Government “confident” no manufacturer will pay ZEV mandate fines

No car manufacturer is expected to pay fines to the Government for missing the zero emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate sales target. 

The ZEV mandate required 22% of all new car sales and 10% of all new vans registered in 2024 to be zero emission. This year, that increases to 28% of all new car sales and 16% of all new vans.

Figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) show that electric vehicles (EVs) took a record annual volume and market share at 19.6%, last year.

“Thanks to the flexibilities in the ZEV mandate, we’re confident the whole market has complied with the 22% target and that no car manufacturer will need to pay fines,” said a Department for Transport (DfT) spokesperson.

“We’ve invested over £2.3 billion to support industry and consumers make the switch, rolled out more than 72,000 public chargers, and launched a consultation to invite the sector to shape how we achieve the transition to ZEVs.

“Getting this transition right as more people make a switch to electric vehicles will support the growth of the UK market and will provide an opportunity to tap into a multibillion-pound industry that will create high paid jobs for decades to come.”

After the targets were widely criticised by manufacturers, the Government launched a fast track consultation to finalise its plans to end the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030, which includes updates to the ZEV mandate.

Manufacturers that fall short of the targets face fines of £15,000 for every internal combustion engine (ICE) car sold above the quota and £9,000 for every van. Fines for non-compliant vans are set to double from £9,000 to £18,000 in 2025. 

The ZEV mandate, however, already features a range of flexibilities to help industry comply in a way that makes sense for them and the wider market, including selling fewer zero emission vehicles than the headline target if they make up for it in other ways. 

As part of these flexibilities, manufacturers also have a CO2 target as well as a target on the number of vehicles sold. 

The CO2 target is based on their emissions in 2021. If a manufacturer beats their CO2 target (i.e. has lower emissions than in 2021) they can convert the amount they beat it the CO2 target by towards ZEV compliance. 

Preliminary DfT/DVLA data suggests that when this is taken into account, the car market as a whole will have achieved the 22% ZEV mandate target.

The ZEV mandate consultation explores the design of the flexibilities to ensure they continue to support manufacturers.