Vehicle licensing statistics: January to March 2022
Published 14 July 2022
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About this release
We are providing our statistics releases in HTML format and we would like to hear your comments. If you have any feedback on our use of this format or on this release, please contact vehicles statistics.
This release presents statistics on motor vehicles in the United Kingdom (UK), which are based on administrative data held by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA). These cover:
- new vehicle registrations
- licensed vehicles
- plug-in vehicles
- zero emission vehicles
A range of detailed datasets are available online.
These statistics cover the whole of the United Kingdom, which is Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) and Northern Ireland. However, long term trends (over 7 years) can only be looked at for Great Britain, as the United Kingdom data are only available from July 2014.
Changes to this release
Major structural changes were introduced in the annual 2021 publication.
We have now made further changes to these statistics, following feedback from our users.
These include:
- adding the breakdown by fuel type and keepership to table VEH0105
- adding the breakdown by body type to table VEH0142
- adding lower super output area (LSOA) names to datafiles df_VEH0125, df_VEH0135, and df_VEH0145
- presenting separate statistics for petrol and diesel versions of hybrid electric and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles
The department is currently working to make our tables accessible for our users.
As part of this release, the format of the spreadsheet tables that accompany this release has changed to make them more accessible for our users.
The following quarterly tables have not been updated as they are under review (see the 2021 annual release):
- VEH0122
- VEH0123
- VEH0134
- VEH0301
If you have any feedback on the new format of our tables, please contact vehicles statistics.
Headline figures
Latest figures for 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March), show that the number of new registrations is down 3% in the UK, but with a 62% increase in plug-in vehicles. The shift in fuel type used across the vehicle market has led to record highs for electric vehicles on the road and further declines in average CO2 emissions for new cars.
Comparing 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March) with 2021 Quarter 1 (January to March), there were:
- 561,000 vehicles registered for the first time in the UK, down 3% (VEH0150)
- 101,000 plug-in vehicles (PiVs) registered for the first time in the UK, up 62% (VEH1153a)
More battery electric (BEV) cars (64,000) were registered for the first time in the UK during 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March) than diesel cars (34,000), following a 102% increase in BEV cars compared to 2021 Quarter 1 (January to March). By contrast, over the same period there were falls of 11% and 52% for petrol and diesel cars respectively. (VEH1153a)
Average CO2 emissions for cars registered for the first time in the UK decreased by 13% in 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March) compared to 2021 Quarter 1 (January to March). (VEH0156)
At the end of March 2022, there were 40.4 million licensed vehicles in the UK, an increase of 1.2% compared to the end of March 2021. (VEH0101a)
Key measures and vehicle groupings
Vehicles registered for the first time: Vehicles that were first registered with DVLA during that time. This is very similar to ‘new sales’ but also includes imported vehicles or those used beforehand. This is sometimes called new registrations.
Licensed vehicles: All vehicles that can legally use the road. This is sometimes called total stock.
Road using vehicles: Vehicles that would reasonably be expected to make significant use of the public highway and to be used as a mode of transport.
Plug-in vehicles (PiVs): Road using vehicles that use a plug-in technology to connect to a source of electricity
Ultra low emission vehicles (ULEVs): Road using vehicles that are reported to emit less than 75 grams of carbon dioxide (CO2) from the tailpipe for every kilometre travelled.
Impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19)
The government’s measures to limit the impact and transmission of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic have affected the trends in these figures since March 2020. New vehicle registrations are also heavily affected by the economy.
Data covering 2020 onwards will not only show the effects of these measures, but also the wider impacts on the global economy. There have been worldwide, ongoing issues in the semi-conductor supply chain that are impacting the automotive sector, which has affected the production of new vehicles and consequently new registrations.
