UK motorcycle registrations
As seen elsewhere in Europe, 2020 motorcycle registrations in the UK ended with a rush to pre-register unsold Euro 4 units that did not meet the strict timescale criteria set by the EU for the end of series derogation approved in advance of Euro 5 final implementation. This has distorted the statistical comparisons in the UK, Germany, Italy, Spain and most of Europe's markets - majors and otherwise - with the pandemic also making comparisons with 2019 'problematic'.
However, according to the latest available data from the MCIA, the motorcycle industry trade association in the UK, motorcycle registrations were at 40,424 for the first five months of 2021. Sales were down in January, February and March, but up strongly in April and May.
That compared to 28,881 units for the same period in 2020 (+39.97%), but down compared to the 45,181 units registered in the first five months of 2019.
In total PTW terms, the UK saw 42,858 units registered from January to May, +40.01% compared to the 30,611 units registered in 2020, but down from the 47,524 registered in 2019.
In motorcycle segment terms, Touring is the strongest market in the UK YTD, followed by Adventure Tourers. Honda was market share leader for May (followed by Yamaha, Triumph, BMW and Kawasaki), with the Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 the bestselling single model in April in the <125 cc motorcycle segment.
For the record - motorcycle registrations in the UK grew slightly in 2019 with 100,472 units sold (+0.72%), with 2020 at 96,539 units.
