According to figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), UK new car registrations declined by -3.4% last month, as political and economic uncertainty and continuing confusion over diesel affected demand.

Demand fell in both the private and business sectors, with registrations down -2.8% and -44.8% respectively, while fleet demand was stable, up 0.3%. Declines were seen across almost every vehicle segment, including popular Dual Purpose (-1.8%) and small family cars (-4.0%). However, superminis – Britain’s favourite vehicle type – saw a 4.3% increase in demand, taking a third (33.7%) of all registrations.

Following the trend of recent months, diesel registrations fell -21.4% while petrol demand grew 5.1%. Meanwhile, demand for Alternatively Fuelled Vehicles (AFVs) increased by 7.6% with 25,302 registered, the biggest March volume on record.