COMPANY car tax changes always prompt employers and drivers to review the advantages and disadvantages of running company cars.

Hit for Six takes place at the International Conference Centre in Birmingham on September 24. Tickets cost £49 for fleet decision-makers and £99 for fleet industry professionals.

For employers who want to minimise their fleet involvement, and drivers who want a free choice of the type of car they drive, the lure of a cash-for-car alternative scheme is clear.

But how much money should you offer drivers in lieu of their company cars? Should this be cost-neutral to the company, or should you pay enough to enable the driver to select an identical car to his or her former company car? What is the most tax- efficient way of paying the cash allowance and what precautions should you take about restricting car choice and ensuring opt-out vehicles are properly maintained, insured and represent the company in an appropriate light?

David Rawlings, senior manager in Deloitte & Touche's Automotive Sector Group, will address such issues at the Fleet News Hit for Six Conference.

Maximising residual values

DEPRECIATION is the biggest element in the wholelife cost of company cars, so maximising the prices achieved when selling ex-fleet cars is arguably the most important element of fleet management.

Through his job as national research manager at used car market specialist CAP, Martin Ward has gained years of professional insight into this subject. A candid, entertaining, and highly informed columnist in Fleet News, Ward will be sharing his knowledge on how you can achieve the best possible prices for your ex-company vehicles. ##Manheim Auctions--right##

  • Sponsored by Manheim Auctions



    Health and safety

    AS an employer and fleet operator, where do your responsibilities towards at-work drivers start and stop? The truth and myth behind this issue will be addressed head-on by solicitor David Faithful, a partner with law firm Amery Parkes. ##Town and Country--right##

  • Sponsored by Town and Country Assistance

    Fleet hero

    Dug Brown, fleet executive at Somerfield, and the man in charge of Fleet News' 2002 UK Fleet of the Year, will share the secrets that have made him one of the most successful fleet managers in the country.

  • Sponsored by Mazda Business Partner

    Going green

    What is the environmental case in favour of LPG or CNG? This issue will be addressed at the conference by Malcolm Noyle, green fleet development manager for Lloyds TSB autolease. ##TransportAction--right##

  • Sponsored by the Energy Saving Trust

    ECO schemes

    ECO (employee car ownership) schemes are turning traditional fleet policies on their head by combining the benefit-in-kind tax advantages of offering an employee a cash allowance in lieu of a company car, while allowing the employer to maintain control of the fleet. It sounds too good to be true, and some industry specialists are issuing foreceful warnings about being beware of 'cheap imitations'.

    ECO schemes are not new, but the first wave of adopters were very large fleets prepared to take a tax-aggressive stance. Alastair Kendrick, director of PAYE and NI Solutions at Ernst & Young, will discuss the essential points to consider.

  • Book your place


    Call Sandra Evitt on 01733 468123 or print off and fill in the booking form (in pdf format) by clicking here.

    Once you've filled in the booking form fax it back on 01733 468346.

    'Hit for Six' is sponsored by Mazda

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