SMMT boss Paul Everitt said: “The September plate-change provided enough of a boost to stabalise van demand in a challenging economic environment.”
In the first nine months of the year sales were 6.3% down compared to the same period in 2011 on 187,067 units.
Within the market sectors pick-up sales bounced back with a 17% rise in September and light van sales were up almost 9%
The medium and heavy van segments were slightly down on the corresponding month last year.
Market leader Ford as well as Vauxhall, Renault and Fiat saw sales fall in September while Mercedes and Citroen enjoyed the biggest upturns.
