March is the most important month in the automotive industry, typically accounting for 20% of all annual sales. In the decade before the pandemic, new car sales in March averaged at 450,000.

The decline witnessed in March is also a significant reversal on the numbers reported for January and February, which against weak comparatives from the lockdowns in the same months in 2021 had shown a 23% recovery to 174,000 across the two months.

The drop in car sales came as UK consumers reduced spending due to the cost of living inflation rising to 5.5%, The Times reports.

New figures from car dealers have indicated that the average cost of a new has risen by 25% since the start of the pandemic having risen by 14%in the last year alone to an average £25,000.

According to figures from New AutoMotive, sales of pure electric cars now stands at 16% of all new registrations. One in six of all new cars, or about 40,000 last month are now zero-emission.

At the same time, Diesel registrations dropped, with the vehicles’ share of the market halving from 16% in March 2021 to 8%, or just 19,000, last month.