Category: Fleet News

Fleet managers are responsible for controlling all moving parts within a commercial fleet operation; from supporting drivers to boosting profitability and maintaining infrastructure. One crucial part of the formula behind fleet success, however, is having strong finances – and this underpins all other parts of the equation.

Tracking outgoings and ensuring efficient spending are amongst the biggest challenges managers face, particularly when external market conditions can often mean these outgoings are in a state of flux.

To help fleet managers stay up to date, this blog will discuss some of the biggest factors at play; breaking down the pillars of fleet operations and associated costs and identifying how wider social factors might impact outgoings in the coming years.

To quickly jump to specific insights, click the links below:

• Why Net Zero is impacting fleet finances.
• The key overheads impacting commercial fleets.
• Financing a fleet using internal vs external financing.
• How Fuel Card Services is supporting UK fleets.

Net zero 2050 & fleet electrification

The climate crisis is one of the biggest external factors that will impact UK businesses in the coming years, and fleet managers need to consider the practical impact of new legislation when thinking about the operation of their fleet. What’s more, the Government’s transport decarbonisation plan highlights how pivotal the fleet industry is to achieving net zero emissions by 2050.

Making sustainable changes to fleet infrastructure and operations will inevitably come with a cost element, but luckily the increasing demand for low/zero emission vehicles will see the price per vehicle steadily reduce over time – as manufacturing capacity and efficiency increases and cost savings can be passed on to UK businesses.

Consequently, making major sustainable change today could be an impractical option for many businesses, but instead fleet operators should look to make longer term plans and decide on how to transition to electric vehicles gradually. Adopting a ‘sustainable mindset’ doesn’t simply mean ‘going green’, it means embracing environmentally positive initiatives while simultaneously reducing waste and protecting finances.

What are the key overheads impacting commercial fleets?

Here are some of the most common and predictable overheads to be aware of that can determine the strength of a fleet business’ cash flow.

Vehicle acquisition

The most obvious and recognizable part of a fleet is its vehicle portfolio, and vehicle acquisition is one of the most important and potentially most expensive outgoings. The needs of your company will dictate what sort of fleet vehicles you need and how many – but choosing how to finance the acquisition of these vehicles is the one of the biggest primary hurdles.

Fleet leasing

You may choose to acquire your vehicles by leasing vehicles from a leasing company. This is most often the most cost-effective way to get the vehicles you need, with minimal hassle. It’s a pragmatic financing option for fleet managers needing any number of vehicles, making it accessible for any size business needing anything from a few cars to a larger fleet of hundreds or more.

Depending on your agreement with the leasing company, leased fleet vehicles can be used for any business needs, and occasionally personal needs too. On completion of your set leasing period, leased vehicles are returned to the leaser and can be updated for newer models.

For fleet operators, leasing is the most economical way to obtain fleet vehicles with increased flexibility over purchasing fleet vehicles due to the ability to update vehicles more frequently without having to go through the longwinded process of selling current vehicles and buying new ones. Not only that, being able to update vehicles more often means you benefit from having your fleet drivers in increasingly efficient vehicles with the latest safety features.

Leasing fleet vehicles is also useful because of the tax savings they offer. On vehicles leased for business use, 100% of the VAT of monthly rental costs can be claimed back and, depending on the emissions of your leased vehicles, you could also offset up to 100% of lease rental against corporation tax.

Fleet buying

Buying your fleet vehicles might be a wise financial choice if your business has access to large capital reserves. Buying vehicles ultimately negates any interest payments associated with leasing, and if vehicles have longevity and can be fully utilized – then this may be the most sensible finance option for businesses that can afford to invest.

Additionally, buying could be a good option for businesses that are looking to acquire fleet vehicles slowly; purchasing one at a time while maintaining a financial buffer that they can fall back on when needed. You can resell vehicles you own, while leased vehicles remain the property of a third party.

This doesn’t just make bought fleet vehicles an asset, but also means that you won’t be charged for leased vehicles that get damaged or accrue high mileages. Of course, you will still suffer a loss of value in such situations, so driver safety and proper vehicle usage is paramount either way.

