Britain has been under national lockdown restrictions 5 January 2021, joining much of Europe, but the government's easing process is continuing as planned - in line with falling coronavirus rates.
Up to now, car dealerships have been closed and there have been strict restrictions on travel, but with official guidance now eased to "minimise travel" as much as possible, and non-essential retail allowed to reopen, motorists should be aware of the latest rules and what they mean.
Here is a rundown of the measures affecting motorists across the UK.
Can I buy a new car?
Car dealers in England and Wales have been allowed to reopen as of today, 12 April, when non-essential retail is permitted to reopen its doors.
Customers will once again be allowed to enter and browse showrooms, for the first time in more than three months, having until now been restricted to using click-and-collect services. The reopening comes a week after restrictions were eased in Scotland, allowing dealerships there a headstart.
Dealers in Northern Ireland are still prohibited from fully reopening, but are from today allowed to operate click-and-collect services.
The SMMT predicts a surge in demand, but estimates that for the industry to compensate for four months of lost sales by the end of 2021, a new car will need to be sold every 12 seconds. Chief executive Mike Hawes said: "After one of the hardest years in living memory for everyone, reopening showrooms today takes the handbrake off UK Auto.
"With the widest and greenest choice of cars ever seen, unleashing pent up consumer demand can accelerate the industry’s recovery and that of the economy. As the automotive sector counts the cost of £22.2 billion lost in turnover during the pandemic, we hope today marks the start of that recovery, as well as giving consumers ever more choice for their motoring needs."
Join the debate
Add your comment
Yeah, nobody listens, the longer it will go on,and why aren't we getting automatic rebates on Road tax and car insurance?
nothing will happen as most
nothing will happen as most of the Morons that ignored it first time around will do so again, those that are just so selfish and moronic, that make themselves to be better than everyone else should be prosecuted and fined thousands, I have lost friends due to this, and had family with it, can this morons not understand that this is NOT a cold, it is worse, far worse, and people have and are dying, thousands and thousands, fir the sake of a few weeks, to try to get this back under some sort of control, to allow everyone to have a better Christmas, we are a couple of days in and i have seen no difference to the amount of traffic going past my house, i went for a walk yesterday and past my local retail park and the car park was fuller than i have seen it for weeks.It is those morons that make it harder for people like me that is classed as clinically extremely vulnerable, making me not able to do anything i would like to because Mr Moron wants to not wear their masks, or have a party next door, like they did last night, at least 15 W-Anchors at a fireworks party, until at least midnight, I dont care they have a party, they have had them before, but when thats illegal, and they KNOW our history, is that not right ?
Unfortunately it appears you're unable to divine fact from fiction jonnyboy.
For the vast majority of people, SARS-Cov-2 is an mild respiraratory illness that lies somwhere between the mixture of viruses we refer to as "the common cold" and a common influenza virus.
It does unfortunately develop into the Covid-19 disease in people who have serious comorbities, and around 25% of people over 80 - growing in severity with age.
The "morons" you refer to are treating SARS-Cov-2 with precisely the level of caution they need to, given that they have a 0.0003% chance of dying from Covid-19 disease if they are under 50 - judging by the latest best estimate of the total number of infections that have occured.
The lockdown method of dealing with a virus like SARS-Cov-2 is an entirely novel one, pioneered by China. It is against WHO advice, and frankly moronic.
Protecting those at risk is always how viruses have been dealt with globally. It should be the case now also. Wearing a mask, social distancing etc. - sure. Lockdowns are a blunt and ineffective tool.
Absolutely right CarNut170. Unfortunately the vast majority of the public accepts without question the doom and gloom endlessly broadcast to them. Yes the virus is dangerous for those people in vulnerable categories, but for those who do their research it is clear that the overwhelming majority are highly unlikely to be taken seriously ill. Jonboy regularly fires off his semi-literate, abusive and deeply ignorant posts on this forum, which are mildly amusing and should never be taken seriously.
You are psychotic. I believe you are one of these zombies that wear a mask in open air outside, even in cold and rain, and even when you have noone around. You probably drive with the mask on.
I think you should listen to DM song that goes: Death is everywhere, there are flies on the windshield, for a start, reminding us we could be torn apart tonight.
Also, I hope you take your vaccine, and you make your wife take it, your kids, your grandkids (if you have any), and all your relatives.
How many respect lockdown?
Of my few ventures into Town or a Car showroom I see most don't, I don't think they forget, they just don't bother, and that's why England and probably the rest of the UK soon will in lockdown, Students having parties, people going on holiday to known areas of COVID.