UK trails other European nations in e-bike sales, shows ACT member research
Posted on in Business News , Cycles News
The UK is far behind most European countries in e-bike sales, according to new research from ACT member Paul's Cycles.
The study compared sales in 30 European countries and ranked the UK 29th, ahead of only Belarus, with Britain recording just 2.1 e-bike sales per thousand people in 2024, against Norway’s 36.2, Denmark’s 36.1 and Slovenia’s 28.9 per thousand.
Other low performers included Bulgaria, Serbia and Spain, but all still outpaced the UK.
Paul’s Cycles managing director Tom Thornley said: “It’s time the government recognised e-bikes as a serious part of the green transport solution. Cost is still a big barrier for many people and we need targeted financial support whether through purchase grants and rebates, VAT reductions or a fairer, more inclusive Cycle to Work scheme.
“E-bikes are a significant investment and UK schemes are not as widely promoted or generously supported as the subsidies you see in other European countries. Government grants have made a real difference in other European countries and that kind of incentive could have a huge impact here too.”
The research pointed to a lack of direct financial support and limited proportion of schemes as possible reasons for the country’s poor standing.
Dan Parsons, co-founder of Fully Charged, said: “I would very much agree that government incentives do help. We’ve seen that in the UK in 2019 and 2021 with the Energy Saving Trust and Department for Transport Cargo Bike Grant Funds – and we’ve seen it work successfully overseas, in France.
“But the past few years have seen e-bike retailers battered by a perfect storm – post-Covid overstocking, rising business costs and cost of living, and fear and scaremongering by media over battery fires demonising e-bikes. We’ve also had bans in offices and on public transport, but in my view, cycle schemes have been the biggest culprit.”
Jonathan Harrison, Director of the ACT, said: “It is important that research such as this brings to light the fact that there is an appetite for e-bikes across Europe, and some of the challenges facing cycling retailers selling e-bikes in the UK could be made easier if the right actions are taken.
“In addition to this, certain parts of the mainstream media in Britain create a negative perception of e-bikes with misleading reporting, something that has the power to unfairly damage the image of reputable e-bike retailers and manufacturers and undermine the positive role e-bikes play in sustainable transport; something that the E-Bike Positive campaign aims to highlight.”
The E-Bike Positive campaign is a UK-wide initiative designed to improve public understanding of e-bikes, highlight their benefits for sustainable transport, and challenge negative perceptions particularly in mainstream media. It brings together voices from across the cycling industry to promote evidence-based discussion and support safer, smarter use of electric bikes across the country.