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For more information on this release:
E-mail: transport@cso.ie Olive Loughnane (+353) 21 453 5281 Sandra O'Riordan (+353) 21 4535544 Noreen Dorgan (+353) 21 4535260
For general information on CSO statistics:
information@cso.ie (+353) 21 453 5000 On-line ISSN 2009-5678

This release has been compiled during the COVID-19 crisis. The results contained in this release reflect some of the economic impacts of the COVID-19 situation. For further information see Press Statement Vehicles licensed for the first time November 2020.

CSO statistical release, , 11am

Vehicles licensed for the first time

November 2020

 November January - November
20192020Change 20192020Change
New private cars1,6761,468-208-12.4% 112,57683,277-29,299-26.0%
New goods vehicles1,2641,50924519.4% 24,11320,760-3,353-13.9%
Other new vehicles44444400.0% 11,54810,430-1,118-9.7%
Total new vehicles3,3843,421371.1% 148,237114,467-33,770-22.8%
          
Used private cars9,8747,892-1,982-20.1% 100,90069,623-31,277-31.0%
Used goods vehicles1,2861,240-46-3.6% 14,05310,590-3,463-24.6%
Other used vehicles1,1381,148100.9% 12,3949,989-2,405-19.4%
Total used vehicles12,29810,280-2,018-16.4% 127,34790,202-37,145-29.2%

Decrease of -12.4% in new private cars licensed in November 2020

Figure 1 Private cars licensed for the first time, November 2016-2020
go to full release

In November 2020, 1,468 new private cars were licensed, a fall of 12.4% compared with November 2019. The number of used (imported) private cars licensed decreased by 20.1% compared with the same period in 2019.

In the first eleven months of 2020, a total of 83,277 new private cars were licensed, a decrease of 26.0% compared with the same period last year. The number of used (imported) private cars licensed fell by 31.0% compared with the same period in 2019.

Electric and hybrid cars continue to grow in popularity. These two categories of vehicles combined accounted for 20.2% of new private cars licensed in November 2020, compared with 18.6% in the same period in 2019. The number of new hybrid and new electric cars licensed between January and November grew by 1,712 (15.8%) and 542 (16.4%) respectively despite an overall drop in new cars licensed for the period. See table 6

The licensing figures also show that:

  • Volkswagen (187) was the most popular make of new private car licensed followed by Skoda (169), Toyota (104), Renault (103) and Ford (94). Together these five makes represent 44.8% of all new private cars licensed in November 2020. See table 3.
  • In the first eleven months of 2020, 42.9% of all new private cars licensed were diesel, compared with 47.0% in the same period for 2019. Of new private cars licensed in the same period, 94.5% were in the A/B CO2 emissions bands. See table 2B.
  • There was an increase of 245 (19.4%) in the number of new goods vehicles licensed in November 2020 bringing the total licensed for the first eleven months of the year to 20,760. See table 1.
  • In 2020 to date, the majority (56.3%) of imported private cars licensed were three to five years old while 3,321 (4.8%) were ten or more years old. See figure 5.
  • There were 35,731 new diesel private cars licensed in the first eleven months of 2020, compared with 52,900 in the same period in 2019. For used (imported) diesel private cars, the total licensed was 45,210 in the first eleven months of 2020. This compares with 72,642 in the same period last year. See table 6.

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

  • Vehicles registered in the latter part of a particular month may not be licensed until a later month because of the time lapse between registration and first licensing.
  • In some cases, a vehicle may be registered by a dealership in advance of a sale.
  • 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.

Seasonally adjusting the Vehicle Licensing series during the COVID-19 crisis period will be challenging until the scale and shape of its impact on the time series is better understood. The initial seasonally adjusted results might be revised for some months ahead as future observations become available. Users should be aware that there is increased uncertainty around the seasonally adjusted figures during this period.

Most popular makes of new cars, October 2020
Volkswagen 12.7
Skoda11.5
Toyota7.1
Renault7
Ford6.4
Other55.2
Most popular makes of new cars, November 2019
Volkswagen 10.5
Skoda9.2
Toyota6.3
Renault7.1
Ford7.6
Other59.2
Table 1: Number of vehicles licensed for the first time classified by taxation class
Taxation ClassNovember January - November
201820192020 201820192020
New vehicles    
New Private Cars 1,6471,6761,468 120,379112,57683,277
New Goods Vehicles 1,2141,2641,509 24,87724,11320,760
New Tractors 11593125 1,9802,0892,119
New Motor Cycles 778759 1,5141,8061,654
New Exempt Vehicles 165176200 5,8555,8895,587
New Other 598860 1,6731,7641,070
Total New Vehicles 3,2773,3843,421 156,278148,237114,467
       
