After a year of becoming the “first” carbon neutral vehicle rental company in the UK, Green Motion will continue its initiative into 2019.

Since starting its carbon neutral programme in June of last year, Green Motion has donated thousands of pounds to combatting global climate change.

For every car hired, either the company or the customer offset the subsequent carbon emissions by donating £1.25.

Green Motion UK’s director Sian Marston: “We’re pleased to see a decrease, but there is still a long way to go.As the only carbon neutral vehicle rental company in the UK, sustainability is very important to us.

"We are always looking for ways that we can help improve the environment with our fleet of low-emission vehicles as well as our business practices.”

In the first year, Green Motion chose to donate the money to two projects that prevent deforestation of the Amazon Rainforest: the Florestal Santa Maria Project and the Portel-Pará Project.

The efforts of these have helped reduce deforestation levels in the rainforest from 7,893 sq/km in 2016 to 6,624 sq/km in 2017. The support will continue for another year.

Green Motion’s franchisee development manager Will Wynter (pictured) said: “Operating in an industry rarely seen as environmentally friendly, we’re dedicated to implementing greener practice.

“We have a customer base of enthusiastic, environmentally conscious people looking to limit their daily pollution levels and this carbon neutral programme has been very well received.

"People care about the environment and that’s shown by our growth since launching.”