Dutch car sales plunged in 2021 due to global chip shortage
Dutch car sales were more than 9 percent lower last year compared to 2020. The sector was severely hindered by semiconductor chip shortages, according to car industry organizations BOVAG and RAI Association. As a result, car manufacturing fell, and new vehicle deliveries were delayed.
In total, 322,831 new passenger cars were registered in the Netherlands in 2021. Car dealers had actually hoped for a sales spurt in the last month of the year, especially with the leasing of electric cars due to New Year’s Day rules changes regarding the taxation of company electric cars used as personal vehicles. However, the strong resurgence did not happen. A total of 35,708 cars were registered for the first time in December, nearly 16 percent less than a year earlier.
Due to the disrupted computer chip supply chain, fewer electric cars were made and delivered to customers across the board last year. The industry counted a total of 64,027 new electric cars, with the Skoda ENYAQ and KIA Niro becoming the best-selling models. In 2020, a total of 72,858 such vehicles were sold. In both years, electric cars accounted for about a fifth of the market.
BOVAG and RAI Association said they are cautious in their predictions for the new year. For the time being, they assume that 390,000 new cars will be sold, which would be a 21 percent increase over 2021 figures. At the same time, they pointed out that the chip shortage is not over yet, and that the change in tax rules could also drag down sales.
The latter also means that many people who did not receive their new electric car last year could inadvertently be confronted with a higher dent to their net income. The trade associations are concerned about the effect this could have on confidence in the market for new cars and the willingness to drive electric vehicles in the future.
But there is also an incentive that can encourage people to purchase plug-in cars more often. Private individuals can make use of a purchase subsidy for those buying electric cars in 2022. That will save buyers 3,350 euros per car. In addition, more and more electric models are expected to come onto the market, which gives new car buyers more options. The market share of electric cars is therefore likely to be somewhere between 20 and 30 percent this year, BOVAG and RAI predicted.
Reporting by ANP