New Hybrid Car Government Grant Ends
Published Date: 18th Oct 2018
Announced only last week, the new plug-in hybrid car grant is no longer going to be available. The £2,500 for a hybrid will be cut completely in November. Full electric vehicles will still receive a new purchase perk, however it will be £1,000 lighter, dropping to £3,500.
The public in the market for a new car have been rushing to take advantage of the looming expiration date. Following the announcement that the grant is being removed or reduced depending on whether you choose a new Plug-In Hybrid (PHEV) or Electric only (EV).
The Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV) and the Department for Transport (DfT) recently confirmed the new scheme will come into force in on the 9th of November 2018. When this was first announced, OLEV confirmed just 3,000 category 1 grants for EVs and 6,000 Category 2 and 3 grants for the PHEVs remain available up to the 9th of November before the change happens.
Figures released just this week, beginning October 15th, OLEV confirmed just 41 per cent of the grants are left with 1,306 full electric EV grants remaining and 2,374 PHEV discounts available. The data from OLEV indicate 5,320 PHEVs and EVs have been ordered over the space of a week. Compared to 2017 data, where just 2,307 units were sold per week on average, the news has certainly had an impact on demand with new car buyers looking to get in before the pot empties.
Government Grant Category Details
Category 1 EV
These vehicles have CO2 emissions of less than 50g/km and can travel at least 112km (70 miles) without any CO2 emissions at all.
- Audi e-tron
- BMW i3 and i3s
- BYD e6
- Citroen CZero
- Hyundai IONIQ Electric
- Hyundai KONA Electric
- Hyundai NEXO
- Jaguar I-PACE
- Kia e-Niro
- Kia Soul EV
- Mercedes-Benz B-Class Electric Drive
- Nissan e-NV200 (5-seater and 7-seater)
- Nissan LEAF
- Peugeot iON
- Renault ZOE
- Smart EQ fortwo
- Smart EQ forfour
- Tesla Model S
- Tesla Model X
- Toyota Mirai
- Volkswagen e-up!
- Volkswagen e-Golf
The grant will pay for 35% of the purchase price for these vehicles, up to a maximum of £4,500 currently, changes to £3,500 from November 9th 2018
Category 2 Hybrid/PHEV
These vehicles have CO2 emissions of less than 50g/km and can travel at least 16km (10 miles) without any CO2 emissions at all
- Audi A3 e-tron
- Audi Q7
- BMW 225xe
- BMW 330e
- BMW 530e
- BMW i8
- Hyundai IONIQ PHEV
- Kia Niro PHEV
- Kia Optima PHEV
- Mercedes-Benz C350 e (with 17 inch rear wheels)
- Mercedes-Benz E350 e SE
- Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV (except Commercial)
- Toyota Prius Plug-in
- Volkswagen Golf GTE
- Volkswagen Passat GTE
- Volvo S90 Twin Engine
- Volvo V60 D5 Twin Engine
- Volvo V60 D6 Twin Engine
- Volvo V90 Twin Engine
- Volvo XC60 Twin Engine
The grant will pay for 35% of the purchase price for these vehicles, up to a maximum of £2,500 currently. Changes to £0 or nothing from November 9th 2018
Category 3 Hybrid/PHEV
These vehicles have CO2 emissions of 50 to 75g/km and can travel at least 32km (20 miles) without any CO2 emissions at all:
- Mercedes-Benz S500 Hybrid
- Mercedes-Benz E350 e AMG Line
- MINI Countryman PHEV
- Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid
- Range Rover P400e
- Range Rover Sport P400e
The grant will pay for 35% of the purchase price for this vehicle, up to a maximum of £2,500. Changes to £0 or nothing from November 9th 2018, uou can read more here.
Industry Reaction to the PHEV Grant Cut
As you can probably imagine many of the manufacturers will not be happy the current incentive has been cut to buy a PHEV. Especially Mitsubishi as their own Outlander PHEV model is Europe’s best-selling plug-in hybrid.
The SMMT or Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders chief Mike Hawes said “given the importance of environmental goals it’s astounding that just three months after publishing its road to zero strategy, government has reduced the incentive that gives consumers most encouragement to invest in ultra-low emission vehicles”.
