Official figures show Britain’s rich are splashing out on more luxury supercars than ever before.
More than 18,000 supercars, including Ferrari, Bugatti, Aston Martin, Maserati and Koenigsegg models, were registered at UK addresses in 2021, up 19% on 2020.
Prices range from hundreds of thousands to more than £1 million each, but concerns about the economy and the cost of living crisis for people on more modest incomes have done nothing to dampen the ‘enthusiasm for trophy vehicles.
Accountancy firm UHY Hacker Young, which compiled the figures for the Vehicle and Driving Licensing Agency, said it appeared that wealthy people “have adopted a ‘you only live once’ mentality and have been more willing to spend on luxury items like supercars.”
David Kendrick of UHY Hacker Young said: “After a very difficult pandemic period, many wealthy people treated themselves to a supercar last year.
“Government and central bank money laundering into the economy has inadvertently helped supercar sales in unexpected ways, including ‘overnight’ cryptocurrency millionaires and extremely low-cost financing for supercars “.
The City of Westminster, which includes the central London areas of Mayfair, Knightsbridge and Belgravia, is home to 553 supercars, making it the supercar capital of the UK.
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Kensington and Chelsea is second with 507 and Buckinghamshire, home to wealthy towns such as Beaconsfield and Gerrards Cross, is third with 453. Woking was the fastest growing in the top 10, with a 40% increase to 217 in 2021.
Of the top 10 areas for supercars, only two are not in the South East of England. Known for its ‘golden triangle’ of wealthy towns, East Cheshire is home to some of Manchester and Liverpool’s most famous footballers and 321 supercars. The other is Birmingham with 175 supercars.
Ferrari was the most popular supercar brand, with 11,954 cars on the road. However, Lamborghini ownership has grown the fastest of any supercar, rising 59% to 2,419 in 2021.