New vehicle registrations: overview
There were 561,000 vehicles registered for the first time in the UK during 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March). This was a 3% decrease compared to 2021 Quarter 1 (January to March) and a 9% decrease compared to 2020 Quarter 1 (January to March). (VEH0150)
Chart 1 shows the long term trends in new registrations in the first quarter (January to March) for Great Britain. Between 1980 and 1998, new registrations in the first quarter (January to March) fluctuated between 480,000 and 760,000 vehicles. In 1999, the month(s) that DVLA issued new number plates moved from August to March and September. Consequently, between 1999 and 2019, new registrations in the first quarter (January to March) fluctuated between 570,000 and 960,000 vehicles, the highest peak ever occurring in 2017 Quarter 1 (January to March). Following the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, new registrations in the first quarter (January to March) between 2020 and 2022 were much lower than the previous period. New registrations in 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March) were the lowest since 1993.
Periods of low new registrations typically correspond to economic recessions. Usually, after each low, the number steadily increases until the next recession. However, recent trends are also affected by the issues in the semi-conductor supply chain (see coronavirus box above).
Although the number of new registrations can vary considerably each year, the total licensed stock varies much more slowly since there are many more vehicles that remain licensed over the year.
Chart 1: Vehicles registered for the first time in the first quarter (January to March), Great Britain, 1980 to 2022 (VEH0150)
The majority of new registrations are cars. The full breakdown of body type is presented in Table 1. New registrations of cars, light goods vehicles (LGVs), heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) all saw a decline in 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March) compared to 2021 Quarter 1 (January to March), whereas motorcycles and buses and coaches saw large increases over the same period.
Table 1: Vehicles registered for the first time in the first quarter (January to March) by body type, United Kingdom, 2021 and 2022 (VEH0150)
| Body type | 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March): New registrations (thousands) | 2021 Quarter 1 (January to March): New registrations (thousands) | New registrations (year on year percentage change) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cars | 427 | 434 | -1.6% |
| Light goods vehicles (LGVs) | 77 | 99 | -22.3% |
| Heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) | 11 | 11 | -1.1% |
| Motorcycles | 31 | 23 | +34.4% |
| Buses and coaches | 1 | 1 | +49.6% |
| Other vehicles | 14 | 13 | +4.9% |
| Total | 561 | 581 | -3.5% |
Monthly seasonality
When DVLA issues a new registration plate series, there is usually a peak in new vehicle registrations. For example, the recent issue of the ‘22’ plate is for vehicles registered from the beginning of March to end of August 2022.
Up to 1998, new registration plates were issued once a year in August.
Since 1999, new plates have been issued twice a year, in March and September.
The monthly distribution for new registrations in the latest 12 months is shown in Table 2.
Table 2: Vehicles registered for the first time by month, United Kingdom, April 2021 to March 2022 (VEH0150)
| Date | New registrations (thousands) |
|---|---|
| April 2021 | 196 |
| May 2021 | 210 |
| June 2021 | 246 |
| July 2021 | 172 |
| August 2021 | 107 |
| September 2021 | 274 |
| October 2021 | 156 |
| November 2021 | 170 |
| December 2021 | 155 |
| January 2022 | 150 |
| February 2022 | 91 |
| March 2022 | 320 |
Comparison with the EU car market
The ACEA (European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association) produce new registration figures collected from trade bodies across Europe, covering the EU, the UK and the EFTA (Iceland, Norway, Switzerland). UK data is provided by The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), which represents new car sales rather than new registrations with DVLA, so although the figures will be broadly comparable, they will not match.
In 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March), according to figures produced by ACEA, new car registrations in the UK decreased by 1.9%, whereas EU new car registrations declined by 12.3%. ACEA’s commentary on the EU was as follows:
During the first quarter of 2022, new car registrations fell by 12.3% compared to the same period last year, counting 2,245,976 new passenger cars in total. All four of the major EU markets saw decreases: Italy (-24.4%), France (-17.3%), Spain (-11.6%) and Germany (‑4.6%).
