South East · County

Surrey motoring statistics

How many cars and electric cars are registered in Surrey, which fuels they use, how many public chargers there are and how Surrey compares with the South East. From DVLA licensing records, DfT charger statistics and ONS population estimates.

Last updated
Records analysed
816,255 licensed vehicles in Surrey
Methodology
View methodology
  • Licensed cars 693,195 +0.8% on a year earlier
  • Private cars per 1,000 people 524 UK 441
  • Battery electric cars 31,052 4.5% of cars (UK 5.4%)
  • Electric share of private cars 3.7% UK 2.8%
  • Public chargers 2,308 185 per 100,000 people (UK 175)
  • Company-registered cars 5.6% UK 9.9%

How many cars are there in Surrey?

There were 693,195 licensed cars in Surrey at the end of March 2026, and 816,255 licensed vehicles of all kinds. That is 8.4% more cars than in 2010. Privately kept cars work out at 524 for every 1,000 residents (UK 441).

Licensed vehicles in Surrey

Counts at the end of March each year, 2010 to 2026.

Licensed cars and vehicles in Surrey at the end of March each year
Year All vehiclesCars
2010 746,191639,438
2011 732,888633,510
2012 739,191639,433
2013 746,326645,950
2014 757,300654,450
2015 763,731659,449
2016 774,232666,895
2017 783,996674,634
2018 784,609673,954
2019 790,688677,513
2020 793,486680,752
2021 788,010673,366
2022 796,672677,562
2023 803,488680,653
2024 806,647685,858
2025 809,319687,917
2026 816,255693,195

Source:DfT / DVLA End of March 2026 Updated

Licensed vehicles by type

Source:DfT / DVLA End of March 2026 Updated

Cars per 1,000 residents

All licensed cars at the end of June, divided by the ONS mid-year population. Company fleets registered locally push this up.

Cars per 1,000 residents at mid-year, Surrey compared
Year SurreySouth EastUnited Kingdom
2011 560534
2012 561535
2013 563541
2014 566547
2015 564551473
2016 565559480
2017 570567488
2018 570570490
2019 571572493
2020 562561489
2021 563564493
2022 559565489
2023 554567489
2024 551570490

Source:ONS Mid-2024 Updated

Petrol, diesel and electric cars in Surrey

63.8% of cars in Surrey run on petrol and 19.6% on diesel. Diesel’s share peaked at 32.2% in 2017. Hybrids that do not plug in make up 8.8%, and cars that plug in 7.4%.

Cars by fuel type

Source:DfT / DVLA End of March 2026 Updated

Fuel mix over time

Share of licensed cars at the end of March each year.

Share of licensed cars by fuel type in Surrey, end of March each year
Year PetrolDieselHybridBattery electricPlug-in hybrid
2010 76.3%23.0%0.4%0.0%0.0%
2011 75.2%24.0%0.6%0.0%0.0%
2012 73.2%25.9%0.7%0.0%0.0%
2013 71.3%27.7%0.8%0.0%0.0%
2014 69.5%29.4%0.9%0.0%0.0%
2015 67.9%30.8%1.0%0.0%0.0%
2016 66.7%31.8%1.1%0.1%0.1%
2017 66.0%32.2%1.4%0.1%0.2%
2018 65.7%32.1%1.5%0.2%0.3%
2019 65.8%31.6%1.8%0.3%0.4%
2020 66.1%30.8%2.0%0.5%0.5%
2021 65.9%29.9%2.5%0.8%0.7%
2022 65.5%28.6%3.2%1.3%1.1%
2023 65.6%26.5%4.2%2.0%1.4%
2024 66.0%23.6%5.4%2.8%1.9%
2025 65.3%21.5%6.8%3.6%2.3%
2026 63.8%19.6%8.8%4.5%2.9%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of March 2026 Updated

Electric cars in Surrey

31,052 battery electric cars were licensed in Surrey at the end of March 2026, 4.5% of all cars. With plug-in hybrids, 51,285 cars plug in. A year earlier there were 24,728.

Of the privately kept cars, which are registered at home addresses, 3.7% are battery electric (24,209 cars). Companies keep 22.0% of the area’s battery electric cars, against 5.6% of its cars overall. There are also 1,557 battery electric vans.

Battery electric share of licensed cars

End of March each year. Fleet re-registrations can move a single area’s line sharply.

Battery electric share of licensed cars, Surrey compared, end of March each year
Year SurreySouth EastUnited Kingdom
2016 0.1%0.1%0.1%
2017 0.1%0.1%0.1%
2018 0.2%0.2%0.1%
2019 0.3%0.2%0.2%
2020 0.5%0.5%0.3%
2021 0.8%1.0%0.7%
2022 1.3%1.9%1.3%
2023 2.0%3.0%2.1%
2024 2.8%4.2%3.0%
2025 3.6%5.7%4.1%
2026 4.5%8.7%5.4%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of March 2026 Updated

Public EV chargers in Surrey

There were 2,308 public chargers in Surrey on 1 July 2026, 442 of them rapid or ultra-rapid (50kW and above). That is 185 for every 100,000 residents, against 175 across the UK. The count rose 23.3% from 1 January 2026.

