Italian car brand Fiat has called on the Government to reinstate its electric car grant so it can help the country achieve its 2030 sales target.
The popular manufacturer wants to support the UK’s ambitious targets of 80 per cent EV sales by 2030 as part of the Zero Emission Vehicle mandate, but has called on the Government to reintroduce its financial incentives to encourage retail customers to go electric.
In January, electric vehicle sales stood at 14.7 per cent of new registrations with private buyer sales down 25.1 per cent year-on-year.
The incentives were ditched in 2022, although brands have launched their own grants. Fiat expanded its own £3,000 offer for customers to encourage them to help support the Government’s targets and make the switch to electric.
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In January, electric vehicle sales stood at 14.7 per cent of new registrations
Fiat
Damien Dally, managing director at Fiat UK, said: “More needs to be done. Consumers need further support to have a reason to make the switch to electric.”
The move follows the findings of the House of Lords Environment and Climate Change Committee report earlier this month.
It aimed to understand how the Government plans to reach its 2030 goal when EVs are still catching up to petrol and diesel cars in the UK's vehicle market share.
The inquiry will also focus on passenger cars and explore what steps could be taken by the Government to make the transition as easy for consumers as possible.
The committee document stated: “Unlike markets across Europe the Government has removed incentives to support private buyers with upfront costs for EVs.
“This is premature as we seek to move from early adopters and fleets purchasing EVs to a wider proportion of the population. Any incentives should be tapered as the prices of EVs fall and approach parity with petrol and diesel equivalents.”
Under the Government’s own Zero Emission Vehicle mandate, 22 per cent of new car sales in the UK must be pure electric in 2024, and 80 per cent by the end of the decade.
Dally added: “The good news is the UK has now passed the one million electric vehicles landmark. However, the electric car market in this country is in real jeopardy.
“Private sales, as opposed to business and fleets, are softening and that’s a trend that needs a collective effort to reverse.
“With the Spring Budget just around the corner, we are urging the Government to reintroduce incentives for consumers or face stifling, or even undoing, all the good work achieved to date and risking endangering net zero climate targets. We’re doing our bit, but there’s only so far we can go.”
The electric vehicle grant from the Italian brand is offered on the Fiat 500e and 500e convertible as well as to new Fiat 600e and Abarth 500e.
As drivers continue to make the switch to electric, drivers are expecting an update from Chancellor Jeremy Hunt on the future of fuel duty in the Spring Budget on March 6.
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The Fiat grant is offered on the Fiat 500e and Fiat 500e convertible
Fiat
Drivers benefitted from a five pence per litre discount on every litre of fuel sold at UK forecourts in 2022, with an extension being announced in 2023.
This discount was introduced to help motorists with the increased petrol prices which rose due to the cost of living crisis, but it could be scrapped in this year’s Budget.