Question: We understand new tax rules make cars emitting less than 160g/km of CO2 financially more attractive. How can we educate drivers to make the right choices to cut costs and ‘green’ our fleet at the same time?
Answer: Companies can make significant cost savings by switching as many cars as possible to sub 160g/km because of the new capital allowance rules from April.
Selecting the right vehicles will not only offer cost benefits, but also fuel consumption and NIC savings, driver P11D benefits, and a reduction in carbon footprint.
One way to ensure your drivers are selecting the right vehicles is through proper driver education and, through your fleet management software system, setting your fleet policy so they can only select models that take maximum advantage of the new rules.
Your fleet policy file should show the different models available, the job grades to which they apply, the minimum and maximum prices allowed and their carbon dioxide emissions.
You can then rate each vehicle by their carbon impact, and we recommend a system which rates each model’s carbon emissions with ‘red’, ‘amber’ or ‘green’ values.
Drivers should then be incentivised to select vehicles with a ‘green’ rating to maximise their own and the company’s benefits, while financial penalties can be introduced for those drivers selecting models in the ‘red’.
This article appeared in Fleet News’ “Ask the Expert” section. Mycompanyfleet’s Business Manager, Andrew Leech, is on the panel.
