11 May 2020
Go to release: Vehicles licensed for the first time April 2020
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (11 May 2020) published Vehicle Licensing figures for April 2020. These figures are based on the National Vehicle and Driver File compiled by the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport.
Today’s publication shows that the number of new cars licensed for the first time in April 2020 was 1,338, compared to 13,794 in April 2019, a drop of 90.3%. The number of new cars licensed in the first four months of 2020 was 45,505, compared to 64,655 in 2019.
Commenting on the data, Olive Loughnane, Statistician, said:
“The substantial drop in the number of new cars licensed in April 2020 has clearly been influenced by the COVID-19 crisis. In the first four months of this year, the number of new cars licensed was 19,150 lower than in the same period of 2019, a drop of 29.6%.
Comparing today’s CSO figures with the recently published Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI) figures, it is important to note that the vast majority of new cars licensed in April 2020 were registered before April.”
Today’s figures from the CSO also show the continuing increase in the relative share of electric and hybrid vehicles. In the first four months of 2020, more than 1 in 6 new cars licensed was a hybrid or electric. This compares with 1 in 9 for the same period last year.
Recent SIMI figures showed a steeper drop for April than the CSO licensing figures. New car registrations, as reported by SIMI, fell to just 344 in April 2020. From January to April 2020 there was a drop of 30.7% in the number of cars registered to 50,626 compared with 73,030 for the same period in 2019.
The monthly licensing (CSO) figures and the registration figures (SIMI) differ due to the different dates on which a vehicle is registered (number plate) and licensed (tax disc). A vehicle may be registered by a dealership in advance of a sale, and vehicles which are registered in a given month may not be licensed until a later month.
Vehicle registration
A vehicle is registered when the vehicle registration tax due on the vehicle is paid to the Revenue Commissioners. Revenue then issue a registration number for the vehicle.
Vehicle licensing
A vehicle is licensed when the annual car tax due on the vehicle is paid for the first time.
Olive Loughnane (+353) 21 453 5281
or email transport@cso.ie
or email olive.loughnane@cso.ie
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