The number of new passenger cars registered in March fell by 23.4% compared to March 2019. This is shown by figures from BOVAG, RAI Vereniging and RDC.
A total of 29,496 were registered in March 2020. This is 23.4% less than the 38,507 new cars registered in March 2019. The decline is mainly due to the absence of the traditional spike in registrations by dealers and importers at the end of the quarter. The parties note that most of these are vehicles ordered before the introduction of coronavirus control measures. The impact of these measures is expected to become clear in the coming months.
A total of 103,203 new passenger cars were registered in the first quarter. This is 10.6% less than in the first quarter of 2019, when 115,451 were registered.
'Developments in 2020 very uncertain'
How car sales will develop this year is 'very uncertain', according to BOVAG, RAI Vereniging and RDC. For instance, the crisis is seriously affecting confidence among consumers and businesses. At the same time, production in many car factories worldwide has been halted. Before the corona pandemic broke out, BOVAG and RAI Vereniging were counting on 425,000 new passenger cars in 2020. In 2019, the figure was over 446,000.
In the ranking of best-selling brands in the first quarter, Volkswagen leads the way. 11,920 Volkswagen were registered in the first three months of 2020 (11.6%). Kia follows with 7,838 units (7.6%) and Toyota with 7,134 (6.9%). Peugeot (7,102; 6.9%) and BMW (6,375; 6.2%) round out the top five.
Volkswagen and Kia also ranked first and second respectively in the top five best-selling models. The Volkswagen Polo is the most registered model with 3,281 units (3.2%), followed by the Kia Niro (2,921; 2.8%). The Ford Focus (2,770; 2.7%), Renault Clio (2,677; 2.6%) and Kia Picanto (2,223; 2.2%) follow.
Electric car owners very satisfied
The Smart Car Monitor, a survey by Multiscope of 6,000 respondents, shows that Dutch owners of electric cars are very satisfied with their vehicles. On average, Dutch people rate their electric cars with a score of 8.7. Tesla scores above average with a 9.1. Electric cars also receive an exceptionally high Net Promoter Score of +64 per cent. Tesla also scores higher in this respect (+80%) than the other brands.
"In recent years, we have conducted dozens of customer satisfaction surveys. But rarely did we see such a high NPS score as for electric cars in general and Tesla in particular. We can therefore say that electric drivers are really in love with their car," says Yves Kistemaker, market analyst at Multiscope.
Name recognition Tesla highest
Tesla also scored highest in terms of assisted name recognition at 76%. BMW (56%), Opel (52%), Volkswagen (52%) and Toyota (51%) follow. Helped brand awareness represents the percentage of respondents who know a brand when presented with a list of brands.
Consumers who want to buy an electric car cite the environment (45%) as the main reason. 30% call the electric car the future. For 28%, cost saving is the main motivation, while 22% point to the quiet engine.
Number of vans up in 2019
There are also figures to report on vans. CBS statistics, for instance, show that the number of vans increased for the fifth year in a row in 2019. At the beginning of 2020, almost 940,000 delivery vans were registered in the Netherlands, which is the highest number ever. The number of vans increased by 2.7% compared to 2018, while the increase compared to 2015 was 15%.
By far the most vans (91%) are owned by companies. Construction owns the most vans (31%), followed by wholesale and retail trade (21%). The number of vans owned by individuals fell from 94,500 in 2015 to 82,900 on 1 January 2019.
Vehicles drive an average of 18,100 kilometres a year. Transport and storage vans cover the most kilometres; they drove an average of 30,700 kilometres in 2018. Private individuals cover the least kilometres in their vans at 11,700 kilometres.
Author: Wouter Hoeffnagel
