The paper finds that the shortfall in LCVs entering the used vehicle market could be as many as two million units across Europe, at its most extreme in Spain, although other major markets will also have marked shortfalls of used LCVs.

With many SMEs not having sufficient funds to afford a new LCV, the paper looks at issues, including whether SMEs will need to retain existing vehicles longe and whether used LCV prices will escalate thereby rationing their availability to the most affluent users. It also asks if this is an issue that OEMs need to tackle before economic recovery gets under way.

The report adds: ‘As economic recover starts in the EU, there is likely to be a shortage of new and used LCVs to satisfy demand and the problem will take some years to flush right through the system. It is important that the industry overall is aware of some of the principal issues and can be in a position to introduce transitional strategies to avoid the Black Hole which has been identified as being a possible factor to slow down economic recovery if SMEs are unable to acquire the LCV capacity they require.’

The paper is free to download here: http://www.whiteclarkegroup.com/knowledge-centre/category/other_downloads/the_european_lcv_market_a_looming_black_hole