Automotive Business Magazine – Q2 2026 – Digital edition - Magazine - Page 57
INT ERVIEW
GR OSVE NOR
“It is great having quality and
affordable cars coming into the market,
but until we have that confidence that
they are going to look after those vehicles
and make sure the aftersales service is
in place for the customers, we need to
be careful which brands we can
advocate for.”
Supply and demand
Grosvenor, like many leasing companies,
needs to estimate how much a vehicle
will be worth at the end of an agreement.
Used EV values are depreciating, which
makes it harder to demonstrate financial
savings for fleet operators.
Brown says: “We need tto make sure
that we are accurately estimating how
much values are going to drop for the
term of their agreement.
“Electric vehicles across the sector
are suffering a greater drop in residual
values than ICE equivalents.”
The main culprit for this decrease in
value? Demand has simply not kept pace
with supply in the used EV sector.
Brown explains: “EV registrations
have increased, especially in our
sector, as it is enhanced by company cars
enticing drivers to EVs with Benefit-inKind (BiK).
“What we are going to see over the next
year is the used electric vehicle market
increase, while demand is predicted to be
at a comparatively low level, even though
second-hand EVs are presently great
value in comparison to older ICE
vehicles.
“The Government has to do
something; they intend to
implement eVED, and this is
likely to further deter people
from buying EVs.”
The Government should
look to incentivise the
transition to electric
vehicles further through
improvements to the
charging infrastructure.
Brown explains:
“some consumers are
reluctant to switch
to EV as they are
concerned about the
expensive running costs
compared to ICE cars, particularly
if they cannot install a home
charge point.
“Public charging costs can be as much
as twice the cost of petrol or diesel, and
that’s before eVED is introduced.”
Building confidence
A lack of confidence, fuelled by slow
infrastructure and uncertainty, is leading
industry bodies to lobby the Government
to better support the transition to EVs.
Alongside this, concerns around
aftersales structures from new brands
are forcing fleet managers to reconsider
the choice in manufacturers, despite
positive pricing offerings.
The UK is firmly on the road towards
the ZEV Mandate deadline of 2035.
Fairer pricing for public charging and
incentives to move over to electric
more incentiv
vehicles may just be what will get the UK
over the finish line.
Q1 2026
AUTOMOTIVE BUSINESS
