A Porsche 911 on Bond Street in central London. Getty Images
A Porsche 911 on Bond Street in central London. Getty Images
A Porsche 911 on Bond Street in central London. Getty Images
A Porsche 911 on Bond Street in central London. Getty Images

Sales of supercars soar in London's richest areas


Simon Rushton
  • English
  • Arabic

Rich drivers in London are splashing out on supercars more than ever before, new figures show.

Ferrari, McLaren and Lamborghini top the list of the most popular supercars bought in the UK capital, with Bugatti and Koenigsegg finishing off the stylish top five.

Westminster, and Kensington and Chelsea — two London boroughs known for the luxurious, wealthy enclaves of Mayfair and Holland Park — had the most supercars.

Of the top-10 UK areas for supercars, only two are outside south-east England: East Cheshire, known for a collection of villages that is home to a number of footballers from the Liverpool and Manchester clubs; and Birmingham, the country's second largest city.

Accountancy firm UHY Hacker Young, which compiled the data, said there were more than 18,000 supercars on British roads.

More than 3,000 are registered in London, making the capital home to almost 20 per cent of supercars in the UK.

Aston Martin sports cars parked in Mayfair. Getty Images
Aston Martin sports cars parked in Mayfair. Getty Images

Westminster, with 553, has the most supercars, while Kensington and Chelsea has 507.

“After a very difficult pandemic period, a lot of wealthy individuals treated themselves to a supercar last year,” said David Kendrick, of UHY.

“The wash of money from the government and central banks into the economy has inadvertently helped supercar sales in unexpected ways, such as overnight cryptocurrency millionaires and extremely low-cost finance for supercars.”

Westminster Council has installed acoustic cameras that measure decibel levels and monitor supercars to check if they are breaking noise laws.

Data collected by the local authority shows that between June last year and last month, about 10,000 vehicles triggered the cameras.

There were 118 incidents involving BMW drivers, 109 with Lamborghinis, 104 with Mercedes, 88 with Ferraris, 77 with Audis and 31 with Porches.

Acoustic cameras — which locate and categorise sounds — were installed around Kensington and Chelsea after the council received hundreds of complaints from residents about the noise being caused by supercars in the area.

Luxury London

  • 1. Chelsea - 140 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
    1. Chelsea - 140 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
  • 2. Kensington - 131 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
    2. Kensington - 131 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
  • 3. Belgravia - 120 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
    3. Belgravia - 120 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
  • 4. St Johns Wood - 85 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
    4. St Johns Wood - 85 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
  • 5. Mayfair - 82 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
    5. Mayfair - 82 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
  • 6. Knightsbridge - 76 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
    6. Knightsbridge - 76 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
  • 7. Marylebone - 64 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
    7. Marylebone - 64 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
  • 8. Notting Hill - 60 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
    8. Notting Hill - 60 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
  • 9. Hampstead - 50 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
    9. Hampstead - 50 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
  • 10. South Kensington - 36 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
    10. South Kensington - 36 sales of £5 million-plus properties between 2020 and 2022.
yallacompare profile

Date of launch: 2014

Founder: Jon Richards, founder and chief executive; Samer Chebab, co-founder and chief operating officer, and Jonathan Rawlings, co-founder and chief financial officer

Based: Media City, Dubai 

Sector: Financial services

Size: 120 employees

Investors: 2014: $500,000 in a seed round led by Mulverhill Associates; 2015: $3m in Series A funding led by STC Ventures (managed by Iris Capital), Wamda and Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority; 2019: $8m in Series B funding with the same investors as Series A along with Precinct Partners, Saned and Argo Ventures (the VC arm of multinational insurer Argo Group)

Last-16 Europa League fixtures

Wednesday (Kick-offs UAE)

FC Copenhagen (0) v Istanbul Basaksehir (1) 8.55pm

Shakhtar Donetsk (2) v Wolfsburg (1) 8.55pm

Inter Milan v Getafe (one leg only) 11pm

Manchester United (5) v LASK (0) 11pm 

Thursday

Bayer Leverkusen (3) v Rangers (1) 8.55pm

Sevilla v Roma  (one leg only)  8.55pm

FC Basel (3) v Eintracht Frankfurt (0) 11pm 

Wolves (1) Olympiakos (1) 11pm 

The stats

Ship name: MSC Bellissima

Ship class: Meraviglia Class

Delivery date: February 27, 2019

Gross tonnage: 171,598 GT

Passenger capacity: 5,686

Crew members: 1,536

Number of cabins: 2,217

Length: 315.3 metres

Maximum speed: 22.7 knots (42kph)

Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026

1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years

If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.

2. E-invoicing in the UAE

Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption. 

3. More tax audits

Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks. 

4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime

Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.

5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit

There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.

6. Further transfer pricing enforcement

Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes. 

7. Limited time periods for audits

Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion. 

8. Pillar 2 implementation 

Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.

9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services

Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations. 

10. Substance and CbC reporting focus

Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity. 

Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer

Heather, the Totality
Matthew Weiner,
Canongate 

Name: Peter Dicce

Title: Assistant dean of students and director of athletics

Favourite sport: soccer

Favourite team: Bayern Munich

Favourite player: Franz Beckenbauer

Favourite activity in Abu Dhabi: scuba diving in the Northern Emirates 

 

Like a Fading Shadow

Antonio Muñoz Molina

Translated from the Spanish by Camilo A. Ramirez

Tuskar Rock Press (pp. 310)

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Updated: July 25, 2022, 10:53 AM