The SMMT claims brands forked out roughly £5.5 billion in discounts last year alone, which equates to £11,000 per EV sold and this level of subsidisation is “clearly unsustainable,” the organisation reiterated.
Mike Hawes, chief executive of SMMT, referred to the discounting as the “cost of compliance” for the ZEV mandate, and pointed out to us that the fine a brand faces for every EV it misses the Government’s target by is £12,000. He also highlighted that the gap between the number of EVs sold and the ZEV target was 4.6 per cent last year, up from 2.4 per cent in 2024.
The Government did launch a consultation into the ZEV Mandate in late 2024, but has yet to complete a review of the policy. “We think that the review needs to be brought forward and definitely completed in 2026 because you need to have an assessment about whether this is delivering what it needs to deliver, and the wider impact that will have on the industry.”
The SMMT has also said the announcement of a new ‘eVED’ tax on EVs – more commonly known as pay-per-mile – has sent “a confusing message to consumers, undermining rather than encouraging market confidence.”
Britain’s top-selling electric cars 2025
(based on preliminary SMMT data)
- Tesla Model Y – 24,298
- Tesla Model 3 – 21,188
- Audi Q4 e-tron – 14,433
- Audi Q6 e-tron – 13,148
- Ford Explorer – 12,237
- BMW i4 – 12,158
- Skoda Enyaq – 11,940
- Kia EV3 – 11,188
- Skoda Elroq – 10,713
- Volvo EX30 – 10,289
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