UK new car registrations plummeted by a record 97.3% in April as the coronovirus lockdown closed showroom and left customers housebound.
New car registrations were down by 156,743 compared to April 2019, with just 4,321 new registrations recorded. New data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders revealed a slump of more than 95% in all except the niche battery electric vehicle sector. Almost three quarters of all new registration were fleet sales, with on 871 new cars registered by private buyers in April.
While many retailers have kept service and repair workshops open in order to keep vehicles on the road for key services, goods, and workers, showrooms have now been closed for over a month.
“With the UK’s showrooms closed for the whole of April, the market’s worst performance in living memory is hardly surprising”, said the society’s Chief Executive Mike Hawes, adding, “These figures, however, still make for exceptionally grim reading, not least for the hundreds of thousands of people whose livelihoods depend on the sector”.
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