Six Thing You Never Knew about HGVs

Posted by Nabin Shaw on September 27th, 2019

If you have driven down the motorways or even your average city streets you are sure to see a quantity of HGVs making their way alongside you in the traffic scene. Some of these HGVs are probably branded with bright logos displayed across their sides indicating the variety of goods or products being transported. Others are completely blank, leaving you to wonder what cargo might be carried within. This is actually a great game to play to while away the time spent on long journeys – challenge your friends and family to a round of ‘guess the HGV cargo'. This never gets boring because you will soon find that HGVs are everywhere. HGVs are such a common sight their presence is sometimes taken for granted and many don’t fully understand how much our lives and our country's economy depend on their stalwart services.

Nearly All UK Goods Are Moved by Road

The first and by far the most significant fact about HGVs is that 98% of the goods moving through the UK are being moved on roads. This includes everything consumers enjoy from fresh eggs to diamond earrings. The economy of the UK is very much based on its capacity to move through road transport and if anything were to affect this vital service everything would be affected. Many of the goods being consumed will arrive from overseas. This is why the haulage industry is currently concerned about the outcome of Brexit and its implications for trade routes.

Hundreds of Thousands of Jobs

The task of driving HGVs and transporting needed goods throughout the UK falls into the hands of 600,000 UK residents. Unbelievably, only a small fraction of this population is female, making the need for some equality adjustments in this industry a high priority. However, even with this seemingly high number of drivers there is still a considerable driver shortage. The logistics business predicts that it will take some time to fill 36% of their needed workforce as they find suitable drivers. Training will also be required for new drivers, at centres such as Easy as HGV. Around 15% of their vacancies will not be occupied.

Huge Haulage

Considering that haulage is one of the most important bits of our economy it probably comes as no surprise that this industry is one of the biggest employers out there as well. The drivers play an important role, of course, but equally important are the workers who load and unload the HGVs, the warehouse managers, transport planners and many other professionals involved in keeping HGVs running. In fact, the haulage industry employs over 2.5 million UK residents, which makes it the 5th largest employer in the UK, soon after the NHS, military and HMRC.

Put Your Money Where Your Haulage Is

In addition to providing gainful employment for a considerable portion of the UK population, the haulage industry has value in its own right. According to the latest estimates, the value of the haulage industry to the UK economy reaches over dollar 124 billion. This is why the haulage industry and its vital services are truly the backbone of the UK economy. Haulage brings considerable profits into the UK each year and the figures grow. But with Brexit impending and generating much uncertainty about its outcome, even the experts can’t say what will happen to the haulage industry.

Age Ain’t Nothin’ but a Number

Professionals in the HGV industry come from all types of backgrounds. We have men, women, former insurance salesmen and drivers who have done nothing but drive since they finished their formal education. Did you know that the average age for a UK HGV driver is 48 years? Add to this the fact that many of our drivers are not UK nationals (13%), and the total number of HGV drivers is uncertain after Brexit.

Heavy Goods Ahead

Heavy goods being hauled around in Heavy Goods Vehicles could mean anything, but some of these vehicles take 'heavy' to a new level. At the moment there are 524,500 registered vehicles in the UK weighing over 3.5 tonnes, which is about the same weight as a healthy adolescent, if the hearty adolescent were also an African elephant. Out of these 524,500 vehicles, 250,000 are being driven by a driver with a certified stamp of approval from the RHA, or Road Haulage Association.