Government extends plug-in van grant for another year
Support helps to lower the cost of switching to cleaner vehicles.
Government has extended its plug-in van grant for another year, helping to lower the cost for van drivers and businesses looking to swap to a zero-emission vehicle.
The grant allows drivers to access grants of up to £2,500 when buying a small van of up to 2.5 tonnes and up to £5,000 for larger vans of up to 4.25 tonnes.
The Department for Transport (DfT) is also dropping driver training requirements for heavier electric vans. Though drivers getting behind the wheel of alternatively-fuelled vans weighing from 3.5 tonnes to 4.25 tonnes can do so on a Category B (passenger car) licence, five hours of additional training must be undertaken before they’re able to operate them. With these new changes, this requirement is being removed.
Taxi drivers can also access a £4,000 grant to help make the switch to a zero-emissions alternative through another year of funding, while the plug-in wheelchair-accessible grant is being increased from £35,000 to £50,000.
Lilian Greenwood, future of roads minister, said: “From van drivers and businesses, to drivers with accessibility needs, bikers and cabbies, today we are making it easier, faster and cheaper for people to switch to electric vehicles.
“By making the transition to zero emissions a success, we’re helping to drive growth all over the UK, putting more money in people’s pockets and rebuilding Britain to deliver our Plan for Change.”
The Department for Transport has stated that the plug-in van grant has ‘helped sell over 80,000 electric and zero-emissions vans’ since it was launched in 2012.