Used (imported) vehicles       
Used private cars 8,4939,8747,892 92,995100,90069,623
Used goods vehicles 1,2941,2861,240 13,80314,05310,590
Used tractors 177228303 2,0422,4452,342
Used motorcycles 253270322 3,1373,4953,119
Used other vehicles 530640523 5,6446,4544,528
Total used vehicles 10,74712,29810,280 117,621127,34790,202
        
Total all vehicles 14,02415,68213,701 273,899275,584204,669
Table 2A: Number of new private cars licensed for the first time by CO2 emission band and fuel type, November 2020
BandFuel TypeTotal
PetrolDieselElectricPetrol & electric hybridDiesel & electric hybridPetrol or Diesel plug-in electric hybrid
A 3773781111078491,030
B 11420301900336
C 744020053
D 420010025
E 210000112
F 1800009
G 0100001
Not available2000002
Total5076641111298491,468
Table 2B: Number of new private cars licensed for the first time by CO2 emission band and fuel type, January-November 2020
BandFuel TypeTotal
PetrolDieselElectricPetrol & electric hybridDiesel & electric hybridPetrol or Diesel plug-in electric hybrid
A 21,66422,0763,8559,3864592,37959,819
B 8,44310,09103060018,840
C 6201,928024012,573
D 28787804001,169
E 373430101382
F 3637301100420
G 2626000052
Not available616000022
Total31,11935,7313,8559,7324592,38183,277
Table 3: Number of new and used (imported) private cars licensed for the first time by make, November 2020
MakeNovember January - November
NewUsed (imported)Total NewUsed (imported)Total
Audi 768689443,4817,49510,976
BMW 677898562,9746,9139,887
Citroen 411051469441,1602,104
Dacia 4321641,9092342,143
Fiat 11951062368961,132
Ford 948199136,4407,30413,744
Honda 122572697502,0782,828
Hyundai 904365267,2064,43211,638
Jaguar 74148264544808
Kia 482292775,0882,0507,138
Land Rover 171361531,0489932,041
Lexus 151201353987961,194
Mazda 1471851,2138472,060
Mercedes Benz 445886322,7715,2978,068
Mini 1355684056001,005
Mitsubishi 61031093958681,263
Nissan 394174565,0674,1639,230
Opel 590591,86891,877
Peugeot 831922754,3991,6546,053
Renault 1031792824,0621,5345,596
Seat 711071783,0098043,813
Skoda 1692774466,7742,0658,839
Ssangyong 101541266
Subaru 0555264116
Suzuki 1453678764961,372
Tesla 991872560785
Toyota 1045156199,4293,95913,388
Vauxhall 022022002,1392,139
Volkswagen 1879301,11710,1427,88718,029
Volvo 262032291,1171,6792,796
Other 55257181591772
Total 1,4687,8929,360 83,27769,623152,900
The information in this table is available in much greater detail in Databases (see PXStat link below)
X-axis labelUnadjusted dataAdjusted dataTrend
November 201518741148911733
December 20158471165111910
January 2016271061230011994
February 2016211731253711979
March 2016200961148211878
April 2016148471197711730
May 2016101251125411613
June 201641431113311594
July 2016224621189311634
August 201697811196711666
September 201658421156011608
October 201638311180711446
November 201618461114011225
December 20166791027611004
January 2017266681125410811
February 2017169051056910669
March 2017171801078410559
April 2017134271045110476
May 201795811037110411
June 20173585969510344
July 2017213161113010249
August 201781051006910118
September 20174828101519974
October 2017325597489875
November 2017159495139823
December 201760193169829
January 201825813104539863
February 201816501104769907
March 20181608896249914
April 20181155793999903
May 20189362100989883
June 2018371696599864
July 201820743103429852
August 2018768196829820
September 2018439797739720
October 2018287482069571
November 2018164793439443
December 2018778112069387
January 20192227992269412
February 20191417892399480
March 20191440496689542
April 20191379497829571
May 2019912697499532
June 2019385893299431
July 20191874189669315
August 2019720295719225
September 2019410488799181
October 2019321490639164
November 2019167693779143
December 201972994329086
January 20202066587519016
February 20201326387278970
March 20201023963666348
April 20201338958946
May 2020149017311767
June 2020218944434145
July 20201532973807566
August 202073601038710785
September 2020574712006
October 2020418912084
November 202014687911
Table 4: Seasonally adjusted number of vehicles licensed for the first time classified by taxation class
Taxation classNovember 2019October 2020November 2020Monthly % change
New vehicles    
New private cars 9,37712,0847,911-34.5
New goods vehicles 2,1393,0292,700-10.9
New tractors 152209206-1.4
New motor cycles 153183105-42.6
New exempt vehicles 522644580-9.9
New other 168123118-4.1
Total new vehicles 12,51116,27211,620-28.6
    
