HMRC trade figures reveal a drop in UK electric vehicle imports

HMRC’s recent UK Trade figures reveal that the UK’s electric vehicle (EV) market could be slowing down, say leading audit, tax and business advisory firm, Blick Rothenberg.

Simon Sutcliffe, Customs & Excise Duty Partner at the firm, said: “HMRC’s Trade figures this month show a potential drop in EV imports and rise in conventional combustion vehicle imports into the UK.”

He added: “The importation of Chinese origin vehicles, most of which are EVs, into the UK has fallen by 27%. As the UK is not following the EU’s punitive tariffs on Chinese EVs, you would have expected a major boost to Chinese car imports as Chinese EV manufactures target the UK market.”

Simon said: “Instead there has been a rise in cars imported from the EU. In particular they are being imported from Germany and Spain, with an import rise of 39% and 28% respectively. These are likely petrol or hybrid vehicles as Volkswagen and Ford have huge plants in those countries.”

He added: “A general malaise in the EV market is likely driving the import of hybrid and petrol vehicles into the UK. As some manufactures such as Volvo and Mercedes-Benz have gone back on committing to full electrification by 2030.”

Simon said: “Although this could be due to competition with cheaper Chinese EVs, given the fact that the EU tariffs theoretically level the playing field, we could instead be looking at an overall slowdown of the UK EV market. Affordability of EVs and availability of charging points still remains a hurdle for consumers, and import rates are ultimately controlled by demand.”

He added: “The car market aside, the UK’s widening trade deficit is concerning as UK exports have decreased by 16%. The government needs to focus more on making the processes for UK manufacturers to export simpler and encourage investment into UK exports.”