Van drivers are breaking the loutish ‘white van man’ stereotype, with almost half now holding a university degree.
The research by Mercedes-Benz Vans – which is celebrating 30 years of the Sprinter – found 46% of van drivers hold a Foundation, Bachelor’s or Master’s degree. An additional 3.2% have achieved a doctorate (PHD).
For 42% of van drivers, it was their first job after graduating. Three-quarters of university educated drivers feel happy with their choice of career, despite having moved away from their academic field of study.
Due to the rise in university attendance, today’s van drivers are far higher educated than the average person was 30 years ago. In 1995, 12% of people were degree-holders – today that number is over 50%.
The rise in diverse backgrounds for van drivers comes on the back of the explosion in the UK’s delivery economy and soaring demand for drivers.
The Mercedes-Benz Vans research also showed a third (33%) of drivers are now privately educated or attended grammar school, with reading emerging as the most popular downtime hobby amongst today’s van drivers.
Nearly two-thirds (63%) said they enjoyed picking up a book in their spare time, almost double the 33% who enjoyed reading just six years ago.
More than half (59%) of today’s drivers cited doing puzzles such as Sudoku and Wordle as a favourite pastime and almost half said they spoke a second language (45%).
And while Benidorm remains a popular destination for Brits abroad, 49% of the new generation of van drivers said they would prefer a city break to Barcelona.
More than half (54%) said they would ditch downing pints in a pub with their mates in favour of enjoying a nice dinner in a restaurant.
A similar figure (49%) would choose to spend time with their family over watching football and 53% would prefer to read a broadsheet than a tabloid newspaper.
The changes are explored in Mercedes-Benz Vans annual Under the Bonnet Report, which examines the key shifts of the UK van driver and is being published in stages across 2025.
Sarah Palfreyman, sales director at Mercedes-Benz Vans UK said: “While van drivers and businesses have evolved since 1995, the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter has been a constant over the last 30 years.
“The iconic Sprinter has been supporting a wide range of businesses for 30 years, including logistics, retail and SMBs. Keeping businesses moving with reliable vehicles which, like van drivers themselves has evolved – with our electric version, the eSprinter.
“We’re proud to supply van drivers and businesses all over the UK with premium, reliable and enduring vehicles that ensure van drivers can get from A to B with their most trusted tool – the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter. We look forward to supporting current and future van drivers with exciting innovations to the trusted Sprinter for the next 30 years and beyond.”