Source: ACEA, April 2022
New car registrations by fuel type
The fuel types presented in these statistics are explained in the notes and definitions, and Figure 1 shows how the main fuel types used in the UK are related.
Figure 1: Diagram showing key properties of the main fuel types
In 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March), new car registrations in the UK (VEH1153a), comprised of:
- 218,000 petrol cars (51%)
- 81,000 hybrid electric (HEV) cars (19%)
- 64,000 battery electric (BEV) cars (15%)
- 34,000 diesel cars (8%)
- 30,000 plug-in hybrid electric (PHEV) cars (7%)
- 1,000 using other fuel types (0.2%)
This release included, for the first time, statistics on hybrid electric and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles split into separate petrol and diesel figures.
In 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March), the hybrid electric figures above can be further broken down into:
- 74,000 petrol HEV cars (17%)
- 8,000 diesel HEV cars (2%)
- 29,000 petrol PHEV cars (7%)
- 1,000 diesel PHEV cars (0.3%)
Chart 2: Cars registered for the first time by fuel type, including annual and five year change, United Kingdom, 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March) (VEH1153a)
Compared to 2021 Quarter 1 (January to March), the number of new car registrations with the fuel type:
- petrol decreased by 11%
- diesel decreased by 52%
- HEV increased by 33%
- PHEV increased by 13%
- BEV increased by 102%
Looking at the trends over 5 years, compared to 2017 Quarter 1 (January to March), the number of new car registrations with the fuel type:
- petrol decreased by 49%
- diesel decreased by 91%
- HEV increased by 286% (around 4 times higher)
- PHEV increased by 305% (around 4 times higher)
- BEV increased by 1262% (around 14 times higher)
Chart 3: Cars registered for the first time in the first quarter (January to March) by fuel type, Great Britain, 2001 to 2021 (VEH1153a)
Chart 3 shows the long term fuel type trends in new car registrations in the first quarter (January to March) for Great Britain. Between 2001 and 2011, the number of new diesel car registrations in the first quarter (January to March) increased by 143%, more than doubling from 108,000 to 263,000 cars. By contrast, over the same period, new petrol car registrations fell by 54%, from 598,000 to 276,000 cars.
The number of new registrations of petrol and diesel cars in the first quarter (January to March) broadly tracked each other between 2011 and 2016 in Great Britain.
Diesel car registrations in the first quarter (January to March) have been falling in recent years since peaking in 2016. Over the 5 year period since that peak (from 2017 Quarter 1 (January to March) to 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March), new diesel car registrations fell 91%. During this period, the number of cars using other fuel types sharply increased to a combined total of 172,000 cars, accounting for more than 4 in every 10 (41%) new registrations in 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March) in Great Britain.
New electric vehicle registrations
Related statistics on Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure
The department publishes statistics on electric vehicle charging infrastructure, including publicly available devices and grants provided by the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles (OZEV).
Plug-in vehicles
In 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March), 101,000 plug-in vehicles (PiVs) were registered for the first time in the UK, an increase of 62% on 2021 Quarter 1 (January to March) and 192% on 2020 Quarter 1 (January to March) (around 3 times higher). PiVs accounted for 18.4% of all UK new road using vehicle registrations in 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March), up from 11.0% in 2021 Quarter 1 (January to March). (VEH1153a)
Comparing plug-in vehicle and ultra low emission vehicle statistics
There is considerable overlap between ULEVs and PiVs, since many ULEVs are based on plug-in technology. This means that although both measures are very similar at present, care should be taken when choosing which statistic is appropriate to use.
Chart 4 shows the number of new PiV registrations in the first quarter (January to March) has increased every year since 2015.
Between 2015 and 2019, the majority of new PiV registrations in the first quarter (January to March) were PHEVs, accounting for between 53% and 66% of all new PiV registrations. Since 2020, BEVs have accounted for the majority of new PiV registrations.
In 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March), BEVs accounted for 70% of new PiV registrations, with PHEVs accounting for 29%. Range extended electric vehicles (REEVs) represented less than 1% of new PiV registrations in 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March).
