The UK’s shift to electric vehicles is becoming increasingly fractured, with major gaps widening between different sectors of the automotive market.

According to the latest 2026 Road to Zero Report Card published by the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA), progress toward the nation’s net zero targets is highly uneven.

The report, which explores decarbonisation progress across vehicle supply, demand and infrastructure, gives annual scores for cars, vans and trucks.

The 2026 edition reveals that the UK is not experiencing a single, unified transition to electric vehicles. Instead, the ecosystem has split into several distinct tiers moving at drastically different speeds.

Cars are significantly ahead of commercial vans, and corporate fleets are outpacing private retail buyers. The market for new vehicles is thriving compared to used ones, while home charging remains far more advanced and reliable than public networks. Furthermore, large corporations are transitioning much faster than small businesses, leasing is outperforming rental, and urban areas are thriving while rural and heavy payload operations lag behind.

BVRLA chief executive Toby Poston said: “This disparity in progress is a warning light that the EV ecosystem has challenges outside of the comfort zone of company provided cars and home charging.

“The transition gives us many reasons to be cheerful, but we need to see focus shift to the areas that desperately need it.”

The sharpest challenge is in vans, where the transition is struggling to build momentum. Fleet managers attempting to switch to electric vans are currently being held back by a lack of suitable vehicles that match real-world operational needs. They also face a massive purchase price gap between electric models and traditional diesel alternatives.

Exacerbating this, the public charging network fails to accommodate the sizes and operational patterns of commercial vans. For a vast number of fleets, these hurdles mean the financial and operational case for switching away from fossil fuels remains incredibly difficult to justify.

Despite these structural roadblocks, the report points to several improving economic factors for drivers who can make the switch. The cost gap between charging an electric vehicle and fuelling a petrol car is narrowing, driven partly by rising petrol prices stemming from the ongoing geopolitical conflict in the Middle East. Budget options are also growing, with the number of new electric cars priced under £30,000 more than doubling compared to last year. Additionally, electric vehicles are proving cheaper and faster to repair than previously assumed, lowering overall whole-life operational risks.

Offsetting that positive movement is the availability and reliability of the public charging network. Deployment of infrastructure is growing, but not at the rate to support the pace of transition, while the BVRLA warned that the reliability of existing charge points remains inconsistent.

Across all vehicle types, the report highlights the need for a more balanced transition. The BVRLA is calling for continued collaboration between government and industry to ensure recent policy interventions deliver measurable impact. Among its asks are targeted support for the van market, faster delivery of reliable charging infrastructure suited to real-world use cases, and a policy framework that gives fleets the confidence to invest.

The Road to Zero Report is available in full via the dedicated RoadToZero.co.uk website.