Tradespeople facing extra costs including the ULEZ expansion that will result in a further 21 workdays lost

Locks and Security News: your weekly locks and security industry newsletter
15th January 2025 Issue no. 736

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Tradespeople facing extra costs including the ULEZ expansion that will result in a further 21 workdays lost

Tradespeople across the UK are fighting with additional costs as they look to navigate the cost of living crisis. Overwhelming work schedules, material shortages and new directives such as ULEZ have left hundreds of thousands of small businesses – equalling 27% of SMEs in the trade - on the verge of breaking point and collapse, a study by Fix Radio found.

21% of tradespeople say it is too expensive to use their van or vehicle for work due to the cost of driving into a major city, rising to 23% in London
23% of tradespeople say they have lost work from increasing their prices in the last year due to the cost-of-living crisis and increasing transport costs, rising to 25% in London
17% of tradespeople say the ULEZ expansion and the introduction of the ‘Transit Tax’ has had a detrimental impact on their business, rising to 23% in London

News of the expansion to the ULEZ in London, which is due to be enforced from August 29^th, has gathered pace with tradespeople looking to be amongst those worst hit. Research from the Federation of Master Builders has shown that increases to transportation costs, such as rising parking fees over the last 18 months has forced 80% of tradespeople in the Capital to increase their prices. Now, in new national research revealed by Fix Radio – the UK’s only national radio station for builders and tradespeople – it has been shown that the ULEZ expansion will have a direct and detrimental impact on close to a quarter of all construction businesses in Greater London, with another 21% saying that increased transportation costs has made travelling into cities with their van an impossibility, increasing to 23% in London.

Adding to this, analysis of data from EU member states, the central EU database, Eurostat and the UK department for Business, Energy and Industry show that the cost of materials and labour for construction have increased more in the UK than the EU since Brexit. The data shows that the cost of construction materials including cement, timber and steel increased by 60% between 2015 and 2022. At the same time, the cost of labour in the UK went up by 30%. In the same time period, the cost of materials increased by 35% in EU countries, despite similar pressures including supply chain issues.

The business landscape for sole traders and small businesses in the construction sector is one that is facing increasing turbulence after the lockdown boom just a few years ago. With Fix Radio finding that one in four businesses were on the cusp of collapse in 2022, further new research from the station now finding that almost a quarter of tradespeople have had to increase their prices as a result of inflation but are ultimately losing work as a result.

Clive Holland, broadcaster on Fix Radio, discusses the effect of the ULEZ expansion on tradespeople:

“I have to say from a personal point of view I think through the pandemic our industry was asked to continue to build which we did. Without the construction industry, the UK economy would collapse - you've seen a lot of strikes recently but if tradespeople ever decided to strike it would cause significant issues throughout the UK. Tradespeople haven’t had the pat on the back that they deserve for helping through the pandemic and putting themselves in dangerous situations.

“When the ban on red diesel came, the ULEZ extension, the general taxation of vehicles and the electric vans requirement, they are all burdens to tradespeople which seriously affects their income. It is not only happening in London it's happening in cities around the UK including Birmingham and Bath, the tradesperson who is going about their daily job I think is being victimised. Particular at this time with Brits battling inflation and recession it means that customers are turning down jobs because they can’t afford it and tradespeople are encountering extra fees, such as the ULEZ charge which makes jobs less desirable."

About Fix Radio:
Fix Radio is the home of entertainment, music and information for UK tradespeople. In the last four years the station has been built from the ground-up with tradespeople in mind, providing a mixture of authentic trade voices, up-beat music and a schedule designed around the tradesperson’s day. The station’s schedule includes some of the biggest talent in the industry, including Facebook superstars the Bald Builders, Clive Holland of the BBC and formerly Cowboy Trap, the country’s most famous plasterer Chris Frediani from DIY SOS. Currently broadcasting nationwide on DAB, online at www.fixradio.co.uk and through their app, they reach an audience of over 200,000 tradespeople each week.

19th April 2023