Registrations of BEV, PHEV, HEV and other electric vehicles totalled 96,600 units in July – as demand increased by 29 per cent from July 2018.

Data from Jato shows registrations in July this year brought about a market share increase from 5.8 per cent to 7.4 per cent. The increase was underpinned by a 98 per cent increase in registrations of battery electric vehicles.

During the month, Renault saw a 103 per cent volume increase after its Zoe model became the top-selling BEV. Meanwhile Tesla was the top-selling brand.

Hybrid vehicles also witnessed improved performance, as demand increased by 27 per cent to 56,800 units. The rankings were dominated by Toyota and Lexus, but there were notable results from Mercedes, which came third, and Land Rover, whose new Evoque model became the 5th best-selling HEV during the month.

Felipe Munoz, JATO’s global analyst, said: “There is uncertainty in Europe. After many years of growth, the market shows signs of deceleration that is likely to continue if the German economy fails to grow again. Even if they still makeup a comparatively marginal part of the overall market, electric vehicles are definitely becoming the industry’s bright spot during these challenging times.”