- ZEV Mandate amended by UK government
- 2030 phase-out date for ICE vehicles confirmed
- Plug-in hybrid and full hybrids remain until 2035
- Small-volume manufacturers - like McLaren and Aston Martin - exempt
- ICE vans remain until 2035
The UK’s Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) Mandate has changed - and here’s everything you need to know.
The ZEV Mandate first came into effect in January 2024 and sets out the percentage of new zero emission cars and vans that manufacturers are required to produce.
In effect, it’s a legally-binding pathway to a future where ALL vehicles produce zero emissions from the tailpipe.
There are targets for manufacturers, and there are penalties for missing those targets.
Now, though, things have changed. And here we explain all of the key details from the Department for Transport’s (DfT) latest announcement.
ICE (internal combustion engine) cars - what has changed?
Let’s rewind to January 2024.
When the ZEV Mandate was first introduced by the Conservative government, certain targets - and penalties for missing those targets - were outlined.
The ZEV Mandate initially set out that 80% of new cars and 70% of new vans sold in Great Britain needed to be zero emission by 2030, with that figure increasing to 100% by 2035.
But when Labour came to power in July 2024 they did so with a manifesto that promised to bring forward that 2035 date - banning all ICE (internal combustion engine) cars by 2030 instead, shaving five years off the deadline.
This week’s ZEV Mandate changes confirm that move to be the case - with 2030 being the phase-out date for all new petrol and diesel cars.
Plug-in hybrid and full hybrids
Hybrids have had a stay of execution.
Rather than being lumped in with the 2030 ban on petrol and diesel cars, new plug-in hybrids and full hybrids will continue to be on sale until 2035 (even though they’re not zero-emission).
The Department for Transport press release specifically references hybrids like the Toyota Prius and Nissan Qashqai e-Power as shining examples of what a hybrid can offer.
Mild hybrids, however, are not included in this perceived ‘extension’. That’s because mild hybrids have a much smaller battery and electric motor and can typically only travel very short distances using electricity alone.
Supercars and specialist vehicles
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he wants to protect some of the UK’s most historic car brands - manufacturers that don’t produce cars in vast numbers but which instead offer some of the most drool-inducing vehicles on the market.
So, specialist, high-end, low volume brands like Aston Martin, McLaren and Rolls-Royce are EXEMPT from the 2030 phase out. Those thunderous V12s will live on.
It’s a move that lets folks with deep pockets enjoy expensive petrol-powered coupes and roadsters while ‘preserving some of the UK car industry’s most iconic jewels for years to come’, says the PM.
Vans - what it all means
The demand for electric vans is moving far slower than the demand for EV cars (electric vans have an 8.2% market share while the electric cars command an 20.7% market share, as of April 2025).
The Government has recognised that fact. The ZEV Mandate now says that new ICE vans can remain on sale until 2035 (alongside full hybrids and plug-in hybrid vans).
More flexibility with ZEV Mandate targets
The ZEV Mandate is now looser than it was before, which gives vehicle manufacturers some extra wiggle room.
There’s now additional scope for manufacturers being able to meet the rising yearly targets - there’s an EV car sales target of 28% in 2025 (16% for vans) which rises to 33% in 2026 (24% for vans) - by selling more electrified vehicles in one particular year to make up for lower sales in another year.
Car markers can also ‘trade’ credits between car and van sales in order to meet targets.
The precise wording for the Mandate states:
- extending the current ability to transfer non-ZEVs to ZEVs from 2024-26, out to 2029, giving significant additional flexibility to reward CO2 savings from hybrids – caps will be included to ensure credibility
- introducing a new flexibility by allowing for van to car transfer, i.e. 1 car credit will be exchanged for 0.4 van credits, and 1 van credit will be exchanged for 2.0 car credits
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ZEV Mandate fines
Fines dished out to manufacturers for missing ZEV mandate targets have been reduced.
It’s now £12,000 per car (down from £15,000) and £15,000 for vans (down from £18,000).
Analysts from the DfT suggest that very few manufacturers will be met with fines at all, thanks to all of the extra slack in the system, as explained above.
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What the new ZEV Mandate means for lease customers
While those ZEV Mandate deadlines loom large, by protecting plug-in hybrids and full hybrids from the cull and keeping them on sale until 2035, lease customers benefit from greater choice for much longer.
There are some cracking plug-in hybrids and full hybrids available to lease right now, from the affordable MG HS to the new Ford Ranger PHEV pick-up.
Keeping ICE vans on sale until 2035 will likely have manufacturers breathing a little easier, too, while it gives businesses longer to wrap their heads around an EV future, with van owners typically shying away from electrified LCVs.
UK demand for EVs is rising
The UK was also the largest EV market in Europe in 2024 and the third in the world with over 382,000 EVs sold – up a fifth on the previous year.
There are now more than 75,000 public charge points in the UK – with one added every 29 minutes – ‘ensuring that motorists are always a short drive from a socket’, according to the DfT.
And you can read our own Select Car Leasing electric vehicle myth busting guide.
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