Lex Autolease has delivered its 300,000th vehicle to cement its position as the UK’s largest fleet company.

The landmark delivery comes after a period of significant investment, which is part of Lex Autolease's five-year plan to grow its fleet size to 375,000 by 2018.

Last year the business grew its fleet by 7%, adding 10,000 cars and 11,000 commercial vehicles.

It also saw total fleet assets increase to £3.3 billion, a year-on-year growth of 10%, following a raft of client wins and new product launches including the ‘Business Critical’ service unveiled in September 2014 for fleets whose vehicles are critical to their core business activity, for example those with time-sensitive loads or who provide essential services,

The 300,000th vehicle is part of a liveried fleet delivered to London-based care provider Clece Care Services.

The fleet has been taken on a sole supply contract hire with maintenance basis, and vehicles will be used predominantly for nursing staff to travel between hospitals and patients’ homes.

Tim Porter, managing director of Lex Autolease, said: “In recent years we have made considerable investment in our products and services for companies of all sizes, from SME right through to megafleet.

"Businesses are increasingly seeing leasing as a viable alternative to purchasing vehicles outright, especially as the economic recovery takes hold and confidence improves.

“Reaching this milestone sets us firmly on track to achieve our five-year plan of adding 100,000 vehicles to the fleet by 2018. To achieve this ambitious target, we are continuing to develop our offering and educate businesses about the benefits of leasing with advice and consultancy.

“This reaffirms our commitment to Lloyds Banking Group’s strategy of helping Britain prosper.”

Sunny Kapoor, operations manager at Clece Care Services, said: “This is a landmark time for Lex Autolease, and we are pleased to be a part of it.

"As we are already a customer of Lloyds Bank it was the natural step for us to lease our vehicles from Lex Autolease, which provide essential transportation for our nursing staff as they travel to visit hospitals and patients.

“Having a reliable fleet of vehicles is crucial to the day-to-day operation of our business. We plan to add more vehicles to our fleet over the next 12 months with the help and advice of the consultancy team at Lex Autolease.”