Used (imported) vehicles    
Used private cars 9,5068,2727,593-8.2
Used goods vehicles 1,2671,3821,223-11.5
Used tractors 2383103161.9
Used motorcycles 317406398-2.0
Used other vehicles 646562532-5.3
Total used vehicles 11,97410,93210,062-8.0
    
Total all vehicles 23,77627,20027,5021.1
X-axis label20162017201820192020 to date
<1 year old2.11.91.91.71.1
1-2 years old13.216.718.317.617.3
3-5 years old47.849.250.850.356.3
6-9 years old29.727.324.425.620.5
Over 10 years old7.34.84.64.84.8

Footnote: For the purpose of the analysis of the age profile of used (imported) private cars, calendar years were used to band the age groups. For example, a private car defined as less than one year old is an imported vehicle which has previously been registered abroad for the first time in the current calendar year.

Table 5: Number of new and used (imported) private cars licensed for the first time
Private cars20162017201820192020 Jan-Nov
New141,931127,045121,157113,30583,277
Used (imported) 70,13892,50899,456108,89569,623
Total212,069219,553220,613222,200152,900
% used (imported)33.1%42.1%45.1%49.0%45.5%
Table 6: Number of new and used (imported) private cars licensed for the first time by fuel type
Fuel typeNewUsed (imported)
November January - NovemberNovember January - November
20192020 20192020 20192020 20192020
Petrol510507 45,50331,1192,0462,085 20,20816,984
Diesel854664 52,90035,7316,9724,802 72,64245,210
Electric194111 3,3133,8556947 559392
Hybrid118186 10,86012,572787958 7,4847,033
Other00 0000 74
Total1,6761,468 112,57683,277 9,8747,892 100,90069,623

Background Notes

Source

The vehicle licensing figures are compiled from data supplied by the Driver and Vehicle Computer Services Division of the Department of Transport (formerly Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport). 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.

Motor tax charges are determined on the basis of CO2 emission level (using seven CO2 bands) for all new cars registered from 1 July 2008.

The licensing process where applicable follows the registration process.

Vehicle Licensing versus Vehicle Registration

The CSO produces vehicle licensing statistics on a monthly basis. Vehicle registration data has not been published on the CSO PXStat since June 2010.

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

  • Vehicles registered in the latter part of a particular month may not be licensed until a later month because of the time lapse between registration and first licensing.
  • In some cases, a vehicle may be registered by a dealership in advance of a sale.
  • 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.

Seasonal adjustment

Seasonal adjustment for each taxation class is conducted using a direct seasonal adjustment approach. However, the overall vehicle totals are estimated using the indirect approach, i.e. the ‘Total new vehicles’ is derived by adding all the seasonally adjusted new vehicles taxation classes. The main reason for adopting the indirect approach is to attribute the monthly and annual changes in vehicle licensing to each of its taxation classes. Seasonal adjustment models are developed for each series based on unadjusted data spanning from July 1996 to the current period. These models are reviewed on an annual basis; however seasonal factors are updated each month.

The adjustments are completed by applying the X-13-ARIMA model, developed by the U.S. Census Bureau to the unadjusted data.  This methodology estimates seasonal factors while also taking into consideration factors that impact on the quality of the seasonal adjustment such as:

• Calendar effects, e.g. the timing of Easter,

• Outliers, temporary changes and level shifts in the series.

Seasonally adjusting the Vehicle Licensing series during the COVID-19 crisis period will be challenging until the scale and shape of its impact on the time series is better understood. The initial seasonally adjusted results might be revised for some months ahead as future observations become available. Users should be aware that there is increased uncertainty around the seasonally adjusted figures during this period. 

For additional information on the use of X-13-ARIMA see https://www.census.gov/srd/www/winx13/

Definitions

Private cars:  The term 'private cars' in this release, refers to privately licensed vehicles which include hire, fleet and certain commercial vehicles.

New and used vehicles:  The term 'new vehicles' refers to new vehicles which are licensed for use in a public place, in this country, for the first time. 'Used vehicles' refers to used vehicles which are licensed for use in a public place, in this country, for the first time. In the main used vehicles are imported.

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

Electric hybrid:  means a vehicle that derives its motive power from a combination of an electric motor and an internal combustion engine and is capable of being driven on electric propulsion alone for a material part of its normal driving cycle.

Plug-in electric hybrid:  means a vehicle that derives its motive power from a combination of an electric motor and an internal combustion engine, where the electric motor derives its power from a battery that may be charged from the internal combustion engine and an alternating current (AC) electric mains supply and is capable of being driven on electric propulsion alone for a material part of its normal driving cycle.

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