Sudden peaks in demand are the key trend affecting the vehicle logistics and storage sector, May’s member meeting of the Vehicle Remarketing Association (VRA) heard.
Taking place at Cox Automotive’s Collaboration Centre at Bruntingthorpe, Leicestershire, it featured two in-depth discussion panels on these core subjects.
Roger Evans, COO of Engineius, explained: “We now see waves of demand appear in a way that was once rare. For example, a boatload of cars might come in from China or elsewhere and immediately soak up the local port capacity. Operators of bigger, multi-car loaders see the effect of this quite quickly and then it ripples all the way through the system. Companies like us, which specialise in the delivery of single vehicles, feel a surge in demand 6-8 weeks later.
“We deliver for our customers, and we do a good job, but we rarely face what you might describe as a ‘normal’ market and that creates its own issues in planning.”
Nick Chadaway, managing director of DMN Group, added: “The ports are under a lot of pressure. What many people often don’t realise is that the destination of boats full of cars aren’t always decided until they are on the water and will land at places and at times that are planned late in the process. This means that portside storage is placed under pressure, which has a concertina effect on inland storage.”
Craig Bithray, director at Manheim Vehicle Services, said the capacity issue was potentially affecting investment decisions in the market: “Meeting these peaks of demand is difficult and, to some extent, the question of the next 12 months will be all about who is willing to invest in more inland storage to meet them and offer all the associated functions such as pre-delivery inspections. The market does feel as though it is at something of a pinch point.”
Phil Walker, operations director at BCA, agreed: “The situation does make it difficult to plan. For example, if you are seeing more EV capacity today, you really needed to start planning that infrastructure 12 months ago to ensure you have the necessary power. Of course, we’re doing that where necessary – it’s very much the future – but demand at the moment tends to be highly variable.”
James Hopkins, managing director at DMN Rapid Logistics, added that this growing electric vehicle (EV) sector was creating its own new issues: “EV storage requires a completely different approach to ICE. If you’re keeping an EV on site for 30-60 days then it’s not just a question of doing the normal things such as moving the car so the brake pads don’t rust but ensuring there is sufficient charge in the motion and 12-volt battery. The latter especially can be a problem.”
Marcus Blakemore, chair, of the VRA’s industry trends sub-committee announced the creation of a new series of logistics and storage white papers, starting with multi-car transporter movements.
“Logistics and storage are core to the whole remarketing process but as these panel discussions have shown, this is a market undergoing a lot of change, and we want to help our members to understand how to work effectively with their suppliers, moving forward together to meet changing needs.”
The meeting also heard a presentation from Matthew Croucher, chief economist at the SMMT, who talked about market trends, outlooks and the impact of the revised Zero Emissions Vehicle Mandate.
“The recent changes made to the ZEV Mandate provide improved flexibilities, but our short-term outlooks still show a growing gap between the market and the mandate targets, so we need measures to help stimulate volumes, not just market share.
“Measures such as halving VAT on EVs, changing the VED expensive car supplement threshold, allowing manufacturers to keep employee car ownership schemes and removing VAT on public charging.”
Finally, a presentation on the current state of the used car market was given by Phill Jones, chief operating officer at MOTORS, and consultant Derren Martin, representing Percayso.
Phill talked about the factors behind the current used EV market: “The choice of fuel made by a used car buyer is very much driven by price. It should be remembered that the majority of used cars being sold are under £10,000 and yet there are very few EVs practical for daily use in that price bracket, but they are coming. We have carried out research among drivers that shows the majority of drivers expect their next car to be a hybrid or an EV. Once they become more affordable, more EV sales will happen.”
Derren added: “Interestingly, we’re definitely seeing both data and feedback from dealers showing that hybrids are increasingly seen as a practical stepping stone to an EV and prices are rising accordingly – up 3.73% so far this year. However, it’s also worth noting that although stock levels of EVs being held by dealers are up 16% in 2025, values continue to fall slightly, indicating that demand still needs to match supply. Some dealers do remain probably overcautious about buying EVs.”
The event was the best attended VRA member meeting ever, attracting around 50 delegates in person and another 15 online.
Philip Nothard, chair at the VRA, said: “We now have around 60 member organisations, which means that the VRA is bigger than ever before, and there is a definite buzz around these meetings. They feel like vital remarketing events.”
Further details about attending VRA meetings can be obtained by e-mailing info@thevra.co.uk.