Europe Medium and Heavy-duty Truck Rental/Leasing Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

Europe Medium and Heavy-duty Truck Rental/Leasing Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

The European medium and heavy-duty truck rental/leasing market were valued at USD 59.24 billion in 2021. It is expected to reach USD 85.95 billion by 2027, registering a CAGR of 6.20% in revenue during the forecast period (2022-2027).

The COVID-19 pandemic hampered the market's growth across the European region as lockdowns and shutdowns of manufacturing facilities in 2020 resulted in disruptions in the transportation sector and the closure of small and medium-scale industries. However, as restrictions eased, several logistic companies shifted their focus on renting and leasing medium and heavy-duty trucks instead of buying new ones to avoid high initial costs. Such trends in the market are likely to continue and offer long-term positive growth for the market.

Over the long term, one of the other notable factors driving the market growth is the exceptional rental offers and aggressive advertising by the players in the market. Increasing regulations on vehicle emissions, advancements in vehicle safety, and rapidly growing logistics, retail, and e-commerce sectors have significantly driven the demand for the new advanced trucks in the EU market over the past years. Truck rental companies have also been equally impacted by the factors mentioned above.

Leasing or hiring trucks is an attractive option for many consumers across various sectors in the EU region. The demand in the market is expected to surge as this serves companies, individuals, agencies, and other users. The construction sector, logistics, and other industrial sectors require truck rental leasing services consistently; hence the growth of the market is expected to augment over the forecast period.​

The strict emission control regulations implemented by the governments of key European countries positively influence the growth of the truck rental market as it reduces the number of sales of owned and road vehicles. The recently published heavy-duty vehicle certification data for 2021 from the European Union found that while the fuel consumption values across the different truck subgroups oscillated between 24 L/100 km and 33 L/100 km, the specific CO2 emissions showed greater variation. Urban delivery trucks with a 4×2 axle configuration (4-UD) emitted on average 307 gCO2/t-km, which is over five times as much as long-haul tractor-trailers (5-LH) with emissions of 57 gCO2/t-km.

Key Market TrendsLong-Term Leasing is dominating the market

Long-term truck rentals of more than two months have been considered. Customers primarily from the industrial and construction sectors have preferred long-term truck rentals. Manufacturing, energy, chemical, paper mills, railroads, shipbuilders, utilities, and retailers accounted for around half of total long-term truck rental revenue in Europe.

Commercial construction contractors accounted for a considerable market share of total long-term truck rental revenue in Europe, which includes rentals for office space, lodging, healthcare, entertainment, and other commercial purposes. Germany, the United Kingdom, and France have been the leading European markets for long-term truck rentals in recent years, owing to high demand from the industrial and construction sectors.

The demand for long-term truck rentals in Europe is expected to rise further during the forecast period, owing to increased construction, agricultural, and industrial (primarily manufacturing, logistics, and e-commerce) activity in major countries such as Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and Spain.

Because of their greater transport capacity, heavy trucks are commonly used for long-distance transportation of frozen foods and perishable goods. Furthermore, by utilizing multi-temperature refrigerated systems, these trucks can transport multiple products such as meat, fish, and dairy products at the same time, improving delivery efficiency as well as service provider profit margins.

• In May 2019, Customers of PacLease can now access 2,100 DAF trucks and over 800 trailers. The company is also offering customers CF-6 × 4 three-way tippers and CF-8 × 4 concrete mixers for the first time. In addition, municipal companies can rent CF-340-6x2 garbage trucks, especially for long-term rental.

Considering these developments, demand for the target market is expected to witness moderate growth during the forecast period.

Rest of Europe is witnessing significant growth

The countries considered in the rest of Europe are Netherland, Russia, Sweden, Poland, and Belgium, among others.

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted the truck renting and leasing industry in the rest of the European countries as economic activities were halted during the forced lockdown period. Many industries, like manufacturing, construction, and mining, were forced to stop their operations. However, it is expected that with the gradual opening of the economies, these activities will pick up the pace, and demand for rental and leasing trucks will increase. Also, the market's growth was expected during the second half of 2021.

Companies in Greece are not permitted to lease trucks without a driver. Businesses in the country frequently purchase imported used trucks to meet their transportation needs. As a result, the average truck age in Greece is nearing 20 years.

Several major players are investing in R&D of advanced technology to attract customers, overcome the growing problem of driver shortages, and gain market share. For instance,

In January 2020, the ICTS group in Russia announced a partnership with BM Truck as its network service partner in Russia. The eight service locations of BM Truck cover a large area in the Russian Federation. BM Truck offers trailer rental customers parking, repairs, and tire changes.

In 2019, FRAIKIN Group entered the Netherlands. FRAIKIN Group signed a new contract with Loxam to support its subsidiary Loxam Workx. Both companies focused on making vehicles safer and more comfortable while working on a new "pilot" vehicle that can become a milestone in the carrier/low-loader market.

The United Kingdom also holds a significant market share in terms of revenue in 2021 and is expected to grow during the forecast period. In 2018, the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA) launched a three-year plan to address the sector's unprecedented challenges, such as the industry's path toward a fair tax regime, a competitive model for monetizing and sharing connected vehicle data, and the creation of a sustainable market for electric vehicles.

Following the three-year plan, the association launched a 'Plug-in Pledge,' aiming to register 300,000 plug-in vehicles by 2025. As a result, the rental industry is expected to adopt electric trucks. Manufacturers such as Magtec, Daimler, and Renault have electric trucks in their portfolios for the UK market.

Based on such developments, the market is expected to witness considerable growth during the forecast period.

Competitive Landscape

Some prominent truck rental leasing service providers include Penske Truck Leasing Inc., Paccar Leasing Gmbh, Fraikin, Tip Trailer Services Germany Gmbh, Man Financial Services/euro-leasing, and others. The intensity of competition in the market studied is high, as truck rental firms, as well as truck OEMs that offer rental services, have been rigorously promoting their fleet management services to customers. For instance, telematics offers optimal usage of rental trucks with service support, document administration, cost estimates, insurance, and door-to-door service. Growing investments by key players to drive demand in the market. For instance,

• In April 2022, Free2move acquired the first metasearch for van and truck rental Comparateur-location-utilitaire.fr to expand and improve its rental services of commercial vehicles to private customers and B2B clients.
• In April 2021, United Rentals Inc. signed an agreement to acquire General Finance Corporation for USD 19 per share in cash, representing a total enterprise value of approximately USD 996 million, including the assumption of USD 400 million net debt. This acquisition stabilizes its geographical presence by expanding rental services in the region.
• In April 2021, Fraikin Limited UK announced its partnership with Samsara. This partnership aims to make real-time data available to customers to assist them in enhancing the safety, efficiency, and long-term viability of their associated fleets.

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