Britain’s new light commercial vehicle (LCV) market grew for the second month running in September, up 8.5% on last year to record the best performance for the month in four years, according to figures published by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).
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Some 48,455 new vans, 4x4s and pickups were registered as more businesses invested in fleet renewal than any month this year bar March, encouraged by the introduction of the new ‘74’ numberplate. It means 267,339 new LCVs have joined UK roads this year, up 3.6% on 2023 and the largest January-September volume since 2019.
Despite the overall robust market growth, new battery electric van registrations fell slightly, by 0.5% to 3,020 units, making September the fourth successive month of falling BEV demand and the sixth month of decline across 2024. It means 14,188 new BEVs have been registered since the start of January, 7.7% below the same period last year.
The SMMT noted the fall in electric van sales comes despite significant manufacturer investment to offer more than 30 different BEV models.
Electric vans represent just 5.3% of all new LCVs registered so far in the UK in 2024 – just over half the 10% share required by the UK’s zero emission vehicle mandate.
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By GlobalDataThe SMMT points out that BEVs remain stubbornly ‘more expensive to source, produce and, despite compelling offers, more expensive to buy’. The lack of chargepoint infrastructure, particularly those that are suited to the specific needs of vans, also presents a major barrier for fleet operators considering the switch, the trade association says.
Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive, said: “Growing overall demand for new vans is encouraging as the sector, a barometer of the UK economy’s health, continues to recover post Covid. But while manufacturers have invested huge sums delivering zero emission technology and incentivising its sale, consistently low demand is constraining industry from meeting Britain’s ambitious zero emission vehicles sales mandates.
“For van fleets to go green at pace they need the immediate encouragement – and long-term certainty – of fiscal incentives and van-specific charging infrastructure. Without these, UK decarbonisation ambitions cannot be achieved at the world-leading speed demanded by regulation.”
