Just a week after the Chancellor confirmed that electric car owners will soon face pay-per-mile taxation, the Government has added four new EVs to the list of models eligible for the full £3,750 Electric Car Grant (ECG).
The Department for Transport says the Mini Countryman, plus the long-range Alpine A290, Renault 4, and Renault 5, now meet its strict sustainability rules and will get the top discount immediately.
EV discounts expand - even as tax rises loom
In last week’s Autumn Budget, Chancellor Rachel Reeves pledged another £1.3bn to keep the grant running until 2029–30. Ministers say it will help cut the upfront cost of going electric - historically the biggest barrier for private buyers.
But Reeves also confirmed that from 2028, electric cars will be hit with a new Electric Vehicle Excise Duty (eVED) of 3p per mile, while plug-in hybrids will pay 1.5p. Industry leaders say this could seriously damage demand just as sales start to recover.
Which cars qualify?
Since the scheme launched in July, over 40,000 buyers have used the grant, and there are now 40 EVs eligible overall. Only eight meet the top-tier sustainability score required for the full £3,750 Band 1 discount. The rest qualify for a reduced £1,500 Band 2 saving.
To be accepted, manufacturers must prove low emissions in battery production, factory processes and the carbon intensity of the power grid where the car is built. This has ruled out all Chinese brands so far, and no Korean EVs currently qualify either.
The grant only applies to new all-electric cars priced at £37,000 or less.
Why the new Renault and Alpine models now qualify
The long-range Alpine A290, Renault 4 and Renault 5 use batteries from Renault Group’s new Douai gigafactory in northern France - part of its “Electri-city” manufacturing hub focused on sustainability. This pushes them into Band 1, where they now get the full £3,750 discount.
New prices after the discount
- Renault 5+: from £23,945
- Renault 4+: from £23,445
- Alpine A290+: from £30,245 (first deliveries in early 2026)
Industry reaction: ‘Right incentive, wrong time for new tax’
While manufacturers welcome more cars becoming eligible, the sector is still reacting to the Government’s new pay-per-mile tax.
- Vertu Motors boss Robert Forrester called it a “hammer blow” that could force brands to restrict petrol car supply.
- SMMT chief Mike Hawes said eVED is “the wrong measure at the wrong time”, warning it will undermine demand.
- Ford said the new tax “sends a confusing message” during a difficult period for the EV transition.
- Polestar’s Matt Galvin added that the Budget “penalises the very drivers who are helping the shift to clean transport”.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander insists the government is still backing buyers, pointing to extra grant funding and £200m more for charging infrastructure.
Every model currently eligible for the Electric Car Grant
BAND 1 – £3,750 discount
- Alpine A290+
- Citroën e-C5 Aircross
- Ford Puma Gen-E
- Ford E-Tourneo Courier
- Mini Countryman
- Nissan Leaf
- Renault 4+
- Renault 5+
BAND 2 – £1,500 discount
- Alpine A290
- Citroën: e-C3, e-C3 Aircross, e-C4, e-C4 X, e-C5 Aircross, e-Berlingo, e-SpaceTourer
- Cupra Born
- DS3, DS Nº4
- Nissan Ariya, Nissan Micra
- Peugeot: e-208, e-2008, e-308, e-408, e-Rifter, e-Traveller
- Renault: 4, 5, Megane, Scenic
- Skoda Elroq, Skoda Enyaq
- Toyota bZ4X, Proace City Verso
- Vauxhall: Astra Electric, Combo Life Electric, Corsa Electric, Frontera Electric, Grandland Electric, Mokka Electric, Vivaro Life Electric
- Volkswagen ID.3, ID.4, ID.5
