UK car registrations Oct 2025: BEVs 25.4% as risks loom
UK October car market: BEVs surge as electrified share hits 50.8%
UK car registrations Oct 2025: BEVs 25.4% as risks loom
SMMT data shows 144,948 UK car registrations in Oct 2025. BEVs take 25.4%, electrified vehicles 50.8%. Growth faces ECOS cancellation and policy uncertainty.
2025-11-06T08:38:26+03:00
2025-11-06T08:38:26+03:00
2025-11-06T08:38:26+03:00
According to data from the UK’s Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), as analysed by SPEEDME.RU, 144,948 new cars were registered in October—0.5% more than a year earlier. Battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) accounted for 25.4% of the market, the second-highest result in 2025.The combined share of electrified vehicles (BEV, PHEV and HEV) reached 50.8%, effectively making every second new car in the country electrified. Hybrid sales rose by 2.1%, while plug-in hybrids grew by 27.2%. By contrast, petrol and diesel models continue to lose ground. The momentum clearly sits with electrified drivetrains.The month’s best-sellers were the Ford Puma, Kia Sportage and Mini Cooper, alongside the Volkswagen Golf and Nissan Juke. Among brands, the strongest growth came from Alpine, BYD, Polestar and Cupra.Yet this progress is threatened by a possible government move to cancel the Employee Car Ownership Scheme (ECOS), which encourages corporate purchases of electric cars. SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes warned that such a step would undermine employee confidence, reduce budget revenues and put green investment at risk.Experts at Auto Trader and Renault UK also noted that without stable government support, reaching 80% electric cars by 2030 would be almost impossible. Despite modest growth, the market remains resilient but needs policy predictability to stay on course for electrification. The balance between demand and policy looks decisive.
UK car market, SMMT, October 2025 registrations, BEV 25.4%, electrified 50.8%, hybrids, plug-in hybrids, Ford Puma, Kia Sportage, Mini Cooper, VW Golf, Nissan Juke, ECOS, policy risk, Renault UK
2025
Michael Powers
news
UK October car market: BEVs surge as electrified share hits 50.8%
SMMT data shows 144,948 UK car registrations in Oct 2025. BEVs take 25.4%, electrified vehicles 50.8%. Growth faces ECOS cancellation and policy uncertainty.
Michael Powers, Editor
According to data from the UK’s Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), as analysed by SPEEDME.RU, 144,948 new cars were registered in October—0.5% more than a year earlier. Battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) accounted for 25.4% of the market, the second-highest result in 2025.
The combined share of electrified vehicles (BEV, PHEV and HEV) reached 50.8%, effectively making every second new car in the country electrified. Hybrid sales rose by 2.1%, while plug-in hybrids grew by 27.2%. By contrast, petrol and diesel models continue to lose ground. The momentum clearly sits with electrified drivetrains.
The month’s best-sellers were the Ford Puma, Kia Sportage and Mini Cooper, alongside the Volkswagen Golf and Nissan Juke. Among brands, the strongest growth came from Alpine, BYD, Polestar and Cupra.
Yet this progress is threatened by a possible government move to cancel the Employee Car Ownership Scheme (ECOS), which encourages corporate purchases of electric cars. SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes warned that such a step would undermine employee confidence, reduce budget revenues and put green investment at risk.
Experts at Auto Trader and Renault UK also noted that without stable government support, reaching 80% electric cars by 2030 would be almost impossible. Despite modest growth, the market remains resilient but needs policy predictability to stay on course for electrification. The balance between demand and policy looks decisive.
