UK new LCV market sees welcome growth in April

13 May 2026

New light-commercial vehicle (LCV) sales enjoyed positive year-on-year growth in April as electric van demand increased hand in hand. However, zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate targets remain a distant goal. Andy Picton, specialist residual value analyst at Glass’s, considers the trends with Autovista24 web editor James Roberts.

According to SMMT data, new LCV registrations grew in April by 6.8% year on year. In total, 21,716 vans, chassis, pickups and 4x4s joined UK roads for the first time.

Behind this encouraging overall growth, market performance was mixed. Pickup demand slumped 57.4% to 1,166 units. This ensured volume declines in 11 of the past 12 months, since the changes to benefit-in-kind (BIK) rules. Vans under 2 tonnes gross vehicle weight (GVW) declined 14.4%, while those between 2 and 2.5 tonnes GVW dropped 20%.

On a positive note, the 4×4 sector registered 1,024 units, up 81.6% on April last year. Meanwhile, the large van sector saw demand for vans and chassis weighing between 2.5 and 3.5 tonnes GVW grow by 28.5% over the same period. These 15,561 units accounted for 71.7% of all units registered during the month.

Despite this, the latest registration forecast for 2026 has been revised downwards again. 314,000 units are expected to be delivered this year, down 1,422 units from 2025. The forecast is also 7,000 units down on the first quarter outlook.

Battery-electric vans weighing to 3.5 tonnes are expected to rise from 28,000 units to 35,000 units. This would equate to a 25% increase and a 11.1% market share. This figure, though, remains less than half of the ZEV Mandate ambition.

Wider UK LCV growth

More generally, the latest 2025 Motorparc data covers the overall number of LCVs in use on UK roads. These figures reflect a robust vehicle fleet. However, the move towards zero-emission targets remains sluggish.

Van volumes grew to record levels, up by 1.4% to 5,175,598 units. The most popular vans on the road were the Ford Transit Custom with 554,581 units, followed by the Ford Transit, at 495,971 units. The Volkswagen (VW) Transporter followed with 379,185 units. Of all vehicle types, LCVs have shown the strongest long-term growth, up 29.2% since 2015.

Within the overall total, battery electric vans grew by 34.6% to exceed 100,000 for the first time. In total, 113,256 all-electric models are now in operation across the country, making up 2.2% of LCVs in service.

By region, more LCVs are owned in the South-East than in any other part of the country at 918,991 units, making up a 17.8% share. Of that number, 3.2% were battery-electric vans. This was the highest all-electric share of any region, followed closely behind by the London area with 3.1%.

Ford tops April’s LCV rankings

April saw Ford claim the top two positions, with the Transit Custom and the Transit respectively. The Mercedes-Benz Sprinter took third, the Renault Trafic ended the month in fourth and the Peugeot Partner placed fifth.

The VW Transporter finished sixth, registering 957 units, ahead of the Vauxhall Vivaro in seventh with 952 deliveries. Then came the Land Rover Defender in eighth with 759 units. The Citroen Berlingo secured ninth with 709 units and the Kia PV5 completed the top 10 with 586 units.

April’s electric LCV market analysis

Battery-electric van registrations up to 4.25 tonnes GVW was up 44.7% in April. The 2,439 units sold resulted in a monthly market share of 11.1%, up from 8.3% 12 months prior. However, nearly 83% of all vehicles registered in the month were diesel, highlighting the scale of the task at hand in transitioning operators to ZEVs.

Across the first four months of the year, 9,835 units have been registered, up 12% compared to the same period of 2025. This ensured a 9.4% market share, well below the ZEV mandate target of 24% for this year.

Electric LCV sales by brand

Ford accounted for over a quarter of all new battery-electric vans registered in April. Kia followed behind with 24%, and VW in third with a 22.9% share. Some distance behind was Maxus in fourth with a 6.1% market share and Vauxhall in fifth with a 5.5% hold.

Further down the list, Toyota claimed sixth position with 106 units and a 4.3% market share. Meanwhile, Mercedes-Benz finished seventh with 91 registrations and 3.7% of the market. Renault ended the month in eighth, selling 72 units, and with it, a 2.9% market share. Farizon claimed ninth with 26 units and a 1.1% hold. Citroen rounded out the top ten, registering 16 units and taking a 0.6% market share.

By range, the Kia PV5 led the way for the second month running, accounting for 24% of all battery-electric vehicle (BEV) registrations. The Volkswagen ID. Buzz Cargo followed with a 15.4% hold. Meanwhile, the Ford E-Transit Custom and e-Transporter ended up third and fourth, with shares of 15% and 7.5%, respectively. The Ford E-Transit claimed fifth, with 7% of all registrations.

Lower placed rankings saw the Vauxhall Vivaro Electric and the Maxus eDeliver 9 finish joint sixth with 109 units. The Ford E-Transit Courier was eighth with 100 units and the Mercedes-Benz e-Citan was ninth with 62 units. Completing the top 10 was the Renault Master E-Tech with 57 units sold.

