2021 brought us Brexit, COVID, Semi-Conductors and a new Climate Action Plan – all massive challenges individually, but crystallising at the same time has certainly made business more difficult, not just this year but for the year ahead.

But I have no doubt our industry will rise to these challenges. Resilience is a word that best describes 2021 – it is a quality that the Irish motor industry has displayed time and time again and is something we must carry forward into 2022.

For all sectors 2021 has been yet another difficult year, the start of which saw the closure of our dealerships from January until May, yet despite this the industry adapted to offer a click and deliver service.

The heavy investment by dealers in their online platforms helped to continue an amount of vehicle activity and provided some relief to the sector, while many of our members continued to provide essential services such as vehicle testing, servicing, repair and recovery.

2021 was the year we finally saw a trading agreement between the EU and the UK, but if we thought that was the end of the negotiations, we were mistaken, as the GB Government’s refusal to implement what was agreed in relation to the Northern Ireland Protocol continues to bring uncertainty. The imposition of customs duties and formalities have added costs to many members’ business, as well as causing delivery delays.

In addition, the handling of the Brexit margin scheme and the treatment of VAT for used vehicle imports into Northern Ireland continues to be an area of huge concern, as both the current and proposed Great Britain measures not only discriminate against Republic of Ireland’s dealers, but also run counter to the protocol and EU vat rules. The industry, like many other sectors, will be following this situation closely and we will have to see how it will evolve in 2022.

On a global level the shortage of semiconductor chips hampered the supply of new cars, and while the situation is improving, it will take time to get back to normal levels. In the first half of 2022 there will be an issue with the supply of new cars and we hope that will resolve itself to some degree next year.

With the dual registration period January to June and July to December, we would be hopefully that any potential sales we might lose because of supply issues in the first half of the year could be recovered in the second half of the year.

104,563 total new cars were registered year to date (January-November) compared to 87,724 for the same period in 2020 (+19.2%) and 116,885 in 2019 (-10.5%). Of this total new car registrations 8,533 were electric vehicles (EVs), an increase on the number of EVs in 2020 (3,928) and on 2019 (3,413).

The ongoing growth in the electric car segment is very positive, with a further increase in electric vehicle sales anticipated next year. Notwithstanding this, we are still in the early stages of decarbonising the national fleet and we have a very long way to go to get close to the targets in the Climate Action Plan.

The decarbonisation of the national fleet is both a massive challenge and a great opportunity for our industry. In the right economic and taxation environment, the Irish motor industry can rise to this challenge and deliver for the country, both on an environmental and economic levels.

However, the portents are not good. In Budget 2022 we saw another increase in Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT) on new cars for a second consecutive year, while at the same time SEAI Grant support for Plug-in Hybrid Vehicles (PHEVs) removed; both of these measures are short-sighted and counterproductive.

To do so at a time when our industry like so many others is emerging from a pandemic, underlines that we are not safe from further future increases. It is essential that the existing basket of Electric Vehicle (EV) incentives are maintained, until we see the dial moving towards mass adoption over the next 10 years.

The domestic economy in 2021 bounced back, and the motor industry has certainly benefited from increased consumer spending. It is important this trend continues into 2022 and beyond, which, along with a fairer motoring taxation regime, can allow our members continue to support both their local economies and Ireland’s ambition to drive down emissions.

To read the full article in the IFCR yearbook, click HERE.

The post Current EV support has to be retained: Brian Cooke appeared first on Ireland's Forecourt & Convenience Retailer.

The Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI) has revealed that 104,932 new cars were registered in Ireland in 2021 compared to 88,325 for the same period in 2020 (+18.8%) and 117,109 in 2019 (-10.40%).

SIMI’s official new vehicle registrations statistics for 2021. also showed that 8,646 new electric cars registered in 2021 comparison to 4,013 on the same period 2020 (+115.4%) and 3,444 in 2019 (+151.0%).

Meanwhile, new Light Commercial Vehicle (LCV) registrations in 2021 saw an increase of 32.3% (28,741) compared to 2020 (21,732) and +13.4% 2019 (25,336). New Heavy Commercial Vehicle registrations (HGV) saw an increase of 31.5% (2,716) in comparison to 2020 (2,066) and +2.1% on 2019 (2,659).

