FLEET managers are wiping out their chances of taking part in innovative cost-cutting schemes by failing to monitor their fleet's total mileage and fuel use.

Fleet operators' attempts to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of structured personal leasing schemes is being scuppered by their inability to produce benchmark fleet running costs, according to a leading contract hire company.

Andrew Cope, managing director of Zenith Vehicle Contracts, revealed savings of more than £1,000 per car per year were possible through structured personal leasing schemes, but fleets should not start considering them until they had strict mileage checks, for both business and private mileage. The Government's greener fleet certification scheme, Motorvate, also confirmed that fleets are struggling to provide information on fuel use and mileage as part of the joining process.

Companies trying to switch to structured personal leasing schemes can only do so if they have a tight rein on their costs, including accurate figures on the fleet's total mileage and the amount of money they are spending on fuel.

Cope told the audience: 'A key point to remember is that the scheme won't work unless you have a proper mileage reconciliation for both business and private mileage. If you cannot reconcile that, it would be very difficult for you to implement, or at least know what your cost savings are likely to be.'

But any fleet that is unaware of the accurate mileage driven by employees can only guess at the amount of money it will be paying out to cover business mileage, making it immensely difficult to calculate any savings that are possible.

Through the scheme, fleets can cut down on some paperwork and more responsibility for vehicles can be passed on to drivers. Cope added: 'Structured personal leasing is not for every company, but for some it will provide considerable savings, protect your workforce from future tax changes and be a credible alternative to the company car.'