Just to clarify my last post, I absolutely get the reasons why people choose an EV, especially if they are Motability customers. My query (in relation to the question posed) was about the sense of private buyers going out and buying an EV purely because of the current Middle East crisis. Anyhow, I’ve found out that EV sales in the U.K. rose 24% in March. ZEV mandates for 2026 are 18% higher than 2025 so, presumably, manufacturers would have been geared up for that. Including the March figures, EV sales for the first 3 months of 2026 were only 23% of new car sales, versus the ZEV mandate target of 33% for 2026, so I should think that the recent uplift is probably taken care of by excess supply verses previously suppressed demand? So, to attempt to answer the question posed, I don’t think that the additional demand for EVs will, in itself, cause supply problems, but the longer that the crisis goes on (and the Strait of Hormuz remains closed) then any manufacturing industry is liable to face issues
You say “only 23% of new car sales” were EVs, and certainly less than the ZEV target, but the bigger picture is that it’s the fastest growing category after PHEVs. Diesel vehicle sales continue to slide.
The more surprising figure is that YTD, private sales account for 42% of the market.
The figures don’t drill down to fuel type by sales type, but it’s a fair assumption that private EV sales are also on the increase.
I was quite surprised that the Jaecoo 7 was the best selling car in March and Number 2 YTD! Commonly known as the TEMU Range Rover.
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