Northern Ireland private-car registrations fall 9.4% as 44,713 cars are registered in a year

Northern Ireland's annual private-car registration total has fallen sharply, creating a clear contrast with the wider UK picture described in the latest official vehicle statistics.

DfI says 44,713 private cars were registered in Northern Ireland during the 2025/26 financial year. The previous year's figure was 49,333, meaning the annual total fell by 4,620 cars, or 9.4%.

The figures do not prove that Northern Ireland drivers have stopped buying cars, nor do they measure the entire used-car market. They do show that fewer private cars entered the Northern Ireland registration data in 2025/26 than in the previous financial year.

How many private cars were registered in Northern Ireland in 2025/26?

The official total was 44,713. That compares with 49,333 in 2024/25.

DfI says UK vehicle registrations were broadly stable during 2025 while registrations in Northern Ireland declined over the period covered by its annual comparison.

The Department suggests the lower NI level may reflect a combination of local market conditions, consumer demand and the timing of vehicle purchases. It also points to changing purchasing patterns, including the shift away from petrol and diesel towards alternatively fuelled vehicles.

What happened in the latest quarter?

The latest Northern Ireland vehicle-registration section in the DfI report covers January to March 2026.

During those three months, DVLA registered 17,083 new vehicles to Northern Ireland. That was 54.7% higher than the previous quarter, when 11,041 were registered, but 5.0% lower than the same quarter a year earlier, when the total was 17,975.

Private cars accounted for 13,519 registrations in the quarter, or 79.1% of all new vehicle registrations.

Why does DfI distinguish 'new registrations' from other vehicles arriving in Northern Ireland?

This is an important technical point.

DfI explains that its new-vehicle registration figure excludes vehicles that had already been registered with DVLA and whose ownership then transferred to Northern Ireland during the quarter.

When those vehicles are included, the number of first-time registrations to Northern Ireland in January to March 2026 was 17,211, compared with 17,083 classed as new vehicle registrations.

That distinction matters in Northern Ireland because a used vehicle can enter the local market from Great Britain without being a brand-new vehicle. A decline in new registrations therefore should not be presented as a complete measure of all cars entering the NI market.

Which car brands were most popular?

For private-car first-time registrations in the fourth quarter of 2025/26, the top five makes were:

1. Volkswagen — 9.6%
2. Kia — 8.1%
3. Ford — 7.3%
4. Hyundai — 6.7%
5. BMW — 6.6%

Those percentages describe the share of private-car first-time registrations in that quarter, not each manufacturer's share of all cars already on Northern Ireland roads.

How does Northern Ireland compare with the wider UK market?

The comparison depends on the time period, so it needs to be made carefully.

DfI's annual commentary says UK vehicle registrations were broadly stable during 2025 while Northern Ireland's registrations declined over the comparable period it discusses.

More recent Department for Transport data shows the wider UK market strengthened in April to June 2026: 682,375 vehicles were registered for the first time, 12.0% more than the same quarter in 2025. UK car registrations specifically rose 14.0% year on year in that quarter.

That UK Q2 figure should not be treated as a direct like-for-like comparison with Northern Ireland's 2025/26 financial-year total. It does, however, reinforce the point that market direction can differ depending on geography and period.

Are electric cars changing the registration picture?

DfI says changing fuel purchasing patterns may be one factor behind the NI registration trend. At UK level, Department for Transport data shows zero-emission cars made up 27.3% of new UK car registrations in April to June 2026, up from 22.2% in the same quarter a year earlier.

That does not tell us the equivalent Northern Ireland percentage from the DfI annual figure used in this story, so it would be wrong to assume NI has exactly the same fuel mix. It does show why new-car registration trends increasingly need to be considered alongside the transition in powertrain technology.

Does a fall in new registrations mean the used-car market is shrinking?

No. New-car registration data and used-car activity measure different things.

Northern Ireland's licensed private-car fleet actually grew to 1.082 million vehicles by the end of 2025/26, up 7.5% over five years. The average licensed car also reached 9.8 years old.

That means a lower annual flow of newly registered private cars can exist at the same time as a large and growing stock of existing cars remains in use.

For a used-car marketplace, that distinction is essential. The cars available to buyers are drawn from the whole vehicle parc, not only the vehicles that were registered as new in the latest year.

What could explain the 9.4% fall?

DfI does not attribute the fall to one cause. Its report says the lower level may reflect local market conditions, consumer demand, timing of purchases and changes in the types of vehicles consumers choose.

That cautious language is appropriate. Registration data can show what happened, but it cannot on its own identify why every buyer delayed, completed or changed a purchase.

Factors such as finance costs, model availability, business and fleet purchasing, household budgets, taxation, technology uncertainty and the timing of registration-plate changes can all be discussed in broader market analysis, but the 9.4% figure itself does not isolate them.

What does the data mean for dealers and buyers?

For dealers, fewer annual new private-car registrations can affect the future supply pipeline because today's new cars become tomorrow's used cars. The effect is not immediate and it is not one-directional because Northern Ireland also receives used vehicles that were previously registered elsewhere in the UK.

For buyers, the figures are a reminder to separate three different markets:

• brand-new cars registered for the first time;
• used cars already in the Northern Ireland fleet;
• used vehicles entering Northern Ireland after having been registered elsewhere.

Those categories overlap in the real retail market but are treated differently in official registration statistics.

Frequently asked questions

How many private cars were registered in NI in 2025/26?

44,713, according to DfI.

How much did the number fall?

It fell 9.4% from 49,333 in 2024/25, a reduction of 4,620 registrations.

Which make led the latest Northern Ireland quarterly ranking?

Volkswagen, with 9.6% of private-car first-time registrations in the fourth quarter of 2025/26.

Does the statistic include every used car brought into NI?

No. DfI says the new-registration figure excludes vehicles previously registered with DVLA whose ownership transferred to Northern Ireland during the quarter.

Are UK registrations also falling?

Not in the latest UK quarter. Department for Transport data shows UK first registrations rose 12.0% overall and car registrations rose 14.0% year on year in April to June 2026. That is a different period from the NI annual figure and should not be treated as a direct like-for-like comparison.