The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) says used EV sales climbed to more than one in 18 transactions in the second quarter of 2026, as the trade body pushed government to rethink how it enforces the ZEV Mandate.
SMMT reports that used electric car sales reached more than one in 18 transactions between April and June, a trend echoed in Electra’s retrofit programme electrifying council refuse fleets, up sharply from one in 30 a year earlier. The overall used car market passed two million units in the quarter for the first time in five years, a boost that also gives firms financing fleet purchases new options, including Time Finance’s asset and invoice finance takeover deal, according to the trade body’s figures.
For small businesses running a handful of vans or cars, this matters because the used market is where most fleet buyers actually shop. A wider choice of second-hand EVs, and potentially softer prices, could make electrification cheaper for firms that cannot stretch to a new vehicle. Firms weighing new vehicle finance can also see how the British Business Bank’s expanded vehicle and asset funding facility could help spread the cost.
The catch is that petrol and diesel still dominate. That mirrors the picture in vans, where SMMT’s call for a van mandate rethink highlights a similar gap between targets and demand. SMMT says almost nine in ten used sales in the quarter were petrol or diesel, a reminder of how much of the existing vehicle stock, or “parc” as the industry calls it, has yet to turn electric.
SMMT’s comments come alongside government’s decision to review the ZEV Mandate, the rule that forces manufacturers to sell rising proportions of electric vehicles each year. The current targets are 33% this year, rising to 38% next year and 52% the year after. SMMT argues those targets run well ahead of real demand, which surveys from Autotrader and Deloitte put at closer to 10% to 13%.
SMMT’s concern is that manufacturers are being pushed to discount new EVs heavily to hit those targets, which then floods the used market with cut-price stock and undermines resale values further down the line. That is a similar worry to the one raised in SMMT’s separate call for a van mandate rethink, where the same tension between mandated share and genuine demand applies to commercial vehicles.
For SME fleet operators already weighing up electric vans or cars, the practical question is timing. Businesses that have looked at options such as those covered in our report on Electra Commercial Vehicles’ repowered refuse truck fleet know that charging infrastructure and running costs, not just purchase price, decide whether an EV switch pays off.
Funding remains the other half of the equation. Firms weighing up a used or new EV purchase may find the recent expansion covered in our piece on the British Business Bank’s performance finance facility relevant, since it directly targets vehicle and asset funding for smaller firms.
What to do next: if you are planning a fleet update, hold off on assuming used EV prices will keep falling and instead get quotes now, since SMMT’s own analysis suggests the mandate review could slow the flow of discounted stock into the second-hand market. Compare total running costs, not just sticker price, and check what asset finance options are available before committing.
Photo: smmt.co.uk