If you purchase low emission vehicles, you can claim 100% of your first-year costs against corporation tax, and if you use a loan to pay for your vehicle purchase you can offset 100% of the interest against your end of year tax bill.

Deciding whether purchasing or leasing is right for your business will be largely dependent on the type of business you are acquiring a fleet for, and the capital available, and you will need to consider a range of factors including tax rates and maintenance cost over an extended time frame to pick the right suite of vehicles for your fleet.

Read more insights around buying versus leasing fleet vehicles.

Fuel and charging

Keeping your fleet moving means managing the costs of fuel and charging – and this is another key overhead fleet operators must contend with. An outdated method of managing fuel expenses has fleet drivers pay for their fuel out of pocket before handing over receipts for expenses repayments. This results in drivers having to conduct a lot of manual admin work, and it also brings no additional cost-saving benefits that could be achieved through putting a large-scale solution in place.

For fleet managers looking to fuel and recharge their fleet efficiently and reap benefits too, investing in fuel cards and EV charge cards is a wise economic choice. These cards cut out a hefty chunk of administration and allow your drivers to refuel or recharge with either a debit or credit-style system.

Your choice of card will depend on your business’ needs, with the type of vehicles in your fleet influencing your choice of fuel card or EV charge cards, and other factors such as your business capital, driver habits and types of journeys impacting your choice of traditional (credit) or prepaid (debit) fuel cards. Whichever you choose will offer you an increased opportunity to manage fuel and electricity expenditure within your fleet, as well as enjoy various benefits and perks that come with different card brands.

Servicing and maintenance

Whatever the size of your fleet, keeping on top of maintenance and servicing can be costly and time consuming without the right tools in place. Poorly organised servicing and maintenance scheduling can leave fleet vehicles unsafe to drive, putting drivers in unsafe situations and risking damage to the company, should incidents occur because of missed servicing or damaged vehicles.

Preventative maintenance is the best place to start if you are looking to keep servicing and maintenance costs low. It’s much more cost effective to deal with small issues promptly and preserve your fleet vehicles (by carrying out regular checks on factors such as tyre pressure and oil) rather than to allow them to develop into larger problems with more sizable bills to fix.

Consequently, servicing management software is an invaluable tool that fleet operators can use to stay up to date on the servicing and maintenance schedules of fleet vehicles. These pieces of software will help you to determine exactly which vehicles need servicing and when, helping to prevent missed MOTs and giving you increased access to garages and booking services.

Our MyService.Expert service grants drivers access to pre-negotiated servicing and maintenance rates at leading dealerships and independent garages across the UK, meaning you can get the best prices with minimal hassle. The pay-as-you-go service brings all your fleet details into one portal, so you can keep a tab on the maintenance needs and booking of all your fleet vehicles. You can learn more about MyService.Expert here.

Infrastructure and premises

Ill-suited business infrastructure can have a negative impact both on the smooth operation of your fleet and on fleet financing, particularly for fleets that are partly or entirely made up of electric or hybrid vehicles.

For all types of vehicles, safe storage and security is vital to ensuring they don’t end up damaged or stolen. Where possible, off-street parking and security measures like cameras and gating will help to avoid costs that result from theft and vandalism.

If you are growing the number of electric vehicles in your fleet or are even just encouraging your staff to purchase their own electric cars, installing charging points at your business premises could be a worthwhile investment. If you are looking to make this development and introduce charge points at your place of work, check whether your business is eligible for the Workplace Charging Scheme. The scheme offers businesses grants to help with as much as 75% of the cost of installing EV charge points.

Software infrastructure and technology

While physical infrastructure allows for the operation of a fleet, the efficiency, productivity, and effective management of fleets is largely determined by software capabilities. So, it’s crucial that modern fleets have the right technology stack in place.

Key aspects of a fleet business’ tech stack should include:

• Telematics systems – which transmit data from fleet vehicles to a centralized database to help record and monitor vehicle safety, performance, and the likes.
• Mileage tracking software – which can be performed either via standalone software or as an integrated part of a telematics setup.
• Apps and packages for drivers – for example mobile applications to help drivers find nearby fuel pumps.

At Fuel Card Services, we offer all of these services and more, which you can read more about in our deep-dive on the advantages of fleet technology products. Additional software that could help a fleet business is accountancy and cash flow monitoring software, which could help produce cash flow forecasts, monitor expenditure and income, and use automation to provide fleets with useful insights.

