New EV grant offers discounts up to £3,750
The cost of new electric cars £37k or below will be reduced under a fresh electric car grant for car makers
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By Tia Harrison-North
Last updated: 2 September 2025
Electric car buyers could soon save up to £3,750 under a new electric vehicle grant.
The £650 million scheme will apply discounts to dozens of new electric cars, making it cheaper to switch to electric driving.
Car manufacturers can apply for the grant to offer savings on brand-new electric cars costing up to £37,000, the government has announced.
Electric cars with the most sustainable manufacturing standards will get the biggest discounts. Applications for the ‘Electric Car Grant’ started on 16 July 2025 and will be available until the 2028/29 financial year.
So far, only two models have matched the sustainability criteria for 'Band 1'. As of 2 September 2025, the eligible vehicles for the full £3,750 discount are:
Ford E-Tourneo Courier
Ford Puma Gen-E
Other electric cars have qualified for 'Band 2' – which has less strict eligibility criteria – and will get a discount of up to £1,500. These include models from Citroën, DS, Nissan, Peugeot, Renault, Skoda, Toyota, Volkswagen and Vauxhall.
Abhishek Sampat, our Head of Electric Vehicles, said:
"Electric cars are one of the fastest-growing segments on cinch – we’re seeing record sales and a host of new manufacturers coming to the market.
"And with an increasing amount of cars under the £37,000 threshold when new, this is undoubtedly good news for customers. It'll make the switch to electric even easier (and cheaper) - especially paired with home charging."
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Why is it hard to qualify for the full grant?
There are two levels of EV grant available:
Band 1 - £3,750 grant
Band 2 - £1,500 grant
Carmakers can apply to show their models meet specific requirements to qualify for the grant.
Models are sorted into bands depending on things like:
Supply chain emissions
CO2 emissions from production
Use of renewable energy sources
Only models with the most sustainable production standards will qualify for the full £3,750 grant.
Improving electric car charging
The Electric Car Grant runs alongside a £25 million scheme for local authorities to expand access to cheaper at-home car charging.
Innovative ‘cross pavement’ technology will make it easier for households without a driveway to charge their car, meaning drivers can pay as little as 2p per mile to boost up at home.
When you buy a car from cinch, you can also get effortless home charging through our partnership with myenergi.
Transport Secretary, Heidi Alexander, said: “This EV grant will not only allow people to keep more of their hard-earned money – it’ll help our automotive sector seize one of the biggest opportunities of the 21st century.
“And with over 82,000 public chargepoints now available across the UK, we’ve built the infrastructure families need to make the switch with confidence.”
With cinchCharge, you get faff-free access to over 60,000 of those chargepoints in one place.
Cheaper electric cars
Brand new electric cars like the MINI Cooper and Nissan LEAF will benefit from the discounts, as well as the popular BYD DOLPHIN, Renault 5 and MG4.
The discount on brand-new electric cars could also mean that used car prices adjust, potentially making used electric cars cheaper.
This should also help soothe the blow from the electric car road tax changes, as battery-powered car owners had to start paying tax from 2025.
Take a look at our full range of used electric cars.
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