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New van market grows by a fifth and demand for electric vans more than doubles
New van registrations in the UK grew by more than a fifth (21.4%) in 2021, according to the latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).
Following a lacklustre performance in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the van market has bounced back strongly, with more than 355,000 new light commercial vehicles (LCVs) being registered in 2021. The LCV market ended the year with a 7.8% monthly increase – the best December for the sector since 2015. The renewed growth of the market can largely be attributed to strong demand from key business sectors, including construction and home deliveries.
The need for van fleets to decarbonise in the coming years has also had an effect as the uptake of battery electric vehicles (BEV) more than doubled, although zero emission vans still only represent a 3.6% share of the market. Currently BEVs account for one in nine car registrations as opposed to one in 28 in the vans market.
“After a difficult 2020, the commercial vehicle sector has bounced back, with registrations recovering to just shy of pre-COVID levels,” said Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive, “Manufacturers are working hard to ensure deliveries, and, with a record number of battery electric vans registered this past year, customers can be assured that more of these new technology vehicles will be available to keep society and businesses moving in an increasingly zero-emission manner.”
Denise Beedell, Public Policy Manager, Logistics UK, said: “These latest figures from SMMT show that the new van market has recovered strongly from an extremely challenging 2020. But while the number of BEV vans being registered has more than doubled, this segment still only represents a relatively modest 3.6% share of the LCV market, and considerably lags the car market in this respect. With the sale of new diesel and petrol vans scheduled to be phased out in under eight years’ time, Logistics UK urges operators of van fleets looking to replace their vehicles in the coming months to give serious consideration to the zero-emission vans currently available on the market and start to understand more about what infrastructure is required to facilitate the move to zero emission van fleets.”
*www.logistics.org.uk/van
Published On: 20/01/2022 16:00:20
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