Paul Starkey, product manager – commercial vehicles at Volkswagen Financial Services (VWFS) Fleet, on why businesses should not delay transitioning LCV fleets, despite government net zero target pushbacks.

Paul Starkey, product manager – commercial vehicles at Volkswagen Financial Services (VWFS) Fleet

Despite the Government’s recent delay on the ban of the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans from 2030 to 2035, businesses are still under pressure to improve fleet sustainability. The Department for Transport has gone ahead with its zero emissions vehicle (ZEV) mandate as planned. This means automotive manufacturers must ensure 70% of all their new vans sold in the UK by 2030 carry zero emissions. As a result, the availability of petrol and diesel vans will steadily decline until the 2035 deadline, with fewer new ICE LCVs available each year.

Many businesses have this misconception that, with the delay on the 2030 ICE vehicle ban, they can slow down their EV transition. Unfortunately, they still don’t have as long as they might think to transition their commercial vehicles to electric alternatives.

Depending on a company’s fleet replacement policy they could have only a couple of replacement cycles before new ICE vehicles are not available to them. With the ZEV mandate, we’ll see fewer ICE vehicle options as manufacturers focus on electric vehicles. Companies should already be moving to electric vehicles where possible to ensure any change is well planned and managed, not a sudden sea change of their fleet.

Top considerations for LCV fleets looking to switch to electric

1. Start collating LCV telematics data

There’s definitely more operational knowledge needed. Even though there are great environmental benefits to adopting an EV fleet, there are logistical challenges that need to be addressed beforehand, in order to prevent any bottlenecks for the business.

Collating and analysing telematics data will give insight into an LCV’s daily mileage patterns, including distance covered and destinations/routes commonly taken. All of this data can feed into the company’s electric replacement strategy, ensuring businesses are selecting EVs that are suited to specific use cases.

Additionally, telematics data can also help to identify further potential cost savings associated with the switch to eLCVs. For example, for LCVs making frequent journeys to city centres, there may be cost savings on emissions or clean air zone fees when making the switch to electric.

2. Understand specific conversion needs

LCVs are adaptable to suit a whole range of business fleet needs. Many commercial vehicles will have specific conversion requirements, and some of these, such as tippers or vans transporting chilled items, rely on the vehicle’s fuel to power moving components. When switching to eLCVs, these parts will then rely on the vehicle’s electric charge to operate, which will affect the vehicle’s overall range. As a result, fleet operators need to understand exactly how much power these components require to operate and then feed this into the eLCVs range requirements.

Additionally, businesses can also consider how else these components could be charged to further improve sustainability. For example, solar panels could potentially be fitted to a van’s roof to power its moving components, so their operation doesn’t affect the vehicle’s mileage capabilities from a single charge.

3. Speak to fleet experts

Getting in touch with eLCV fleet experts, such as VWFS Fleet, can help to highlight any unique considerations and challenges that individual fleets may need to overcome to ensure a successful transition. Getting ahead of the game is key.

Companies should be looking at their data now to build a picture of which vehicles on which operations can be transitioned to electric. Look to move the easiest use cases first to gain experience. These easier use cases might not be vehicles which are due to be replaced soon so companies might need to move some vehicles around in their fleet; the important thing is to get electric vehicle experience as soon as possible.

There’s no reason why businesses shouldn’t be thinking about the logistical changes needed to adopt eLCVs today.

The main misconception is that businesses now have plenty of time to adopt and transition to electric. However, not only does pressure remain on businesses to up their sustainability targets, but actually implementing them – especially when it comes to LCV conversions – can take a lot more planning than expected.

That’s why it’s critical businesses with LCV fleets are thinking about transitioning to electric now, not in 2035.