Light Commercial Vehicles (LCV’s)
What are light commercial vehicles?
Light commercial vehicles are usually vehicles designed to carry goods and equipment as their primary use.
The vehicle is often a key requirement for doing business and come in a range of shapes and sizes to meet operational needs.
Light commercial vehicles can also come with some form of conversion to allow the driver the optimal way of working.
Light commercial vehicles are categorised by the government as commercial vehicles that have a maximum gross weight of under 3,500kg.
How can we help with your light commercial vehicles?
EVP have extensive experience in assisting our customers with the selection, funding and operation of their commercial vehicles.
1. Create the Specification
We will work with you to create a vehicle specification for each different operational role within your organisation. The specification will unique requirements for each role and recommend the appropriate vehicle, manufacturer fitted options and any conversion needs. The output from this process is a menu of different vehicle specifications for each role with the organisation.
2. Manufacturer and Dealer Discounts
If you have a number of commercial vehicles EVP can liaise with the vehicle manufacturers to secure additional discounts (support terms). We can also work with local dealers also have discounts available for vehicles placed through their network. These additional discounts can considerably reduce the overall cost of the vehicle.
3. Funding
We then look at how the vehicle could be funded whether purchased outright or financed through funding methods such as contract hire or finance lease. This includes analysing the benefits and drawbacks of each funding method including an evaluation of risks and potential mitigations.
We will also establish the best route to maintain the vehicles through use of a fixed price maintenance package or via a pay on use basis.
This establishes the total cost of ownership for each vehicle allowing the optimisation of funding, which may differ from vehicle to vehicle.
4. Fleet Management
Putting vehicles on the road is the only the first step of effective fleet management. Once the vehicle is on the road it needs to be monitored, maintained and operated in a safe, effective and efficient manner. Our solutions make sure that the supply chain deliver according to expectations and relevant reporting and management information shared with the fleet stakeholders.
If you think you would benefit from some support with your light commercial vehicles then please get in touch.
What are the different types of light commercial vehicle?
Panel Vans
Panel vans are the most common type of light commercial vehicle which usually consist of a cabin for up to three people and a large loading bay to the rear. Panel vans often have no rear windows to help protect the cargo which is often being carried.
Small panel vans include:
Medium panel vans include:
Large panel vans include:
Combi
A “Combi” or ‘Crew’ van are usually a variation of the equivalent Panel van, which incorporates a second row of seats which allows them to carry more people but less cargo.
Luton
Luton vans are essentially larger versions of panel vans designed to move larger goods and materials. Often these vehicles come with a tail lift to make access to the cargo area easier for loading and unloading.
Dropside
Dropside vehicles have sides of the cargo bay to be folded down. This allows operators to easier access to the cargo. Dropsides to not have a roof so the vehicle is able to carry bulky or oddly shaped loads.
Pick Up
A pickup is a vehicle that has an enclosed cabin, and a back end made up of an enclosed cargo bed often with no roof, although many providers offer secure storage options as part of the model lineup. Pickups are typically suitable for off-road access which requires ground clearance or 4×4 capability to manoeuvre over rough or hilly terrain.
Chassis Cab
Chassis Cabs are commercial vehicles which have a bare chassis and a drivers cab. This provides the flexible base vehicle which, through the use of aftermarket equipment or conversions can be bespoke to specific requirements.
Tipper
Tipper vehicles facilitate unloading cargo by tilting the cargo area physically tipping it out.
Vehicle Conversions
There are a wide range of vehicle conversions available to meet even the most bespoke requirements for vehicle operations. Often this involves putting racking into a vehicle to make tools or equipment more accessible or to store items safely.
Occasionally, we come across some more interesting conversions including:
- A pick up was converted as a vets vehicle for a UK safari park with a secure storage box for tranquiliser weapons.
- Conversion of a large panel van into a bomb disposal vehicle.
Can I get an electric light commercial vehicle?
The short answer is yes. Many manufacturers are making good progress with the electrification of their vehicle ranges.
Some manufacturers are also developing electric-only platforms which should provide better solutions than ICE platforms which have been fitted with a battery.
Whilst there are numerous vehicles available, you should be aware that the vehicles will perform differently in different operating patterns. Battery efficiency can be significantly impacted by variables such as carrying a heavy load or driving on hilly terrain. Trialing vehicles in real world conditions is therefore an important step before introducing electric LCV’s onto the fleet.
Many of the vehicles also share the same common platform and battery technology such as those from Stellantis (Citroen, Fiat, Peugeot and Vauxhall).
What Electric LCV’s are Available?
Telematics
Commercial vehicles are “tools of trade” vehicles and telematics or telemetry devices are often used to support the efficient operation of the fleet. These devices have a broad range of functionality from monitoring vehicle movement to advanced logistics planning.
Telematics allow you monitor the activity of your fleet through tracking its movement, fuel usage and speed, so as a result can mean that you can change how you use your vehicles in order to determine the areas in which you are able to cut costs. They also allow you to plan out mileage usage across your fleet in order to get the most out of each vehicle.
Other benefits of telematics include being able to track the vehicle in the event of it being stolen. It also means that insurance companies are able to better assess insurance cases which can as a result make your insurance cheaper.
Before putting telematics into the vehicles you should take some time to consider how you will use the system and the information which comes out of it. These systems can be very useful but can also be over-specified which results in additional fleet cost which isn’t actually required.