Car sales in November were down 27.4% year-on-year, according to figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), and it’s mainly thanks to the impact of dealerships having to close their doors during the second lockdown. Just 113,781 new cars were registered last month, which is 42,840 fewer than last year.
Throughout most of November until December 2nd only click-and-collect sales were allowed in UK dealerships, which saw demand from private buyers drop by 32.2% and 22.1% from fleet buyers. Overall, the UK car market has slumped by 30.7% this year so far, which represents a loss of £1.3 billion in revenue.
In November the biggest fall was felt by diesel cars, which were down 56.2% year-on-year with just 15,959 cars registered. Petrol cars were down 41.9% at 55,855 units. Collectively, mild-hybrid, plug-in hybrid and electric cars were up 74.1% at 42,001, offering some hope.
The SMMT has welcomed the reopening of dealerships before the end of the year, saying: “Given the huge contribution that Covid-secure showrooms make to the economy and a national recovery, reopening dealerships across most of the UK will help protect jobs in retail and manufacturing and should help stimulate spending. The sector has lost 663,761 units to date in 2020, which means that around 31,000 cars would need to be registered every working day in December if the market was to achieve the level expected at the start of the year.”
Keyword: Second lockdown decimates new car sales in November