Three ways to cut cost - guaranteed by Donnelly

Checking and validating every invoice

“Where you have multiple lenders – leasing, fuel, hire – we often find broken processes from central billing and a lot of errors.
It’s not uncommon to find savings of 1-2% off the total cost of ownership by validating every invoice.”

Recalculation of contracts

“We set qualifiers that leasing companies must accept – for example, matrix pricing for end-of-contract mileage and early termination. They are fixed at the front end which means lease parameters are fixed for the life of the contract. This transparency avoids deviation in pricing or margin.”

Vehicle return management

“Fleet exposure to end-of-contract damage costs is very high. We protect them in two ways – firstly, an end-of-contract damage waiver that starts at £1; secondly, by managing the condition of the vehicle versus the waiver using smart repairs.

"Every vehicle is assessed and repaired via a third party supplier before it goes back. As an example, one fleet was being charged £160 for lost keys. We ordered them via a third party for £70 – instantly, that’s £90 saved.”

Business background

Stuart Donnelly calls Fleet Logistics “a best kept secret”. It was a phrase he used when joining the company in 2007 and remains the case today – although he is now on a mission to “make more noise about who we are”.

110,000 vehicles in 66 countries

Fleet Logistics was set up in 1997 by Ivor Johnson, now EMEA regional fleet director at Pfizer, and Tom Osborne, now director at Fleetworx. It is now global, managing 110,000 vehicles in 66 countries.

A spell in the hands of American fleet management business Wheels saw the myriad processes and controls which had developed within each country merged into a central standard.

Acquisition by TUV SUD group

Last September Fleet Logistics was acquired by TUV SUD Group, a German-based inspections and audit firm. A restructure saw the P&Ls return to local markets with responsibility handed to country managers.

investment for growth

TUF is cash-rich and will provide invest-ment for growth: Fleet Logistics is targeting 200,000 vehicles globally by 2015, with its core focus on large national and inter-national fleets.

“In the UK only two customers are UK-only; the rest have vehicles across Europe,” says Donnelly. “However, we are less concerned about the European element going forward; now it’s as much about individual country relationships.”