Long waits for deliveries of new commercial vehicles to customers thanks, in part, to shortages of key components are bedevilling manufacturers at present. Volvo Trucks is no exception.

The majority of models in its latest line-up will not arrive with British customers until sometime during the first quarter of 2022 admits Christian Coolsaet (left), managing director of the company’s UK and Ireland operation.

“That’s the hard reality,” he says. “We can’t get the semiconductors we need and the car industry is in the same position.”

The situation has been exacerbated by socially-distanced assembly plants that were shuttered for several months last year still playing catch-up as demand for vehicles rises. At least all manufacturers are in the same boat, and there is one crumb of comfort Coolsaet can offer.