Fleet Financing: External vs Internal solutions

Ultimately, there are two ways to finance the growth of your business. One is by generating a substantial number of profits and using those profits to fuel a slow and steady growth. This is known as ‘internal finance’ and is sometimes a luxury for businesses as not everyone has access to serious capital reserves.

Alternatively, external financing could be a good option for commercial fleets. In an external financing agreement, a fleet will partner with an external finance provider, such as a fintech or traditional bank, and borrow money to fund growth. Examples of external finance include:

• Business loans – these are typically used for large capital investments, such as purchasing vehicles or expanding premises.
• Invoice financing or business overdrafts – these ‘line of credit’ style financing facilities enable businesses to dip into a finance facility to borrow as and when it is needed.

These are of course some downsides to external financing; having to pay interest on money borrowed and taking on a level of risk, however this is common of the industry.

The most important thing fleet operators can do is to start thinking about the EV shift and the real-world impact it’s likely to have on a business. By forecasting cash flow over the upcoming years and mapping out exactly what investments and ongoing costs are likely to be covered, fleet managers can determine the best direction in which a fleet’s financing pattern should grow and evolve.

It could also be useful to educate the wider business on the practical impact of new infrastructure and technology investments from a cost perspective.

How can Fuel Card Services help?

At Fuel Card Services, we are specialists in helping commercial fleets save money. We do this in a range of ways, including:

• Offering a variety of fuel cards and EV charge cards and the means to pick the right one.
• Equipping fleets with a range of software, services, and telematics systems that can help you know exactly where your money needs to go and when.

Tele-Gence Telematics

Tools like our Tele-Gence telematics services are designed to equip you with market-leading technology that will help you save on operational costs wherever possible whilst also improving driver safety. Additionally, this service can help you to avoid financial losses that result from fraud, while also tracking driver behaviour to help you preserve vehicle health. Get in touch with our team to learn more about Tele-Gence and how it can support your fleet management.

Fuel Cards

If you are looking for guidance on what fuel card is the right fit for your fleet and offers benefits you can really use, why not try out our fuel card selection tool. The quick questionnaire will give you a set of fuel cards right for you based off your answers so you can make an informed choice and pick the fuel card or charge card that’s right for your fleet.

If you want to speak to a member of our team, you can get in touch here.

Fleet drivers come in many forms, from users of company cars to dedicated HGV drivers conducting long haul trips. With such a wide variety of roles found within your average fleet operation, there is an equally expansive range of qualifications fleet drivers need in order to do their job safely and within the bounds of the law.

As a fleet operator, it’s important that you understand the full breadth of qualifications that are required by law, and that you could take advantage of to grow and expand your fleet. And as a driver, it may be worth exploring new qualifications to upskill and progress in your career.

That’s why this blog will take a look at exactly what qualifications you will need to operate different vehicles, which qualifications and licenses you will need to check for as a fleet manager, and some ways in which the process of vetting new drivers can be made easier.

What records must a business hold on a driver?

The first thing that should be checked when employing new fleet drivers is that they hold the correct driving license for the vehicle they will be driving and are suitably trained.

Access Driver Data with DVLA

To speed up the process of checking driver records, fleet managers can use the Access Driver Data (ADD) service.

ADD provides:

• 24/7 real time driving license data
• Single requests
• Full driving license details

For managers looking for a quicker way to check larger numbers of license, ADD is an investment that can create a more efficient checking process. You can learn more about ADD here.

Driving License Categories

Category	Type	Additional Test	Restriction
A	Motorbikes	Yes	N/A
AM	2 or 3 wheeled motors	Yes	Max speed 15.5 – 28mph
B	Cars	No	Max 8 passenger seats
B auto	Automatic cars	No	N/A
B+E	Cat B + trailer	No	Up to 3,500kg
B1	Light vehicles	No	Up to 550kg with goods
C	Large lorries	Yes	Max trailer 750kg
C+E	Cat C + trailer	Yes	N/A
C1	Lorries	Yes	Up to 7,500kg + 750kg trailer
C1+E	Cat C1 + trailer	Yes	Max combined weight 12,000kg
D	Bus	Yes	Trailer up to 750kg
D+E	Cat D + trailer	Yes	N/A
D1	Minibus	Yes	Max length 8m, max trailer 750kg
D1+E	Cat D1 + trailer	Yes	N/A
F	Tractor	No	N/A
G	Road roller	Yes	N/A
H	Tracked vehicles	Yes	N/A
K	Pedestrian vehicles	No	Self-propelled
Q	2 wheeled motors	No	Max speed 15.5mph

Can you drive a van with a car licence?

