Il Italian car market October closes with a slight minus sign, but beneath the surface the numbers tell of a profound transformation. transition to electric power supplies is progressing, albeit at an uneven pace. And just as Europe is discussing how to support this transition, A potential blow to green cars is coming from LondonTaxing electric cars. A move destined to reignite the European debate.
In month of October were registered 125.826 cars, down 0,6% compared to 126.543 in the same month of 2024. In first ten months of the year the market totals 1.293.366 new license plates, a 2,7% decrease compared to 2024. The comparison with 2019 is even more stark, when 332 more cars arrived on the market, equal to a decrease of 20,4%.
Petrol and diesel are down, electric is picking up speed
The month of October confirms the weakness of traditional power supplies. The petrol cars are moving backwards of 17,2%, stopping at 23% of the market; still the drop in diesel is the heaviest, which fell by 29,2% and dropped to a 9,3% share. The picture for the first ten months is no different: gasoline down 16,9% (25,2% share) and diesel down 31,5% (9,8%).
Filling the space left by the thermal are the alternative power supplies, which reached 67,7% of the market in October, up 13,6% year-over-year. Overall, they rose 11,9% to 65%. Electrified vehicles remain the driving force behind the transition, accounting for 58% of the month and 55,7% of the ten-month period, with increases of 15% and 15,2%, respectively. Mild and full hybrids alone accounted for 45,8% in October and 44,5% overall, with increases of 6,4% and 8,9%.
È boom for electric cars, thanks in part to the incentives implemented. Plug-in vehicles rose 65% in the month and 49,1% over the ten-month period, for a market share of 12,2%. Pure electric vehicles (BEVs) returned to 5% thanks to growth of 24,9%, while plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) rose 112,1%, capturing a 7,2% market share in October. Overall, both vehicles gained: BEVs increased by 26,5% and 5,2%; PHEVs by 76,4% and 6%.
The picture closes with gas, stable in the immediate term but weak in the long term. LPG cars They accounted for 9,7% of October's market share and grew by 6,3%, while overall they recorded a decline of 3,4% (9,3%). Considering all gas-fired fuels, the overall decline is 4,4%.
Flash incentives and a suspended market: Unrae's warning
The data for the year remain negative. For 2025, the new projections of the Unrae Research and Statistics Center they stop at 1.520.000 registrations, 39 thousand fewer than in 2024. A trend that confirms the structural stagnation of the market, aggravated – according to the president Roberto Pietrantonio – from the long wait for incentives. On October 22nd, vouchers for the purchase of electric cars will be available.they sold out in just over 24 hours“, leaving doubts open about the real impact in terms of registrations, given that it will take 30 days to validate the contracts.
Pietrantonio talks about a "film already seen"Long months of paralysis awaiting bonuses, a ravenous rush to click-day, and then the risk of a new slowdown. For Unrae, the solution lies in medium- to long-term policies, a reform of company car taxation, and coordinated planning between institutions and industry. Without a stable framework, it warns, Italy's ecological transition will continue to proceed "too slowly."
London changes course: a "per kilometre" tax on electric cars is coming.
While in Italy there is discussion about incentives, London is preparing a diametrically opposite moveTaxing electricity. In the next Winter Budget, the British government will evaluate the introduction of a “pay-per-mile” system, a tax of approximately three pennies per mile traveled (4,8 cents per kilometer) for owners of battery-powered vehicles. This measure will be added to the £195 annual Vehicle Excise Duty (VED), the local car tax.
The goal is to offset the huge drop in revenue generated by excise duties on petrol and dieselWith 1,3 million EVs already on the road and a projection of over 6 million by 2028, the Treasury therefore risks losing up to £30 billion a year. The proposed solution resembles a rental agreementAdvance payment based on estimated mileage and final adjustment, with credits for those who drove less than expected. A decision that many were unhappy about.
Electric car tax: "Wrong measure, wrong time"
The reaction of the British industry was immediate and very harsh. Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders he called the tax “a completely wrong measure at the wrong time”, convinced that it risks break the growth of electric cars just as the sector is approaching a decisive phase. The issue is not only economic, but also strategic. Such a complex measure could slowing the pace of the UK's 2050 net-zero emissions target and make the country less attractive for investment.
Yet, the tax burden is set to grow. Telegraph estimates that, by 2031, the tax could generate £1,8 billion in new revenue. Meanwhile, the British EV market It's growing. September was a record month, with nearly 73 electric vehicle registrations (+29%), but the government's target quotas remain far off.
The risk of contagion and the European match
The "per kilometer" tax on electric cars is an issue that doesn't just concern London because it could become a precedent for the rest of Europe. No EU government has yet proposed a per kilometer tax for electric cars, but the “tax gap” problem is the same everywhere.
And while the UK studies how to drain resources from new vehicles, Brussels prepares to revise the Green Deal timetableThere is talk of a possible postponement of the 100% electric goal to 2040 and new measures to bring compact, affordable cars in the 15-20 euro range back to Europe.
