Car Market Insight: July 2026

 July’s market data showed continued momentum with 156,571 new car registrations and an 11.7% year-on-year increase. Year to date, registrations reached 1,294,499, up 9.5% on 2025. 

In our latest Automotive Market Insight webinar, John Brannigan and Natalie Short reviewed the most recent SMMT car registration data, explored the continued growth of electric vehicles and what RTS Group’s customer sentiment platform, Signal, is telling us about the customer experience across automotive brands. 

Missed the webinar? Watch the full recording here.  

A growing market with more customer choice 

July continued the positive momentum seen across the market this year with the market up nearly 12% on last year and SMMT’s full-year forecast sitting at around 8% growth. 

Electric vehicles remain central to that growth story of course and in July battery electric vehicles reached 27.5% market share, with 43,106 registrations and a 44.5% year-on-year increase. Plug-in hybrids also performed strongly, up 33.6%, while hybrids increased by 11.6%. 

As expected, petrol and diesel continue to decline, with petrol down 5.2% year on year and diesel down 17.7%. Year to date, battery electric vehicles (BEV) are up 28.7%, plug-in hybrids (PHEV) are up 37.7% and hybrids are up 10.3%, showing the continued shift in customer choice. 

EV growth is strong, but customers still need clear guidance 

Although EV growth is moving in the right direction, BEV are still below the 33% target. John noted that incentives are continuing to play an important role, including 0% APR offers, deposit contributions and the government EV incentive. 

The discussion also focused on how customers are now researching vehicles. Many customers are still starting online, but physical dealership enquiries are now being reported at more than 50%. Customers may arrive well informed but that doesn’t mean they have fully considered how a vehicle fits their circumstances. 

And this is particularly important to note for EV conversations. Natalie highlighted the Zapmap data showing how charging costs can vary depending on customer profile. For example, a driver mostly charging at home would see annual journey costs around £680, compared with £1,130 for a mixed charging profile and £1,760 for a driver with no home charger. 

For retailers, this reinforces the importance of understanding the customer, their usage and circumstances, not just the car. Charging habits, annual mileage, access to home charging, servicing costs and wider running costs all need to form part of the conversation. 

Challenger brands and business demand continue to shape the market 

Looking at brands by volume, Volkswagen remained the largest brand year to date with 104,204 registrations and 8.05% market share, with Kia, BMW, Audi and Ford filling the top five spots. 

Looking to continued performance of newer and fast-growing brands, BYD was up 96.68% year to date, Jaecoo up 283.64% and Omoda up 151.44%, showing the pace at which challenger brands are fast becoming part of the UK market. 

In the top models table, the Ford Puma remained the leading model year to date, followed by the Kia Sportage and Jaecoo 7. Natalie also noted the appearance of the Mini Cooper and MG HS in the top 10. 

Sales type data showed private registrations at 39.3% market share year to date, fleet at 58.4% and business at 2.4%. John highlighted the continued importance of fleet and business sales particularly around salary sacrifice and the opportunity for retailers to speak to local businesses about their vehicle needs. 

Signal Spotlight: Complaints handling 

Moving into Signal, in this session, Natalie noted that staff helpfulness and sales experience appeared strongly as positivecustomer feedback themes across many brands. However, complaints handling remained a recurring negative theme, particularly where customers were unhappy with how their complaint had been managed. 

John also pointed to two areas that are becoming more visible in complaints: safety technology and end-of-contract processes. Customers may not fully understand how vehicle safety systems work or what to expect when handing a vehicle back at the end of a PCP, PCH or contract hire agreement. 

The key message was that complaints need clear communication, ownership, timeliness and transparency. A poorly handled complaint can create issues for a dealership, but a well-handled complaint can protect trust and help strengthen the customer relationship. Check out the FCA’s guidance on this, amongst many others out there.  

Three practical priorities for retailers 

Based on the July data and Signal findings, the session highlighted three priorities for retailers: 

1. Know your customer, not just the car 

Use qualification to understand the customer’s circumstances, driving habits, charging access and wider ownership needs before recommending a vehicle. 

2. Be comfortable discussing total cost 

Price and monthly payment are not everything; retailers need to be able to discuss  charging, fuel, servicing, parking, ULEZ and other running costs with confidence. 

3. Communicate clearly when resolving complaints 

Communication is key to resolving complaints; customers need timely, transparent  updates and a clear process when something goes wrong. 

Final thoughts 

July’s data points to a growing market, with strong EV momentum, continued challenger brand activity and a positive year-to-date position. At the same time, the customer decision is becoming more complex, with more brands, more powertrain options and more research shaping the buying journey. 

For retailers, the opportunity lies in stronger qualification, clearer cost conversations and better ongoing communication. Customers may arrive with more information than ever, but they still need guidance that is personal, practical and relevant to how they will use the vehicle. 

RTS Group’s monthly Automotive Market Insight webinars are designed to help automotive teams keep track of the latest market data, gain insight into customer sentiment themes and deliver practical actions for you to take away. 

Sign up as part of your monthly market digest or to explore how RTS Group can further support your commercial capability and performance in evolving markets, please get in touch.