Record growth for light commercial vehicles in March

“Demand in the Light Commercial Vehicle (LCV) market was up 10.6% in March, making it the sectors best ever monthly performance on record”, said Sue Robinson, Director of the National Franchised Dealers Association which represents commercial vehicle and franchised car retailers across the UK, commenting on the SMMT’s light commercial vehicle registration figures.

More than 66,000 new vans and pick-ups were put on UK roads in March compared with the same month in 2018, an uplift of 6,359 units. This was driven by the plate change and competitive offers and incentives. 

Sales of medium vans between 2 – 2.5 tonnes were up 17.9% in the month, and larger light commercials between 2.5 and 3.5 tonnes which account for 60% of the market continued to maintain an upward trend and grew by 13.0% in March.
Manufacturer wise, Ford led the market at 34.9% market share with its wide range of models, followed by Volkswagen at 10.5% of the market share.

Robinson continues, “The light commercial market is showing positive signs of stability, especially considering the challenges being faced by the industry.

“With many new models due to enter the market this year, coupled with attractive finance offers and better specification vehicles, dealers are optimistic that the LCV market will continue to thrive in Q2 of 2019.”