Chart 4: Plug-in vehicles (PiVs) registered for the first time in the first quarter (January to March) by fuel type, United Kingdom, 2015 to 2022 (VEH0181a)
Table 3: Plug-in vehicles (PiVs) registered for the first time by body type, with previous year and total new registrations comparison, United Kingdom, 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March) (VEH1153a)
| Body type | 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March): New registrations | 2021 Quarter 1 (January to March): New registrations | Year on year percentage change | 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March): Proportion of all new road using vehicle registrations that are PiV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cars | 93,901 | 58,089 | +62% | 22.0% |
| Light goods vehicles | 4,537 | 2,956 | +53% | 5.9% |
| Heavy goods vehicles | 68 | 31 | +119% | 0.6% |
| Motorcycles | 1,810 | 989 | +83% | 5.9% |
| Buses and coaches | 241 | 80 | +201% | 17.7% |
| Other vehicles | 453 | 151 | +200% | 36.4% |
| Total | 101,010 | 62,296 | +62% | 18.4% |
Common plug-in generic models
Generic model is a grouping of models to help compare models on the road. Manufacturers vary in their approach on how many model versions they give a particular range of vehicles. For example, there are 3 model versions for Tesla Model 3, but there are over 800 model versions for Ford Fiesta.
In 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March), the most common generic model of plug-in vehicle registered for the first time in the UK was Tesla Model 3 with 7,800 vehicles, followed by Tesla Model Y with 7,800 vehicles, and Kia Niro with 4,300 vehicles. (VEH0181b)
Chart 5 shows the top 25 generic models registered for the first time in 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March) for the UK. These popular models accounted for 58% of all new plug-in vehicle registrations, with the majority being BEV models.
Chart 5: Top 25 generic models for plug-in vehicles (PiVs) registered for the first time by fuel type, United Kingdom, 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March) (VEH0181b)
In 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March), every top 25 generic model was a car. Looking at the other body types, the most common generic model of plug-in:
- light goods vehicle was Vauxhall Vivaro with 834 vehicles
- motorcycle was Vmoto CPA with 391 vehicles
- bus and coach was BYD Enviro with 188 vehicles
- other vehicle (taxis) was LEVC TX with 440 vehicles
Low emission vehicles
Figure 2 shows the overlap between common terms used in this release to describe “electric vehicles”, along with some common models found in those categories. Note that the size of the area does not accurately reflect how many vehicles lie within that region.
Figure 2: Venn diagram to show the overlap of the terms plug-in vehicle (PiV), ultra low emission vehicle (ULEV), and zero emission vehicle (ZEV) in relation to electric vehicles
In 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March), 100,000 ULEVs were registered for the first time in the UK, an increase of 64% on 2021 Quarter 1 (January to March). ULEVs accounted for 17.7% of all UK new vehicle registrations in 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March), up from 10.4% in 2021 Quarter 1 (January to March). (VEH0171a and VEH0150)
Zero emission vehicles (ZEVs) are a sub-set of ultra low emission vehicles, currently only including:
- battery electric vehicles (BEVs)
- fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs, sometimes referred to as hydrogen powered)
In 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March), 71,000 ZEVs were registered for the first time in the UK, with the vast majority being BEVs and only 14 being FCEVs.
Carbon emissions for new vehicle registrations
Average emissions for new cars
Methods used to measure carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions
New European Driving Cycle (NEDC): Original laboratory test based on theoretical behaviour.
Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP): More advanced laboratory test to replace NEDC, which is designed to be more representative of real-world driving emissions.
e-NEDC figure: Calculated using a WLTP test via the CO2MPAS tool developed by the European Commission, for tax and emissions monitoring purposes (can be referred to as NEDC correlated). This is not directly comparable with an NEDC figure as their underlying methodologies are different.
