TOYOTA says its fleet sales are 4,500 better than reported in the latest batch of statistics released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders. According to SMMT figures Toyota fleet sales in the first nine months of this year are 22,029 - 26.6% down on last year's nine-month tally of 29,994.

But this week the Japanese manufacturer said: 'The apparently dramatic about-turn is simply the result of an incorrect computer setting which has rendered the sales temporarily invisible. Company car sales of about 4,500 in the year-to-date have been reported as retail sales due to computer error.' The 'invisible' fleet sales follows most of Toyota's fleet sales being supplied to the DVLA by the Automated First Registration and Licensing System introduced in July. The discrepancy is expected to be corrected in November.