UK vehicle output down 36%

The damage caused by August’s cyberattack at Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is laid bare in latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) showing UK car production fell -27.1% in September, with the production stoppage at Britain’s biggest automotive employer largely responsible for the decline as other volume manufacturers reported growth.

In total 51,090 units left factory gates, of which almost half (47.8%) of cars were either battery electric, plug-in hybrid or hybrid, with volumes up 14.7% to 24,445 units.

Overall car production for the UK market fell by -34.1% to 12,269 units while exports declined -24.5%. 38,821 cars were made for global markets – representing 76% of total output – with the EU, US, Turkey, Japan and South Korea the top five destinations.

Commercial vehicle (CV) production, meanwhile, declined for the sixth month in a row, by -77.9% to 3,229 units, driven by the consolidation of operations by a leading manufacturer.

Combined car and van production, therefore, was down by -35.9% in September to 54,319 units.

Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive, said: “September’s performance comes as no surprise given the total loss of production at Britain’s biggest automotive employer following a cyber incident. While the situation has improved, the sector remains under immense pressure.”

Speaking ahead of the Budget on 26 November, SMMT warned of “severe and lasting damage to jobs and the industry’s competitiveness” if the Chancellor pushes ahead with plans to end Employee Car Ownership Schemes (ECOS).

The trade body argues that these schemes are an important part of manufacturer remuneration packages, allowing employees to access the products they make and sell affordably. Under the proposals the government intends to reclassify ECOS vehicles to make them liable for company car tax, which it says will put them out of reach for most automotive workers.

New analysis by SMMT suggests 60,000 automotive manufacturing workers could be affected, cutting the value of their remuneration and leaving them without personal transport. The impact will be especially severe for factory employees in regions lacking adequate public transport, making it more difficult to work flexible shift patterns and more challenging to recruit people into a sector already suffering a skills shortage.

SMMT warns the impacts would spread even wider, with 80,000 fewer new car sales per annum, damage to the nearly new and used markets, and a significant reduction in UK production volumes of up to 20,000 cars. Such a reduction would amount to a loss of more than £1 billion in revenue, putting some 5,000 manufacturing jobs at risk, and a near half billion-pound hit to government finances from lost VAT and Vehicle Excise Duty receipts.

Hawes said: “The Industrial Strategy, launched by the Prime Minister, Business Secretary and Chancellor only in June, sought to align government policies towards growth and restore UK vehicle output to 1.3 million units per annum. The move to scrap ECOS immediately puts that ambition in doubt and must be reversed given the damage it will inflict on the sector and exchequer revenues.”

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