In the UK, the average CO2 emissions for cars registered for the first time in 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March) was 112.5 grams per kilometre (g/km) using the WLTP measure, down 12.8% compared with 2021 Quarter 1 (January to March) (VEH0156). There has been a notable shift towards registering new zero emission (ZEV) cars from late 2020 onwards, which has contributed to the recent reduction.
The transition from using NEDC to WLTP as the official measurement procedure used to determine car CO2 emissions has complicated the interpretation of recent trends. This has caused a number of discontinuities to the time series for reported emissions from September 2018 onwards. Table 4 summarises the changes in testing systems used over time.
Table 4: The use of different testing systems for average reported CO2 emissions of new cars, United Kingdom
| Time Period (inclusive) | Testing system used | Reported figure at point of first registration |
|---|---|---|
| March 2001 to August 2018 | NEDC | NEDC |
| September 2018 to December 2018 | NEDC and WLTP | NEDC and e-NEDC |
| January 2019 to March 2020 | WLTP | e-NEDC |
| April 2020 onwards | WLTP | WLTP |
Chart 6: Average CO2 emissions for cars registered for the first time by emissions data source, quarterly, United Kingdom, 2018 Quarter 1 (January to March) to 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March), grams per kilometre (g/km) (VEH0156)
Chart 6 shows the recent trends in average CO2 emissions for cars registered for the first time in the UK. Since 2019 Quarter 1 (January to March), the average emissions have steadily fallen using both the e-NEDC and WLTP measure. Between 2019 Quarter 1 (January to March) and 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March), average CO2 emissions for new cars fell by 27%, from 153.3 g/km to 112.5 g/km.
Average emissions for new light goods vehicles
In the UK, the average CO2 emissions for LGVs registered for the first time in 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March) was 189.8 g/km using the WLTP measure, down 6.5% compared with 2021 Quarter 1 (January to March) (VEH0156).
Vehicle Excise Duty bands for cars
Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) is charged on vehicles registered in the UK.
Since March 2001, car VED has been charged in bands based on their CO2 emissions (NEDC). These bands were revised from April 2017.
From April 2020, the emissions measure used to allocate a VED band was changed to use WLTP figures. The bands themselves were not altered.
There is a discontinuity in the Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) band distribution from April 2020 onwards. This was due to:
- changes in registration patterns during the coronavirus pandemic
- the adoption of WLTP as the reported CO2 figure for cars
There has also been strong growth in the registration of new zero emission vehicles (ZEVs).
The adoption of WLTP led to a step-change decline in the proportion of new cars with reported emissions between 76 and 130 g/km, with corresponding increases for those reported with 131+ g/km, as shown in Chart 7. This is partially due to the WLTP figure being approximately 20% higher on average than the previously used e-NEDC figure for these cars. This effect has reversed in following quarters with the market shifting towards ultra low emission vehicles.
Chart 7: Cars registered for the first time by current VED band (measured using reported CO2 emissions), quarterly, Great Britain, 2012 Quarter 1 (January to March) to 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March) (VEH0256)
Licensed vehicles: overview
At the end of March 2022, there were 40.4 million licensed vehicles in the UK, a 1.2% increase compared to the end of March 2021. (VEH0101a)
Figures on total licensed vehicles have slower variations compared to vehicles registered for the first time as there are many more vehicles that remain licensed over the year.
What vehicles are included?
These figures only include vehicles that are licensed for use on UK roads, which typically requires paying Vehicle Excise Duty (VED).
Vehicles that are not licensed should typically be given a Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN). The keeper can then re-license their vehicle at any time. Detailed tables relating to vehicles with a SORN are available.
Compared to the end of March 2020, the number of licensed vehicles has increased by 1.0% to the end of March 2022. During each quarter of 2020, there were year on year falls for the first time since the 1990s, related to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
Cars make up the majority of licensed vehicles. Table 5 shows the number of licensed vehicles by body type in the United Kingdom at the end of March 2022.