Whilst most vans are covered under the ‘B’ classification on a driving license (received on passing a standard driving test), it’s important to pay attention to the maximum authorised mass (MAM) of any van you are looking to drive, professionally or casually.

Under the ‘B’ classification, drivers are permitted to operate any vehicle up to 3.5 tonnes. This includes the contents of the van, which is an important consideration for those looking to drive a van professionally for purposes such as deliveries.

If you need drivers for vans of a higher weight or will be requiring drivers to transport goods that will take the vehicle over the MAM, you will need to ensure that your drivers have a C1 licence. This will allow them to drive medium and larger sized vehicles with a MAM of up to 7.5 tonnes.

Qualifications for lorry drivers, coach drivers, and bus drivers

To drive a heavy goods vehicle (HGV) or bus, drivers must first have a full car licence, be over 18, and have a Driver Certificate of Professional Competence qualification.

What is a Driver Certificate of Professional Competence?

Introduced across Europe to improve road safety and high driving standards, the Driver Certificate of Professional Competence is a required qualification for all those wishing to drive a HGV, bus, or coach professionally.

What is Driver CPC?

Made up of five tests, the Driver CPC will ensure vehicle operators are up to date on health, safety and legal requirements needed to safely operate larger vehicles. The Driver CPC is a legal requirement for those driving professionally and those found driving professionally without the qualification can be fined up to £1000.

Insurance for Fleet Drivers

Fleet operators should also be diligent when it comes to checking that insurance is correct for drivers in their fleet. On top of issues such as out-of-date licenses and excess penalty points, having the incorrect insurance on a fleet vehicle can make it very difficult to claim in the case of an accident.

As a fleet manger, liability for accidents in such circumstances can fall on you as the instigator of the journey. As such, its vital for the safety and preservation of yourself, your driver, and your company to play close attention not just to the validity of licences but also to the insurance on fleet vehicles.

If a company vehicle is found to be uninsured, both the driver and company could be liable to a fine, and the company may see the car seized or destroyed – potentially costly for all.

Tele-Gence Telematics

For fleet operators, telematics systems can provide extremely valuable insights into driving patterns that can help you put in place the right practices to promote driver safety. That’s where our advanced Tele-Gence telematics service excels. It can help you gauge driver behaviour, and give you access to a wealth of helpful insights that you can share with your drivers.

Designed to equip both fleet operators and drivers with the means to track and improve safety and costs, Tele-Gence offers a host of features such as fuel fraud alerts, driver behaviour tracking, live traffic, dash cam management and more. Collating this information in an accessible hub for fleet managers to monitor, Tele-Gence can help you identify areas for improvement with ease.

If you’d like to discuss the benefits of Tele-Gence and our other fleet tools, feel free to get in touch with our team.

Alcohol impairs your cognitive ability, motor function and reactions times, making driving under the influence of alcohol a fast track to accident, injury and even death. For the sake of your own safety and the safety of those around you, it’s important that drivers understand the legal driving limit, the penalty for drink driving, and the risks associated with driving under the influence.

Similarly, it’s important that your business manages its commercial fleet in the right way; providing the right guidance and advice to employees around drinking and driving while also setting out some clear policies that ensure you’re legally covered and have a process for tackling issues as they arise. And it’s crucial that as a driver, you understand and are equipped with clear guidance from your employers.

What is the legal alcohol limit for driving?

In the England, Wales and Northern Ireland is 35micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath, 80milligrammes per 100 millimetres of blood, and 107milligrammes per 100 millilitres of urine – as per the government’s guidelines.

