Registrations of new vans in the UK slid for a second consecutive month in July, though the 2024 market so far remains the best since the Covid pandemic.
Far more concerning to the industry remains the take-up of new battery-electric vans (BEVs), which continued to slide in July – though at 14.6% the rate was slightly slower than the close to 17% seen in June.
Latest figures published by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) showed a total of 24,689 vans, 4x4s, pickups and taxis joining the road. This represents a decline of 8.5% on a year ago, though the SMMT insisted that July 2023 saw a particularly strong performance in the middle of a record-equalling 17 consecutive months of market growth.
The overall market remains robust, the SMMT insists, with registrations so far in 2024 totalling 202,309 vehicles, up 2.7% to become the best first seven months since 2019.
The dip in demand in July affected most segments – the biggest part of the market of 2.5 to 3.5-tonne vans was down 12.0% to 16,814 units though still representing more than two thirds of the overall market. There were 8.4% fewer new medium-sized 2.0 to 2.5-tonne vans registered while deliveries of pickups and 4x4s also fell, by 5.1% and 2.1% respectively.
Bucking the trend was the market for smallest vans – registrations more than doubled (117.6%) to 929 units in July and this admittedly small sector has so far remained robust in 2024 with demand up 42.0% year-to-date, helped by new model launches.
The launches include more new BEVs, with 28 now available to UK buyers, up from 25 last year. But fleets are continuing to resist encouragement to go electric – since January, BEVs have accounted for 5.1% of all new vans, its share including both those weighing up to and equal to 3.5 tonnes and those between 3.5 and 4.25 tonnes. So total zero emission uptake is down 7.0% across the year.
The Government’s new Zero Emission Vehicle mandate requires manufacturers to ensure BEVs comprise at least 10% of new van sales icy the end of the year, so the sector urgently needs to reverse sliding electric van demand. The SMMT insists that targets to provide charging infrastructure for BEVs must be mandated and the Plug-in Van Grant maintained beyond April 2025 if more businesses are going to decarbonise.
The SMMT expects the total van market this year to be 351,000 units, a 2.8% increase on 2023. However, it has revised down the BEV share of LCV registrations under 3.5 tonnes to 6.6%.
SMMT Chief Executive Mike Hawes expects the dip in van sales in June and July to be followed by resumed demand with manufacturers offering impressive product line-ups, but admits declining uptake of BEVs remains a major concern given the UK’s zero emission ambitions,
“Industry has invested – and continues to commit – billions into this transition but manufacturers cannot deliver this alone – given the paucity of van-specific charging infrastructure, we need an equally ambitious mandate for chargepoint rollout, one that supports operators right across the country,” Hawes said.
According to Sue Robinson, chief executive of the National Franchised Dealers Association, fewer large fleets outside the largest cities transitioning to electric is creating challenges for dealers who are dealing with an oversupply of electric vehicles and a shortage of diesel vehicles.
“The new electric van market remains well below the 10% target for this year stipulated by the Zero-Emission Vehicle mandate,” Robinson said.
“These figures highlight the crucial need for the Labour government to address industry concerns. These concerns, detailed in NFDA’s General Election manifesto, include removing unfair regulations for heavier, electric vans and increasing HGV MOT capacity by introducing delegated testing.”
