Why are some new cars pre-registered?

Pre-registration is when a dealer or manufacturer registers a car in their own name before selling it to a customer, often to meet sales targets or clear stock ahead of a new plate change. The car is technically now "used" (it has a registered keeper and a V5C), even though it's never actually been driven by a customer.

This is worth knowing when buying, because a pre-registered car can sometimes be bought at a discount versus a genuinely new one, but it will show a registration date and keeper count that reflect the pre-registration, not your ownership.