The new car supply situation for some fleets is worsening and remains extremely patchy for almost all, according to the Association of Fleet Professionals (AFP).
Chairman of the Association, Paul Hollick, said feedback from across its membership showed that serious problems were persisting and causing increasing operational disruption.
“This is, of course, a worldwide problem caused by worldwide issues, ranging from demand for raw materials to semiconductor shortages through to, more recently, the war in Ukraine hitting manufacturing of key components,” he said.
“However, it is also a problem that is very much affecting fleet managers in the UK and we are hearing many stories that suggest the situation is worsening, at least for certain businesses, and show no apparent signs of improving.
“Some fleet managers are telling us that drivers are having to go through the process of choosing a new car half a dozen times before finding one for which a manufacturer will even provide an production slot – and that date is likely to be a year or more away.”
Hollick said even when cars were being obtained, they were often being delivered without meeting the order specification and equipment, like parking sensors, missing. He said problems exist for petrol and diesel cars but could generally be doubled for electric vehicles.
“It is very difficult to know when the underlying supply issues will start to noticeably improve but with the degree of order backlog that exists, we don’t expect to see any real change for at least a year or probably longer,” he added.
