British car sales fell at fastest rate for 80 years during Covid-19 year

The number of new cars sold in the UK fell by almost a third last year amid the coronavirus crisis and Brexit.

British new car sales fell nearly 30% last year in their biggest annual drop since 1943 as lockdowns to curb the spread of the coronavirus hit the sector, an industry body said. 

Demand stood at 1.63 million cars in 2020, according to data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). It was particularly hard hit by a 97% fall in April, the first full month of a national lockdown. Dealerships in Britain gradually reopened in June.  

“We lost nearly three-quarters of a million units over three or four months, which we never got back,” said SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes.

Showrooms in England were closed again during a second lockdown in November but many were better prepared with click and collect options, allowing more purchases, but still leading to a 27% year-on-year slump. The performance leaves new car sales at their lowest level since 1992 and suffering the biggest drop since 1943 when sales fell by more than 90%.

Before Christmas, the Society of the Irish Motor Industry said new car registrations in the Republic in 2020 fell 25% to 88,324, while registrations of new light commercial vehicles were down by over 14% to 21,732. It warned then that new full level 5 restrictions would mean another difficult January "the key month for new car sales" as it looked to increase sales through click and collect. 

In Britain in 2020, diesel car registrations more than halved, while nearly 30% of sales were electric, hybrid, and mild hybrid vehicles. Meanwhile, major British car dealership appointed Anna Bielby as the company’s interim finance chief. Lookers posted an annual loss in November due to the pandemic. 

Reuters and Irish Examiner