Government ‘must turn’ to retail sector for BEV sales boost

The BVRLA has highlighted the “growing imbalance” between the retail and business sector when it comes to EV incentives.

Toby Poston, BVRLA director of corporate affairs, said in its Leasing Outlook report: “This growing imbalance between the business and retail segments – particularly for EVs – is a real concern.

“Benefit-in-kind and salary sacrifice incentives have fast-tracked corporate uptake of electric vehicles and are underpinning our progress towards the ZEV Mandate targets.

“Fleet operators and business drivers cannot bear the weight of the EV transition alone, especially as the Mandate targets ratchet up in future years. The spotlight must turn to the retail sector. It needs igniting.”

Dylan Setterfield, head of forecast strategy at cap hpi, said the government had tools at its disposal to boost retail EV demand but it wasn’t using them.

“The government has many tools at its disposal to support BEV uptake and ensure the terms of the ZEV Mandate can be met.

“An obvious change would be harmonisation of VAT, where public charging costs can be reduced to make EV running costs cheaper for those without off-street parking.

“Other measures must be on the table too and include exemptions from tolls or discounted parking charges. In short, incentives are required. The annual increases set by the Mandate only get steeper between now and 2030.”