Govt are making it easier, faster and cheaper for people across the UK to switch to electric vehicles. Van Drivers, cabbies and businesses are set to benefit from £120 million in government funding to make the switch to cleaner vans faster and cheaper.

This week (25 February 2025) Future of Roads Minister Lilian Greenwood confirmed that the department is extending the Plug-in van grant for another year, to help van drivers and businesses transition to zero emission vehicles.

The extension will mean businesses and van drivers can receive grants up to £2,500 when buying small vans up to 2.5 tonnes and up to £5,000 for larger vans up to 4.25 tonnes.

The Plug-in van grant has helped sell over 80,000 electric and zero emission vans since its launch, as the government continues to back businesses all over the country.

The department is also making it easier to switch to zero emission vans – which can be heavier than their petrol and diesel counterparts despite being of the same size – by removing the requirement for additional training that is currently in place only for zero emission vans but not their petrol and diesel equivalents.

This will help businesses by taking away training costs, cutting red tape and making it easier to hire drivers when operating electric vans. Today’s funding is part of over £2.3 billion to help industry and consumers make a supported switch to electric vehicles (EVs). This is creating high paid jobs, supporting businesses up and down the country and tapping into a multi-billion pound industry to make the UK a clean energy superpower and deliver the government’s Plan for Change.

Future of Roads Minister, Lilian Greenwood, 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.

Alongside this financial support, the government strengthened incentives to purchase zero emission vehicles in the Autumn Budget 2024 by maintaining generous ZEV incentives in the Company Car Tax regime. The transition to electric continues at pace. With over 382,000 electric cars sold in 2024 – up a fifth on the previous year – there’s never been a better time to switch to EVs, with one in 3 used electric cars under £20,000 and 21 brand new electric cars RRP under £30,000. Owning an electric car is also becoming increasingly cheaper, with drivers able to save up to £750 a year if they mostly charge at home compared to petrol. There are now over 74,000 public chargers in the UK, with a record of nearly 20,000 added last year alone. With 24/7 helplines, contactless payments, and up-to-date chargepoint locations, charging has become easier than ever.