Author: Aimee Turner

Latest LCV registrations edged up in February but ongoing economic uncertainty, constrained supply and cautious fleet investment proceed to shape a used van market where demand is selective and costs remain under pressure, reports Ken Brown, LCV Valuations Editor, Cap HPI  At 14,641 units, February 2026 latest LCV registrations increased by 165 vehicles (+1.1%) compared with February 2025. While this modest increase is welcome, the continuing weakness in latest LCV registrations largely reflects ongoing economic uncertainty, which continues to weigh heavily on business confidence. It seems that many fleet operators are deferring investment in latest vehicles unless it is completely obligatory. The…

March delivered a robust performance for the used automotive market with faster sales and easing prices helping to spice up dealer activity, in keeping with the newest Market View from Cazoo & Motors. Automotive supermarkets led the charge, increasing sales volumes by 24% month-on-month and 25% year-on-year, while franchised dealers recorded a 17% monthly uplift and a 7% annual rise. Independent retailers saw a 7% monthly increase, although sales were down 8% compared with March last 12 months. Buyer demand accelerated significantly in March, with average days to sell falling to 25, down from 30 in February and 32 in January. Franchised…

Ministers are reported to have launched a review of electrical automotive sales quotas, raising expectations that the UK could soften one in every of its flagship net zero policies as industry pressure intensifies. Based on The Times, Government officials have begun early work on a revised approach to the zero emission vehicle mandate, with discussions underway between manufacturing industry chiefs and civil servants. One senior industry source told the newspaper that extensive discussions were now going down between bosses and civil servants. One other said that carmakers had been asked for detailed production plans for future battery electric and plug in hybrid models…

Because the UK financial watchdog readies to publish the motor finance redress scheme, AM charts how a regulatory concern over commission disclosure evolved into some of the significant financial and operational risks facing automotive dealers and lenders. The story begins with the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) long-standing concerns over discretionary commission arrangements, where dealers and brokers could determine customer rates of interest. The regulator banned these models from January 2021, however the foundations of today’s redress debate were already being laid. On the time, the move was positioned as a forward-looking intervention to enhance transparency and fairness in motor finance. Nonetheless,…

Motability Operations and Nissan have agreed a strategic partnership to explore how Vehicle-to-Grid technology could reduce running costs for electric vehicle drivers. Motability is the most important fleet operator within the UK, chargeable for around 800,000 cars at anyone time, including around 35,000 wheelchair accessible vehicles (WAVs). The collaboration will concentrate on the British-built Nissan Leaf and goals to reveal how EVs can assist lower household energy bills while supporting the broader energy system. V2G targets lower running costs Vehicle-to-Grid technology allows electricity stored in an EV battery to be exported back to the grid in periods of peak demand, corresponding…

If there’s one word I hear greater than some other when talking to brokers, dealers, or funders, it’s affordability, writes Helen Thorne, spokesperson for the Leasing Broker Federation (LBF). Not electrification, not supply constraints, not even PCP resets – though, in fact, these matter. Affordability has turn into the organising principle behind how people buy, finance and use vehicles. When household budgets are under pressure and business confidence shrinks to sceptical cautiousness, customers are looking less at badges and more at monthly costs, flexibility, and predictability. The assumptions that shaped automobile buying for a decade, including brand loyalty, depreciation curves…

Vauxhall has revealed pricing and specification for the brand new Astra and Astra Sports Tourer, with the manufacturer introducing a price parity strategy. In a move the brand says is exclusive within the family automotive segment, the Astra hatchback and Astra Sports Tourer estate will probably be available at the identical on-the-road price across every trim level, meaning customers can select the larger Sports Tourer estate without paying a standard premium over the hatchback version. The Astra Sports Tourer offers as much as 1,634 litres of load capability with the rear seats folded down, compared with as much as 1,339 litres within…

Fast-growing brand BYD has approved Autoglym LifeShine as its preferred ceramic paint protection partner across its UK dealer network. Under the brand new partnership, BYD dealers will have the opportunity to sell and apply Autoglym LifeShine’s CeraFuse and the brand new CeraFuse Ultra vehicle protection systems. The agreement allows BYD sales teams to upsell Autoglym LifeShine products alongside the sale of latest and approved used vehicles, creating profit opportunities while helping to spice up customer satisfaction. Autoglym says the CeraFuse and latest CeraFuse Ultra products deliver exceptional protection for paintwork, glass and interiors, supported by a lifetime guarantee. To extend…

A tax tribunal has ruled that the reduced 5% domestic VAT rate can apply to electricity supplied for charging electric vehicles (EVs) on the general public network, quite than the usual 20% rate. The case was brought by community charge point operator Charge My Street which challenged the upper rate following advice from Deloitte’s tax specialists. Deloitte argued that existing VAT rules already treat the provision of lower than 1,000kWh of electricity per thirty days to an individual at any particular premises as domestic and that this threshold could reasonably cover public EV charging. Oliver Jarratt, director and VAT specialist for Deloitte…

A brand new initiative geared toward improving privacy protections within the used vehicle sector has been launched by the National Association of Motor Auctions (NAMA). The Data Deletion and Privacy Protection Certificate was developed with input from auction operators, compliance specialists and technology providers. It’s designed to set standards around how personal data stored in vehicles is handled, covering areas including deletion procedures, auditability and reporting, operational workflows and governance aligned with UK GDPR. Jonathan Butler, legal counsel on the Vehicle Remarketing Association (VRA) which is supporting thr initiative, said: “Legal evaluation and regulatory expectations clarify organisations handling vehicles – including…