New van registrations continued to rise in September, climbing by 14.1% compared to the same period last year, according to the latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).
So far this year, 242,071 new vans have been registered, an 18.1% increase on the first nine months of 2013.
Truck sales were down 12.3% compared to September 2013, continuing a year-long decline which the industry is blaming on the introduction of Euro 6 emissions rules for lorries: many truck operators chose to bring fleet renewals forward and buy new Euro 5 trucks just before the Euro 6 rules were introduced.
UK van and truck registrations: 2014 and % change on 2013
| September | % change | Year-to-date | % change | Rolling year | % change | |
| Vans | 49,123 | 14.1% | 242,071 | 18.1% | 308,140 | 19.6% |
| Trucks | 5,374 | -12.3% | 27,385 | -20.3% | 49,251 | 7.8% |
| Total | 54,497 | 10.8% | 269,456 | 12.6% | 357,391 | 17.8% |
Data courtesy of SMMT (www.smmt.co.uk)
According to Mike Hawes, the SMMT’s chief executive, the van market is also getting an extra boost from operators who are downsizing from small trucks to improve utilisation and cut operating costs:
“With businesses feeling increased economic confidence and downsizing from larger vehicles, the van market has delivered another strong performance. This has also yielded growth in the whole commercial vehicle market, continuing the positivity seen throughout the majority of the year.
We are yet to see the truck market show signs of significant recovery following a flurry of registrations ahead of the Euro-6 introduction last year, which tempered demand going in to 2014.”
The recovery in new van registrations has been impressive over the last four years: rolling year registrations have risen from less than 200,000 at the start of 2010, to more than 300,000 today.
SMMT van and truck registrations 2010 – Sept 2014 (courtesy of SMMT)
As I’ve commented a number of time in recent months (most recently here), I believe the strong recovery in van registrations over the last couple of years is beginning to soften conditions in the used van market.
Although prices still appear to be rising, a closer look at the data suggests that this is because the average age vans entering auction is falling, not because age-adjusted values are still rising.