Consumer, Economy | Collapse in car sales – impatient customers can get a hefty extra bill

The number of first-time registered new passenger cars at the end of July plunged compared to the previous year.

The collapse is 31 per cent compared to July last year. Just over 75,000 new cars were registered at the end of last month, compared to more than 94,000 last year.

– So far, 2022 looks set to be a special year in relation to the new car market. Many have expected a noticeable slowdown due to production and delivery challenges, which in turn are linked to the war in Ukraine and the pandemic that is still raging. Many will have realized that there are major problems with the delivery of new cars. Therefore, the decline is not particularly surprising, says director Øyvind Solberg Thorsen of the Road Traffic Information Council (OFV) in a press release.

Getting up towards autumn

Solberg Thorsen further says that there will be greater speed in the delivery rate of new cars beyond the autumn.

– It is important to remember that the low registration rate is primarily linked to a lack of new cars that have arrived in the country and are ready for delivery. Many car buyers are now anxiously waiting for their new cars which were ordered perhaps half a year ago or more.

In August last year, new car sales picked up strongly again after the holiday month.

– It will be exciting to see, but with war and a pandemic, the conditions are different this year, says Solberg Thorsen.

– In addition, we are experiencing general price increases on several fronts, we have extraordinarily high fuel and electricity prices, and interest rates are on the rise.

Waiting time can result in a more expensive bill

Many who have ordered a car this spring and summer, or who buy a car now, may have to wait until 2023 before the car can be delivered.

– Many importers and dealers have long waiting lists. This may mean that a good number will not get their car before the turn of the year. Now 8 out of 10 new cars are electric cars. For those who have ordered a car that costs more than NOK 500,000, but who do not receive the car before the new year, there will also be VAT on the amount above this sum, says Solberg Thorsen, and refers to the government’s decision.

This happens because the authorities impose VAT on the amount on the day the car is delivered, not on the day it is ordered.

If, for example, you have ordered a new electric car for NOK 600,000, you will receive an additional VAT bill of NOK 25,000. VAT is then calculated on the NOK 100,000 that exceeds NOK 500,000.

Delivery problems

At the end of June, Naf wrote that car sales are plummeting due to delivery problems.

– The reason for the decline is delivery problems, not that people don’t want new cars, said Thor Egil Braadland, authority contact at NAF.

– There are waiting lists for new electric cars until well into 2023, and if you order a new car now, it is only exceptionally that dealers can deliver new cars quickly and before the New Year, he said.

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