is significant. It is too early to say if there has been any fall-out in the diesel sector as a result of the Volkswagen emissions testing scandal – indeed the Golf and Polo claimed 4th and 5th places in the list of top 10 best sellers for the month.
New registration figures for September show VW up 3.73% on the same month last year, with 39,263 vehicles registered, while group brands Audi (28,437/11.36%) and Skoda (11,384/3.58%) showed no significant impact; Seat (8,655) declined almost 10% but whether this was a result of the scandal or not is unclear.
Commenting on the overall figures, John Leech, head of automotive at KPMG UK, said the performance suggested 2015 could see an all-time sales record in the UK.
“While September is always a strong month for new car registrations, it seems the advent of the 65-plate has confounded expectations for a muted growth forecast in the second half of 2015. The strong pound is helping car manufacturers to continue offering attractive finance offers, which consumers are responding to,” he said.
“It is also interesting to see that diesels account for half of all cars sold suggesting that consumers have not yet turned away from the technology.”