Imported Used Cars saw 63,617 registrations, a decrease of 20.4% on 2020 (79,969) and a decrease of 44.2% on 2019 (113,926).

Other stats of note show a changing market place in 2021. Diesel accounted for 33.44%, Petrol 32.16%, Hybrid 16.22%, Electric 8.24%, and Plug-In Hybrid 7.26%. Diesel remains the most popular engine type despite a decline in its market share last year (9.85%) while hybrid, electric and plug-in hybrid continue to gain market share in 2021.

Manual transmissions account for (50.95%) in market share, while automatic transmissions (48.93%) continue to increase their popularity.

The hatchback remains Ireland’s top selling car body type of 2021. Grey is the top selling colour and has continued to keep that title for the past six years.

SIMI Director General Brian Cooke said: “The difficulties arising from both COVID and Brexit impacted on the supply and demand for cars, which made 2021 another challenging year for the Irish Motor Industry. While new car sales show a 19% increase on 2020, they remain behind 2019 levels.

“On a positive note, the sale of Electric Vehicles (EVs) more than doubled in 2021, and with the sale of EVs being underpinned by SEAI Grants, we can expect to see an increasing number of new EVs on Irish roads in 2022. Commercial Vehicles sales also saw a significant improvement in 2021, with light commercial vehicles up over 30% on 2020, reflecting the increase in business confidence as the year progressed.

“The industry is hopeful that 2022 will see further improvements in business levels. Pre-orders do indicate a strong appetite for new and used cars, providing a positive outlook for our Industry and with a return to pre-pandemic 2019 new car sales levels expected.

“However, even these anticipated sales will not be sufficient to reduce Ireland’s ageing car fleet. We need to see significant growth in the years ahead if we want to optimise the benefits of reduced emissions from new cars. We will see annual increases in Electric Vehicle sales, but the extent of their penetration into the fleet will not only be determined by the increased choice of EVs been supplied but also by the continuation of Government supports.”

The post Diesel still the most popular new car type in Ireland, but electric growing in popularity appeared first on Ireland's Forecourt & Convenience Retailer.

Light Commercials Vehicles (LCV) saw an increase of 2,316 registrations compared to May last year 500 and 1,717 for the same month in 2019. Year to date 16,040 new LCVs were registered an increase on last year’s 10,000 (+60.4%) and 14,570 on 2019 (+10.1%).

Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGV) seen 202 registrations in May when compared to 95 in May 2020 and 298 May 2019. Year to date HGV’s registrations total 1,426 compared with 1,099 in 2020 (+29.8%) and 1,487 in 2019 (-4.1%).

6,032 used cars were imported in May 2021, compared with 858 imports in May 2020, a decrease on the 9,347 imports in May 2019. Year to date used imports are up 62.63% (30,126) on 2020 (18,524) and down 33.15% on 2019 (45,066).

For the month of May 541 new electric vehicles were registered compared to 147 in May 2020. So far this year 3,952 new electric cars have been registered in comparison to 1,847 on the same period 2020. Electric Vehicle and Plug-in Hybrids and Hybrids continue to increase their market share, with their combined market share now over 23.09%. Diesel now accounts for 36.39%, Petrol 31.89%, Hybrid 16.63%, Electric 6.46% and Plug-in Electric Hybrid 6.21%

Brian Cooke, SIMI Director General commenting:
“New vehicle registrations for May were encouraging, with strong growth in both the passenger and commercial vehicle sectors when compared to last year. However, new car sales year to date are still 23% behind pre-COVID 2019. The re-opening of car showrooms to customers and the expected boost to consumer spending has allowed for the completion of deals previously in the pipeline and sees retailers optimistic for both new and used vehicle sales for the balance of this year and into 2022. It is hugely encouraging to see the increase in the sale of Electric Cars and Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs), with Electric Vehicle sales for the first five months of the year close to the full year volume for 2020, and further growth is expected as the year progresses. In this context and with the announcement of the Government’s Economic Recovery Plan imminent, it is vital that the Plan includes ambitious State funding for the EV Project, both in terms of the rolling out of national EV charging infrastructure as well as vehicle grant supports for both private and corporate car buyers.”

Ireland’s Forecourt and Convenience Retailer Newsletter Sign Up here… http://eepurl.com/deUbfv

The post New registrations for May ‘encouraging’ – SIMI appeared first on Ireland's Forecourt & Convenience Retailer.