Table 5: Licensed vehicles by body type, including annual difference in licensed vehicles and vehicles with a SORN, United Kingdom, the end of March 2022 (VEH0101)
| Body type | Number of licensed vehicles (thousands) | Annual difference in licensed vehicles (thousands) | Annual difference in vehicles with a SORN (thousands) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cars | 32,938 | +208 | +4 |
| Light goods vehicles | 4,562 | +168 | +22 |
| Heavy goods vehicles | 532 | +22 | +7 |
| Motorcycles | 1,360 | +69 | +46 |
| Buses and coaches | 146 | +6 | -4 |
| Other vehicles | 829 | +19 | +13 |
| Total | 40,366 | +491 | +87 |
At the end of March 2022, there were year on year increases for all body types, with the number of motorcycles increasing the most (+5.3%) and cars seeing the smallest increase (+0.6%) (Table 6).
Table 6: Annual and 2 year percentage change in licensed vehicles by body type, United Kingdom, the end of March 2022 (VEH0101)
| Body type | Annual change in licensed vehicles | 2 year change in licensed vehicles |
|---|---|---|
| Cars | +0.6% | +0.9% |
| Light goods vehicles | +3.8% | +8.6% |
| Heavy goods vehicles | +4.3% | +7.9% |
| Motorcycles | +5.3% | +8.5% |
| Buses and coaches | +4.2% | +11.6% |
| Other vehicles | +2.4% | +3.5% |
| Total | +1.2% | +2.1% |
Whilst new registrations increase the number of licensed vehicles, the increase is reduced by vehicles being removed from the licensed stock, either permanently (written off, scrapped, exported), or temporarily when they are given a Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN). The changes in the number of licensed vehicles and vehicles with a SORN are demonstrated in Table 5.
Buses and coaches were the only body type to see a decrease in the number of vehicles with a SORN, which likely contributed to the 4.2% annual increase in licensed buses and coaches to the end of March 2022, which have generally been in decline over the past decade.
Licensed electric vehicles
Electric vehicles (EVs) on the road
Since the majority of EVs have been registered in the last decade, a low of proportion of these vehicles are no longer roadworthy and consequently there is a close relationship in the statistics between
- total new EV registrations since 2010
- licensed stock of EVs
However, moving forward, the number of licensed EVs will start to grow notably more slowly than the number of new registrations. For example, at the end of 2021 there were more than 10,000 plug-in vehicles with a SORN. For this reason, we advise against adding up new registrations as a proxy for vehicles on the road.
Plug-in vehicles
At the end of March 2022, there were 843,000 licensed plug-in vehicles (PiVs) in the UK. This was an increase of 71% compared to the end of March 2021, when there were 493,000. (VEH0141a)
Chart 8: Proportion of licensed plug-in vehicles by body type and fuel type, United Kingdom, the end of March 2022 (VEH0141a)
As shown in Chart 8, out of the total figure of 843,000:
- 441,000 were BEV cars (52%)
- 339,000 were PHEV cars (40%)
- 32,000 were BEV light goods vehicles (4%)
- 11,000 were BEV motorcycles (1%)
- 10,000 were REEV cars (1%)
- 6,000 were REEV other vehicles (1%)
- 5,000 were other remaining categories (1%)
Ultra low emission vehicles
At the end of March 2022, there were 833,000 licensed ultra low emission vehicles (ULEVs) in the UK. This was an increase of 71% compared to the end of March 2021, when there were 487,000.
The majority of ULEVs licensed at the end of March 2022 were either BEVs (58%) or PHEVs (39%). A small proportion were range extended electric vehicles (2%), currently only available in a small selection of models.
