DEALER group Evans Halshaw has unloaded its interests in fleet management to concentrate on car retailing and contract hire. Britain's fifth largest dealer group has sold its 50% share in Fleet Cost Management to its partner Harpur Group, which in turn will sell FCM to PHH Vehicle Management Services, for a consideration of £11.7 million.

Harpur is also selling its Overdrive and Dialcard interests in the UK to PHH but the French-based international holding company Harpur- Gelco will retain its overseas and private interests under the recently established International Card Enterprises.

Evans Halshaw has also sold its 100% stake in Automanagement for £250,000 but is retaining its 100% ownership of fleet software specialist Car Fleet Control and its contract hire operation Fleetcare. Evans Halshaw has ploughed significant additional resource into Fleetcare since establishing it as a standalone business earlier this year. The move marks the return of Evans Halshaw to contract hire after selling an earlier leasing venture to what was then Avis Fleet Services.

FCM made a £856,000 contribution to Evans Halshaw's pre-tax profits last year and £677,000 in the year to September 30 1997, but Automanagement made a pre-tax loss of £139,000 over the same period.