One Home reveals the areas of the UK with the fewest and most electric cars

A new investigation by One Home has shown a North/South divide in EV car registrations in the UK.

Our data showed EV hotspots were concentrated in the South of England.

Our research shows “EV deserts” exist mostly in the North of England and Scotland, while the greatest areas of pure EV car registrations are in the South. We found stark and worrying disparities emerging in less affluent parts of northern England along with rural areas in Scotland and Wales.

One Home asked the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) to send us data outlining the amount of pure electric cars registered to every postcode area of the UK under the Freedom of Information Act (FOI). We then compiled a list of the top 20 “EV deserts” and the 20 “EV hotspots.”

Of the 20 areas with the fewest registered electric cars, 75% are in Scotland and the North of England, including Blackpool*** (FH), England’s most deprived local authority, in 13th place with 2,244 registered electric cars.

Our data showed EV hotspots were concentrated in the South of England, with areas south of Nottingham making up 14 of the top 20 registration postcodes.

The league tables highlighted that Halifax (HX) in West Yorkshire is officially England’s worst EV desert, coming in at number seven behind a number of rural Scottish postcode areas. Home to towns Mytholmroyd and Rishworth, the area has just 1,265 registered EV cars. It was closely followed by Sunderland (SR) in eighth place – home to Seaham and Peterlee – with only 1,593 registered electric cars.

Hereford’s postcode area (HR) – which includes Leominster and Ross-on-Wye – was in ninth place with just 1,857 registered electric cars.

Hebrides (HS) and Lerwick (ZE) in Scotland had the fewest number of electric cars in the country with just 133 and 168 registered respectively, followed by Wales’ Llandrindod Wells (LD) in third place with 368. Nine postcode areas in Scotland and Wales are EV deserts.

At One Home we believe that pure electric cars (ones which have an electric battery as their only power source) are the future of motoring.

Not only can they help drivers to lower their carbon footprint but they also reduce levels of air pollution in towns and cities right across the UK, ensuring cleaner air for everybody and help reduce motoring costs.

It’s encouraging to see that the number of pure EV cars on UK roads has increased by almost 15% since 2023* and numbers this year have surpassed the one million milestone (1,121, 001 to be precise).

We think there’s a real urgency in helping consumers make the big switch.

But our report highlights that they must be made attractive for far more people. When you consider that the transport sector is the UK’s biggest source of emission, we think there’s a real urgency in helping consumers make the big switch.

So what can the Government do to increase EV sales?

One Home is calling on the Chancellor to scrap or, at the very least, delay plans to impose road tax.

The Government calculates Vehicle Excise Duty (VED), commonly known as road tax, using a number of different factors including the vehicle’s age and the type of fuel used. Currently, electric vehicles are totally exempt from paying road tax which can account for a significant saving for those drivers opting to invest in an EV.

However, this is all set to change in 2025 when electric vehicles will also incur the tax which could be anything up to £165 per year.

One Home CEO, Angela Terry, says: “Removal of incentives to buy electric cars is absolutely ludicrous and signals a major step backwards for the UK, given the transport sector is still the biggest contributor to our country’s carbon dioxide emissions overall.

Electric vehicles must not become the preserve of the wealthy. They are cheaper to run than petrol or diesel cars, and everyone should be entitled to make lifestyle changes which improve levels of air pollution on the streets where they live and reduce their carbon footprint.”

Where are the UK’s top twenty EV hotspots?

When it comes to places in the UK with the highest number of registered electric cars, it might surprise you to see that the country’s biggest hotspot is… Stockport’s postcode area.

It has almost 98,000 pure EVs registered within its boundaries – more than any other UK location.

The area – which includes parts of Greater Manchester, Cheshire and Derbyshire – is followed by the Slough (SL) postcode area in second place, home to Windsor, Ascot and Maidenhead, with over 91,000 electric cars and the Swindon postcode area (SN) in third place which counts 51,733 electric cars within its boundaries. Of course, many of these electric cars will be registered to fleet companies.

‘G’, Glasgow’s postcode area, home to Dunbarton, Clyde Bank and East Kilbride, is in tenth place with 20,186 registered pure EVs – the only Scottish location to feature in the top ten.

What’s the picture in London?

London is split into eight postcode areas. West London’s famous ‘W’ postcode – home to the well-heeled neighbourhoods of Kensington, Chelsea, Fulham and Notting Hill – is officially the city’s electric vehicle hotspot with over 32,000 registered EVs on its streets.

This means it’s home to over 40% of the city’s total EV population, which stands at 74,773. The EC and WC postcode areas have the fewest at 951 and 414 EVs, respectively.

Want to know what electric car ownership is like in your postcodes area? Head to our maps below:.

ENDS

*Increase from 978,387 pure EVs (BEVs) at end of 2023, compared to 1,121,001 on 11 August 2024 = increase of 14.5% (2023 figures sourced from Zap Map)

**DVLA data obtained through a Freedom of Information request details the amount of pure electric cars registered to every postcode area in the UK – correct as of September 2024.

***Blackpool is cited as being the most deprived local authority based on rank and score in the The English Indices of Deprivation 2019 (publishing.service.gov.uk)

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The information in this article was correct at the time of writing and is provided for guidance only. Please see the full disclaimer in our terms and conditions.

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