The plug-in hybrid (PHEV) van segment saw five different manufacturers register a combined 1,033 units. Ford led the way with 484 Transit Custom vans, 198 Ranger pickups and 122 Transit Connect PHEVs. Toyota followed with 124 Corolla Commercial vans, ahead of 98 VW Caddy PHEV vans. Dacia registered six Duster Cargo vans and LEVC delivered one new VN5 van.

Between January and April, of the 6,188 hybrid LCVs registered, Ford claimed a dominant 83.4% market share. Toyota followed with a 10.6% share, ahead of VW with a 5.8% hold.

Used LCV market overview

The anticipated influx of de-fleeted stock from fleet, rental and finance providers following the March plate change did not materialise. These vehicles are likely to start being de-fleeted in the next month or so.

Good quality stock is still available, with elevated levels of buyer engagement at most auctions. Sub-two-year-old offerings can struggle against competitive deals for new ‘26-plate vehicles.

Despite this, two-to-four-year-old ready-to-retail stock with typically less than 70,000 miles continues to attract plenty of attention. Buyers are willing to pay strongly for the right vehicle and a full-service history. Additionally, there has been strong interest in older, higher-mileage stock offered in fair condition and realistically priced.

Stock age increased in April

Factors such as ageing stock in poorer condition meant a drop in the number of vehicles sold at auction in April. The Easter holidays and good weather also influenced the decline in sales.

Overall average age increased from 69.7 months to 72.1 months. Average mileage also increased, rising from 73,206 miles to 82,548 miles. Elsewhere, first-time conversion rates worsened by 2.8% to 76.4%, 3.4% lower year on year. Finally, average sales prices fell by nearly 9% over the month

Euro 6 vehicles accounted for 85.3% of sales in April. Euro 5 sales made up 11.4%, up 0.6% on March. Medium vans led demand with 36.8% of sales, followed by large vans at 29.5%, and small vans 22.3%.

The 4×4 Pickup sector took 11.2% of the market, an increase of 0.5% on March. This sector commanded the highest average sales price at just under £11,250 (€12,984). This was a £3,250 decrease on the average paid in the previous month.

Large vans covered more distance than any other LCV type in April at an average of 84,734 miles. This was up 13,735 miles compared to March. The small van sector returned the highest first-time conversion rate at 79.5%, while the lowest was achieved in the 4×4 sector at 71.1%.

Increase in used electric LCV demand

Despite the prevailing preference for petrol and diesel, there has been a noticeable increase in the volumes of used electric LCVs available at auction. Of those sold, many have cited the inclusion of battery health data in the vehicle description as a big step forward. This is giving consumers a more informed picture during transactions.

Electric van performance in April was mixed. On the one hand, overall sales fell by a third. However, those that sold were a lot younger and with significantly fewer miles. Average stock age nearly halved from 69.5 months to 35.8 months. Meanwhile, average mileage fell from 51,166 miles to 20,712 miles.

This younger age-mileage profile resulted in the average sale prices rising by £4,000, from just under £5,900 to nearly £9,900. First-time conversion rates rose nearly 10%, from 74.3% to 84.1%. Sales of medium-sized electric vans proved popular, accounting for 55.5% of all sales in the month. Small vans took a 41.3% share and large vans made up 3.2% of overall transactions.

The highest mileages were covered in the large van sector, averaging over 74,850 miles. The lowest mileage was recorded in the medium van sector at 16,500 miles. Medium-sized electric vans attained the highest average sales price at over £11,500, while the highest first-time conversion rate of 100% was achieved in the large van sector. 44.4% of all electric vans sold in April were between two-to-four years of age.

Retail increases recorded

The number of used vehicles observed for sale in the retail market in April increased by 3% to just over 42,400 units.

Diesel models made up the bulk of those on sale at 90.7%, up 1.1% on the previous month. Battery-electric LCVs accounted for 5.3%, ahead of PHEVs 2.1% share, and petrol’s 1.6% hold. LCVs with manual gearboxes accounted for 66.4% of retail sales.

Panel vans accounted for 56.1% of all LCVs on sale, 13.4% were 4×4 pickups, and 9.2% were crew vans. Minibuses made up 3.9% and dropsides claimed a 1.7% share. Luton vans and tippers represented 1.7% and 1.5% of sales, respectively. Of all the LCVs on sale, 40.8% had mileages of 30,000 miles or less. 29.0% had mileages between 30,000 miles and 70,000 miles, while 13.5% had mileages above 100,000 miles.

43.5% of vehicles listed were priced at £20,000 or more, 38.1% were priced between £10,000 and £20,000, while 14.8% sat in the £5,000 to £10,000 range. Vans priced below £5,000 accounted for 3.6% of the market. Just over 73.8% of all adverts showed the vehicle on sale for a price excluding VAT.

White vans led in popularity, accounting for 47.9% of all listings. Grey represented 18.4% of sales and black took a 10.8% share. 9.7% of all vans listed were silver, 6.2% were blue and 2.1% were red. The average vehicle age for April increased by three months to 55 months. Average mileage also rose, up 6.5% to just under 56,200 miles.