Despite these strict limits, there are many other factors that influence how much alcohol inhibits each individual person. Factors such as sex, body weight, metabolism, food consumption and hydration all influence the real time impact of alcohol on an individual cognitive functions.

Consequently, it’s impractical to roll out blanket recommendations that say ‘X amount of drinks means X amount of danger’, and so a limit is set on the amount of alcohol that can be present in one’s blood, breath or urine at any one time while driving. Fleet drivers need to know and adhere to these limits.

What is the penalty for drink driving?

If you are caught driving or attempting to drive while over the legal limit or otherwise unfit to drive from drinking, you could face 6 months imprisonment, an unlimited fine, and a driving ban of at least 1 year.

The implication of drink driving can leave you unable to carry out personal and workplace duties and may leave you incapable of retaining your job if your work relies on your ability to drive legally. Any of the above charges could lead to a significant increase in insurance costs, and could impact your ability to travel to certain countries.

In the case that you cause death by driving over the limit, you could face up 14 years imprisonment in addition to an unlimited fine and 2-year minimum driving ban.

Managing drug & alcohol consumption in your fleet

For fleet managers, ensuring the safety of your fleet is one of the highest priorities. Having an appropriate drug & alcohol policy in place is the first step in ensuring your fleet is operated correctly and safely. Your staff need to understand what is expected of them in terms of drug and alcohol consumption and the consequences of drug and alcohol use, and this is particularly true in any industry where workers are operating heavy machinery.

‘Heavy machinery’ for drivers could encompass vehicles themselves, and even equipment at the depot that’s used for maintenance and upkeep.

That said, it may also be useful to open up a conversation around substance misuse within your business. Increasingly, employers are moving from using punitive language around alcohol and drug use to talking about signposting, mental health, and treating addiction or substance misuse as a problem over demonising the addict – and so having a framework for talking about these topics may help facilitate a positive and constructive culture within your business.

Fleet management tools

What, though, can you do to improve driver safety from a tool perspective?

Fleet management tools like Tele-Gence offer fleet managers increased awareness and control over the actions and safety of drivers. The smart technology is designed to decrease costs whilst increasing driver safety by tracking important data such as departure and arrival times, and provide tailored driver safety scores that your managers can work with.

When it comes to dangerous driver and driving under the influence, tools like Tele-Gence can help to identify concerning driving patterns and hazardous practises so you can intervene and handle any challenging situations before accidents happen.

If Tele-Gence sounds like something your fleet management could benefit from, you can learn more about the service here, or get in touch with our team to discuss your options.

Many businesses with fleets of vehicles will be feeling the bite of current fuel prices, which have been rising drastically since the start of 2022. Fleet managers will be looking for ways to make every drop of fuel take their vehicles a little further. One possible solution to this problem is hypermiling.

What is hypermiling?

Hypermiling is a term used to describe techniques that drivers can use to increase MPG. It is suggested that, by using these techniques, you could boost your MPG by around 40%. In a time when drivers may dread their journey to a fuelling station, getting an additional 40% MPG from every tank of fuel could seriously keep costs down. It is however a controversial set of techniques, as concentrating too hard on keeping fuel consumption low can make drivers less aware of the road.

What is most likely to waste fuel?

With hypermiling being the term for ultra-fuel-efficient driving, the first thing to understand before putting hypermiling techniques into use it what’s most likely to waste fuel in the first place. Having a good grasp on what habits make fuel consumption higher and what external conditions might negatively impact the efficiency of fuel consumption will help those looking to apply hypermiling techniques apply them correctly and appropriately.

How weather impacts fuel consumption

Cold weather causes higher fuel consumption. Firstly, through aerodynamics; cold air is denser than warm air, meaning your car will have to work that bit harder to travel through it than it would on a warmer day. A study by the US EPA suggests that a drop from 24 degrees Celsius to 7 degrees Celsius increases urban commute fuel consumption by between 12 and 28%.

Additionally, cold weather can adversely affect the performance of your vehicle’s components, from under the bonnet to the tires. An engine in warmer condition doesn’t have to work so hard to get warmed up and cold can affect tire pressure which will impact both the safety and efficiency of your vehicle.

What are some hypermiling techniques?

So additional miles per gallon and an increase in efficiency sounds great, but how exactly can you achieve this?

