Electric car demand has been slow in Malta (Image: Getty)
Britain’s market may be struggling with latest data from the painting a difficult picture.
secured a record volume and market share in 2024 but SMMT officials warned that the figures were “still below mandated levels”
The numbers showed that private consumer to levels last seen back in the pandemic with making the switch last year.
Britain is one of just six European countries that to switch with the previous plug-in grant axed back in June 2022.
Most of the tax breaks are also set to end in April 2025, , Denmark, Germany, Sweden and Switzerland in not offering money to switch.
Incentives have not led to a surge in demand in the country (Image: Getty)
However, would incentives really work anyway? Or are motorists simply not making the transition for other reasons?
is the template with the small island nation offering the most lucrative benefits for EV models in Europe.
Officials have pushed for EV adoption for well over a decade with road users securing a sizeable £9,000 (€11,000) for saying yes to one of the new electric models
But despite this. Only 3-6% of models on the road are electric or even plug-in hybrids.
Is cash the problem or are other concerns such as a lack of charging infrastructure also to blame for a loss of appetite?
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Luke Zammit, who runs a Maltese EV community group, that conditions in Malta make it the “perfect” area to adopt EVs.
However, this wasn’t enough to tempt people to naturally switch with families usually keeping cars for up to 25 years due to the low mileage they accumulate.
He added: “We don’t have cold weather like the UK, which can suddenly cripple the EV range. We nearly always get the full specified range.
“We also have no highways here, so it’s all low speed and we don’t make long journeys. Our conditions are so favourable as we get 300 days of sunshine a year.
“But like everywhere, the charging network is lagging. We’re hoping for more investment. A huge part of the population lives in apartments, so home charging is difficult.”
Malta is set to reduce its EV offering in 2025 with the free money cut to just €8,000 (£6,695) still funded from the overall EU finance pot.
Luke added: “The incentives are very important. Without them, the cars would still be unattainable to a lot of the population.”