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For more information on this release:
E-mail: transport@cso.ie Noreen Dorgan +353 21453-5260 Jim Dalton +353 21453-5120
For general information on CSO statistics:
information@cso.ie (+353) 21 453 5000 On-line ISSN 2009-5678
CSO statistical release, , 11am

Vehicles licensed for the first time

November 2012

New VehiclesNovemberJanuary - November
 20112012Change20112012Change
New Private Cars1,3981,421231.6%86,33575,482-10,853-12.6%
New Goods Vehicles624508-116-18.6%10,89610,617-279-2.6%
Total New Vehicles2,3112,237-74-3.2%104,69493,919-10,775-10.3%

Increase of 1.6% in new private cars licensed in November

Figure 1 VLFTM - New Private Cars Licensed for the First Time
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There were 1,421 new private cars licensed in November 2012, compared with 1,398 in November 2011, an increase of 1.6%.

The number of new goods vehicles licensed in November 2012 was 508 compared with 624 in the corresponding month last year - a decrease of 18.6%.

The licensing figures also show that:

  • In November 2012, the total number of all vehicles licensed was 6,670 compared with 6,872 in the corresponding month last year - a decrease of 2.9%.   See Table 1 below.
  • The total number of all new vehicles licensed during November 2012 was  2,237 compared with 2,311 during the same month in 2011 - a decrease of 3.2%.
  • In November, of the 1,421 new private cars licensed, 357 (25.1%) were petrol and 1,048 (73.8%) were diesel.   See Table 2A below.
  • The highest number of new private cars licensed in November 2012, classified by make, was Volkswagen (156) followed by Opel (141), Ford (136) and Toyota (119).  See Table 3 below.

 

The licensing figures refer to vehicles taxed for road use only and classified by taxation class.

Table 1: Number of vehicles licensed for the first time classified by taxation class
Taxation ClassNovemberJanuary - November
 201020112012201020112012
New Vehicles      
New Private Cars 2,1461,3981,42184,26086,33575,482
New Goods Vehicles 42862450810,27210,89610,617
New Tractors 691031101,3271,6551,933
New Motor Cycles 6940431,3061,074932
New Exempt Vehicles 1421141194,1453,9633,883
New Other 3432367587711,072
Total New Vehicles 2,8882,3112,237102,068104,69493,919
       
Used (imported) Vehicles      
Used Private Cars 3,0853,5253,46637,15538,03835,069
Used Goods Vehicles 5294764507,9074,8264,353
Used Tractors 1741701292,0612,3621,665
Used Motorcycles 11496952,9052,0061,480
Used Other Vehicles 3582942934,7073,7983,227
Total Used vehicles 4,2604,5614,43354,73551,03045,794
       
Total All Vehicles 7,1486,8726,670156,803155,724139,713
Table 2A: Number of new private cars licensed for the first time by CO2 emission band and fuel type, November 2012
BandFuel TypeTotal
 PetrolDieselPetrol & ElectricPetrol & EthanolElectricOther 
A 1746225060807
B 1543022200460
C 1645100062
D 344000047
E 59000014
F 223000025
G 1000001
Not available12300005
Total3571,04882601,421
1 Emission bands are only available for vehicles registered as category A (See background notes for more information)
Table 2B: Number of new private cars licensed for the first time by CO2 emission band and fuel type, January-November 2012
BandFuel TypeTotal
 PetrolDieselPetrol & ElectricPetrol & EthanolElectricOther 
A 7,26332,5864920162040,487
B 9,60718,036741,1920028,909
C 5662,418190003,003
D 701,33900001,409
E 537060000759
F 147770000791
G 1631000047
Not available1952000077
Total17,59855,9455851,192162075,482
1 Emission bands are only available for vehicles registered as category A (See background notes for more information)
Table 3: Number of new and used (imported) private cars licensed for the first time by make, November 2012
MakeNovemberJanuary - November
 NewUsed (imported)TotalNewUsed (imported)Total
Audi 623944563,5863,6317,217
BMW 532182713,2842,6845,968
Chevrolet 033312556
Citroen 201721921,1501,7372,887
Fiat 332558594181775
Ford 1365546907,9835,67313,656
Honda 271021291,0381,0272,065
Hyundai 94851794,9196325,551
Kia 6236982,9743883,362
Lexus 7916255101356
Mazda 46611071,3515551,906
Mercedes-Benz 52711231,7566392,395
Mitsubishi 131225328135463
Nissan 59881475,7897626,551
Opel 14181494,925374,962
Peugeot 221741962,1891,8314,020
Renault 641251895,0811,2226,303
Seat 64391031,2054031,608
Skoda 113771904,6168305,446
Subaru 44812054174
Suzuki 61521606117723
Toyota 1193394589,3003,49312,793
Vauxhall 025525502,3872,387
Volkswagen 1564265829,6664,66314,329
Volvo 2260821,1045951,699
Other 461141601,6321,2672,899
Total 1,4213,4664,88775,48235,069110,551
       
Footnote: The information in this table is available in much greater detail in Databases (see Statbank link below)

Background Notes

Source

The vehicle licensing figures are compiled from data supplied by the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, Driver and Vehicle Computer Services Division. The data provide details on the number of private cars, goods vehicles, motor cycles and other vehicles licensed for the first time in each city and county council, classified by make and size, during a given month.

History

The release titled 'Vehicles Licensed for the First Time' commenced in January 1993. It replaced the series previously published as 'Particulars of Vehicles Registered and Licensed for the First Time'.

In January 1993, separate systems for vehicle registration and licensing were introduced. The Office of the Revenue Commissioners became responsible for the compilation of vehicle registrations while the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government retained responsibility for vehicle licensing. In January 2008, responsibility for vehicle licensing was transferred to the Department of Transport (which later became the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport).

For new cars registered from 1 July 2008 motor tax charges are determined on the basis of the CO2 emission level, based on seven CO2 bands.  Tables with CO2 emission data were added to this release from July 2008. A further such table was added in November 2008.

The licensing process where applicable follows the registration process.

Vehicle Licensing versus Vehicle Registration

Registration and licensing figures may differ in a given month for a number of reasons, some of which are outlined below:

  • Vehicles which under the previous system would have been licensed in the latter part of a particular month may not now be licensed until a later month because of the time lapse between registration and first licensing.
  • Registered vehicles which are not used in a public place (e.g. tractors for use exclusively on the land) may not need to be licensed.

The question is often asked, which reflects better vehicle sales, licensing figures or registration figures?

In practice, on a monthly basis, the licensing data is probably a better reflection of sales. In some cases, a vehicle may be registered by a dealership in advance of a sale. Whereas, typically, vehicles are only licensed at the point of sale.  However, if a vehicle is purchased towards the end of a month, the buyer may wish to defer collecting and licensing it until the start of the following month. So the issue is not clear-cut.

From 31 October 1999, detailed information on agricultural vehicles is no longer published in accordance with Commission Decision 92/157/EEC as upheld on 28 May 1998.

Definitions

Second-hand:  The term 'second-hand vehicles' in this release, refers to imported used vehicles which are licensed for use in a public place, in this country, for the first time.

Exempt:  The term 'exempt vehicles' in this release, refers to vehicles which are licensed for the first time but are exempt from liability to pay road tax.

Exempt vehicles can be divided into four main categories:

  • State-owned
  • Diplomatic
  • Fire services
  • Disabled Drivers

Machines or Contrivances:  Vehicles included under this category are mobile machines, forklifts, excavators and diggers.

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