Ask yourself whether the drive is necessary

For most fleets, driving isn’t optional. However, for smaller, local businesses, it could be worth considering. Could the 5 minute drive be replaced by a 20 minute walk or a 10 minute cycle? Efficiency is obviously key for businesses, but could the money saved from not driving negate this small loss of productivity?

Maintain a sensible speed

A general reduction of 20mph can have huge benefits for your MPG. Of course, this is quite extreme – you’d end up driving too slowly in some places. However, it’s worth remembering. Perhaps driving at 60mph instead of 70mph on a motorway would make a lot of difference and keep the fuel in your vehicle for longer.

When you need to speed up, be gentle with your accelerator – don’t put too much strain on your engine.

Anticipate the road ahead

Stopping and starting frequently means more fuel is consumed. Therefore, hypermilers try to avoid stopping as much as possible. If you see a build-up of traffic ahead, begin slowing. Take your foot off the accelerator and apply a gentle brake if necessary. There’s a chance the traffic will have cleared by the time you reach it, meaning you won’t have to stop at all.

What can be achieved by driving smoothly?

Drivers who follow these techniques might also plan their journeys to avoid roads where stopping is guaranteed. If you can avoid taking a route where you’ll have to stop at multiple junctions, and instead take a route that follows a steady flow of traffic, this is likely to be favourable for your fuel economy.

Driving smoothly and avoiding stopping where possible can decrease that unnecessary fluctuation in acceleration, helping you to increase your fuel efficiency.

Drive behind other vehicles

This technique certainly brings considerations about safety to the forefront of the discussion, which we’ll talk about in a moment. Keen hypermilers will try their best to drive behind other vehicles as often as possible. This is because, when a vehicle moves, it displaces the air it is travelling through. That means any vehicle behind will face less air resistance, meaning they don’t have to push their vehicles as hard.

This technique is referred to as “drafting”, and it’s even used by racing drivers to gain advantage over the cars ahead of them.

This is a very controversial practice. It’s argued that when a driver focuses on drafting, they lose awareness on the rest of the road. If you are going to do this, make sure to maintain a safe distance between yourself and the vehicle ahead. Failure to keep a safe distance could actually see you getting fined.

Keep your vehicle well maintained

A badly maintained vehicle is a less efficient vehicle. Make sure your tyre pressure is adequate and your oil levels are topped up. A regular service is key to ensuring your vehicles are efficient. For HGVs, daily walkaround checks should be carried out to ensure that your vehicle is maintained well, so you can focus on the driving.

For cost effective vehicle servicing with discounts at selected garages, take a look at MyService.Expert .We have pre-negotiated rates at thousands of main dealer and independent garages nationwide. And it’s pay-as-you-go!

Reduce the weight in your vehicle

This is another one that may not be possible for certain drivers if deliveries are being made. However, it’s a well known fact that the less weight in your vehicle, the less fuel is consumed. Are you carrying unnecessary items in the boot of your car for example? Removing them could improve your MPG.

Is hypermiling safe?

It can definitely be argued that some of these techniques aren’t safe. Travelling at slow speeds can in fact be more dangerous on some roads. You’ll also not win the respect of many other drivers on the road who might be stuck behind you as you maintain a moderate speed.

Similarly, the controversy surrounding ‘drafting’ as a technique to save fuel will probably not put you in other driver’s good books and does open you up to increased risk of accident that could hurt you or others.

Remember that following the laws of the road is more important than saving fuel, as failure to do so could cost lives. Only use hypermiling techniques when it is safe to do so – do not put yourself and other road users in danger.

How else can fleets save money?

As mentioned, hypermiling might not be the safest or most popular way to improve your MPG, but there are other ways to save on fuel costs!

One of the best ways for fleets to save money is by getting a fuel card!

With a fuel card, you could see discounts of up to 10p per litre. You’ll also save a great deal of time with HMRC approved invoices – no more holding on to receipts!

Get in touch today to find out more about fuel cards – the smart way to manage your fuel and fleet costs.

And if you want to keep a tab on your fleet’s mileage then our Mileage Count tool is the perfect addition to your fleet management tools. Learn more about how Mileage Count can improve the ease of tracking fleet mileage.