UK battery-electric car registrations hit a record 99,199 in September, up 36.3% from a year earlier and good for 28.3% of the market, according to preliminary SMMT data reported by Electrek. The overall new car market rose 12.1% to 350,518, with all growth coming from plug-in vehicles; petrol cars and conventional hybrids declined. Tesla's Model 3 was the best-selling EV and the second-best-selling car overall, with 9,929 units.
Despite the record, the SMMT is using the month to argue that the UK's EV targets are too hard. The 2026 ZEV mandate headline target is 33%, and the SMMT says hitting it would require roughly 265,000 EV registrations in the fourth quarter, or about 60% of the market for three straight months. But Electrek notes that automakers can earn credits for cutting CO2 on non-electric cars, borrow from future years, and buy credits from other automakers. New AutoMotive puts the "real" 2026 target at 24.6%, and year-to-date BEV share already stands at 26.2%.
Plug-in hybrids grew even faster than battery-electric cars, jumping 55.7% to a record 59,563 units and a 17% share. Electrek suggests that if the government's mandate review gives automakers more credit for PHEVs, expect more of them and slower EV growth. The source also notes that 178 electric models are now on sale in the UK, more than double the 2023 count, and that UK EVs took a 28% share of the market versus roughly 8% in the US.