Car makes and models
Common car makes
In 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March), the top 3 makes for new registrations in the UK (Chart 9) were:
- Kia (7.5%)
- Toyota (7.3%)
- Ford (7.1%)
For total licensed stock at the end of March 2022 (Chart 10), the top 3 makes in the UK were different to new registrations, namely:
- Ford (12.2%)
- Vauxhall (9.1%)
- Volkswagen (8.8%)
Chart 9: Top 10 makes for cars registered for the first time, United Kingdom, 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March) (df_VEH0160)
Chart 10: Top 10 makes for licensed cars, United Kingdom, the end of March 2022 (df_VEH0120)
Common car generic models
Generic model is a grouping of models to help compare models on the road. Manufacturers vary in their approach on how many model versions they give a particular range of vehicles. For example, there are currently 3 model versions under Tesla Model 3, but there are over 800 model versions under Ford Fiesta.
Toyota Yaris was the most common generic model for new car registrations in 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March), with 10,100 registrations, followed by Vauxhall Corsa with 9,800 registrations and Kia Sportage with 8,700 registrations (Chart 15). (df_VEH0160)
At the end of March 2022, the most common licensed car was Ford Fiesta with 1.48 million licensed, followed by Ford Focus with 1.09 million, and Volkswagen Golf with 1.02 million (Chart 11).
Chart 11: Top 10 generic models for cars registered for the first time during 2022 Quarter 1 (January to March) and for those licensed at the end of March 2022, United Kingdom (df_VEH0120 and df_VEH0160)
Background notes
About these figures
Almost all the statistics in the vehicle licensing statistics series are derived by Department for Transport statisticians from extracts of the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) vehicle database. The main purpose of the database is to administer vehicle registration and licensing records in the United Kingdom.
For further information about the data used in this release, please see our guidance page which contains:
- detailed notes and definitions
- a note on users and uses of these statistics
There is also a Statement of Administrative Sources for the DVLA vehicles database.
In this release, numbers may not add up to totals and percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding.
Geographic coverage
In July 2014, vehicle and registration services for Northern Ireland were centralised at DVLA, where these services for Great Britain were already administered. This created a single vehicle register for the United Kingdom, in place of separate registers for Great Britain and Northern Ireland. From this time, statistics can be provided for both Great Britain and the United Kingdom.
This statistical release will focus on the United Kingdom for recent trends in vehicles but use data for Great Britain to review long term trends.
Strength and weaknesses of the data
The databases used for these statistics can be regarded as being virtually complete in terms of the number of vehicles registered for the first time, licensed vehicles, and vehicles with a SORN (Statutory Off Road Notification). However, there may be some errors in some of the specific details of individual vehicles.
The Department for Transport has previously estimated that under 2% of the vehicle records have an inaccuracy in one of the variables used for the statistics published. Other factors to consider in interpreting these statistics include:
- changes in legislation
- seasonal variation which affects some vehicle types
- foreign registered vehicles may also use UK roads without being registered with DVLA
- Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) evasion
Most of these factors will only have a marginal effect for most uses of the data.
National Statistics
These statistics were designated as National Statistics in April 2012.
National Statistics are produced to the high professional standards set out in the Code of Practice for Statistics. They undergo regular quality assurance reviews to ensure that they meet customer needs. They are produced free from any political interference.
Details of ministers and officials who receive pre-release access to these statistics up to 24 hours before release can be found in the pre-release access list.
Next release
Vehicle licensing statistics are published quarterly. The next release is due in September 2022, which will cover the second quarter of 2022, up to the end of June 2022.
The quarterly releases (typically published in July, September, and December) have a reduced number of tables and commentary compared to the annual publication (typically published in May).
Any updates to these plans will be advertised via the DfT statistical publications schedule.
To hear more about DfT statistics publications as they are released, please follow us on Twitter.
Related sources of information
There are more recent data than published here available from various industry bodies on the majority of vehicle sales.
For car and van data, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) publish monthly shortly after the month-end, in advance of the publication of DfT’s detailed official statistics. This can be useful to look at the most recent trends in vehicle registrations. Although there are slight differences in coverage of the SMMT data, the volumes and trends published by SMMT are generally consistent with DfT published data.
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