In contrast to previous months, light commercial vehicle registrations actually grew by a minor 2% in December compared to the same month last year, new van sales falling by 10% annually in 2025, according to numbers published this morning by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).
While December’s small uptick in sales year-on-year bodes well for 2026, December was the only month of overall sales growth since the start of 2025. December also saw declining sales in the pick-up, small van (2.0 to 2.5 tonnes) and medium van (2.0 to 2.5 tonnes) categories, with overall sales in the green thanks to a 112% surge in 4×4 registrations and a 5% sales growth in the large van (2.5 to 3.5 tonnes) segment.
Looking at the year overall, new van registrations fell by around 36,000 in 2025. While the SMMT and other industry lobbyists continue to call for more EV subsidies from the government, this overlooks the fact that diesel van sales are falling (down 51,250 units annually) much faster than electric van sales are growing (up 8,000 units annually).
Sales didn’t fall across all size categories in 2025, though the medium and large van segments – typically the most popular van categories with UK buyers – fell by a substantial 21% and 10% respectively. Small van and 4×4 registrations are both up 2% year-on-year respectively, while pickup sales shrank by around a percentage point.
Despite the general registrations doom and gloom, new all-electric (BEV) van uptake improved 36% in 2025, with electric vans now accounting for 12% of all LCV sales annually, which is still short of the government’s 16% target.
Good month, bad month
With an overall market growth of 2% compared to last December, some manufacturers saw a sales surge, while others failed to meet December 2024’s sales volumes.
In terms of sales up to 3.5 tonnes, it was a good month for Volkswagen and Toyota – which grew its van sales by 16% and 46% respectively – as well as smaller LCV brands Fuso, Land Rover, MAN, Nissan, Isuzu trucks, Ineos and Renault Trucks. All of these brands outperformed the overall LCV market by at least 10%.
Meanwhile, things were not as happy for KGM, Peugeot, Maxus, Mercedes-Benz, Renault and Vauxhall. All of these brands underachieved against the overall market by at least 10%.
Ford, which hold the biggest share of the new van market by some margin, performed at above the market average, recording a 11% sales bump. Likewise, the following brands were about where you’d expect them to be: Citroën, Fiat, Isuzu, and Iveco. All of these brands had results that were within +/- 10% of the overall market.
Runaway sales champion (yet again)
To pretty much no-one’s surprise, the Ford Transit Custom took the sales top spot in December – as it has literally every month of the year to date. With over 19,000 more sales than any other model, the mid-sized panel van has been by far and away the most popular commercial motoring choice in 2025.
A testament to Ford’s dominance in the LCV market, the brand locked out the best-selling top two in December, with the Transit Custom leading the larger Transit in second. The best selling model that wasn’t a Ford was the new Volkswagen Transporter in last month’s race, which recorded a seventh place finish in the annual charts.
The final annual sales podium position goes to the third-place Ford Ranger, which was the UK’s most popular pickup by a country mile. The Mercedes-Benz Sprinter finished in fourth with a sales tally less than half of the number of new Transit vans registered in 2025, and the Vauxhall Vivaro sits in fifth, 37,000 sales behind its rival the Transit Custom.
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