For every public charger there are 21.3 privately kept plug-in cars in Surrey (UK 11.9). A higher number means more competition for each public charger, though many drivers charge at home.

Public chargers

Public EV chargers in Surrey by date
Date All public chargers50kW and above
Jan 2026 1,872381
Apr 2026 1,943389
Jul 2026 2,308442

Source:DfT 1 July 2026 Updated

Chargers per 100,000 residents

Public chargers per 100,000 residents, Surrey compared
Area All chargers50kW and above
Surrey 18535
South East 15940
England 17341
UK 17542

Source:DfT 1 July 2026 Updated

Road traffic and collisions in Surrey

Vehicles travelled an estimated 8,508 million miles on roads in Surrey in 2025.

Traffic on all roads

Million vehicle miles a year on roads in Surrey
Year Million vehicle miles
1993 7,247
1994 7,450
1995 7,641
1996 7,928
1997 8,135
1998 8,431
1999 8,464
2000 8,348
2001 8,497
2002 8,534
2003 8,484
2004 8,545
2005 8,435
2006 8,472
2007 8,457
2008 8,369
2009 8,256
2010 8,105
2011 8,215
2012 8,218
2013 8,234
2014 8,481
2015 8,695
2016 8,653
2017 8,659
2018 8,676
2019 8,672
2020 6,756
2021 7,403
2022 8,290
2023 8,448
2024 8,475
2025 8,508

Source:DfT 1993 to 2025 Updated

Reported injury collisions

Police-reported injury collisions in Surrey, 2021 to 2025
Year CollisionsKilled or seriously injured
2021 2,480621
2022 2,784694
2023 2,739687
2024 2,455660
2025 2,497660

Source:DfT STATS19,UK Motoring analysis 2021 to 2025 Updated

More road safety figures

Petrol and diesel prices in Surrey

Unleaded petrol averages 174.2p a litre across 151 filling stations in Surrey, 2.5p above the UK average. Diesel averages 196.6p, 2.0p above the UK average. Prices checked 16 Sept, 16:47.

How Surrey compares

Surrey compared with the South East, England, the UK
Surrey 524 4.5% 3.7% 5.6% 185 21.3
South East 496 8.7% 3.2% 18.1% 159 16.9
England 437 5.8% 2.9% 10.6% 173 12.4
United Kingdom4415.4%2.8%9.9%17511.9

Private cars per 1,000 people use the ONS mid-2024 population. Chargers are counted at the latest date; plug-in cars at the end of March 2026.

Councils in Surrey

Sorted by battery electric share of cars. Select a column heading to sort by it.

Councils in Surrey
Elmbridge 528 5.7% 4.5% 4.2% 181 30.9
Guildford 499 4.8% 4.1% 4.7% 182 19.6
Waverley 565 4.7% 4.2% 2.9% 155 31.6
Epsom and Ewell 461 4.6% 3.7% 4.0% 131 27.0
Mole Valley 591 4.5% 3.6% 15.6% 286 12.5
Reigate and Banstead 498 4.4% 3.4% 9.3% 123 35.9
Runnymede 496 4.4% 3.4% 6.0% 246 13.8
Surrey Heath 572 4.4% 3.8% 3.4% 207 20.9
Tandridge 552 4.0% 3.3% 3.8% 138 30.0
Woking 514 3.9% 3.4% 3.2% 274 12.1
Spelthorne 493 3.2% 2.6% 3.6% 160 18.5

Data sources and methodology

Datasets used on this page
Figures Source Period Records Updated
Licensed vehicles Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport End of March 2026 816,255 licensed vehicles in Surrey 15 September 2026
Plug-in and electric vehicles Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport End of March 2026 53,881 plug-in vehicles 15 September 2026
Public chargers Electric vehicle public charging infrastructure statistics Department for Transport 1 July 2026 121,171 public chargers (UK) 15 September 2026
Population Mid-year population estimates Office for National Statistics Mid-2024 404 areas 15 September 2026
  • Coverage: licensing and charger figures cover the whole UK. Licensing figures in Surrey run from the end of 2009.
  • Vehicles are counted at the registered keeper’s postcode: for company cars that is the company’s address, not where the car is driven.
  • Battery electric and plug-in counts come from table VEH0142; petrol, diesel and hybrid counts from VEH0105. “Other fuels” is VEH0105’s other-fuel count less plug-in cars.
  • Charger counts are based on Zapmap data and are official statistics in development. In June 2026 one operator removed about 1,270 private chargers wrongly listed as public, so April and July are not strictly comparable.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.