International fleet management company Masterlease claims it has become the first vehicle leasing organisation to introduce a global residual value calculator.

Due to the difficulty of keeping tabs on residual value fluctuations across the 15 international territories it operates in, Masterlease has installed a forecasting system that predicts how vehicles will fare in the wake of global, local and macro economic data and factors as well as cultural differences.

Developed by UK-based AutoFutura, Masterlease hopes the system will bring greater protection for its 200,000-strong worldwide fleet.

Dean Bowkett, head of group pricing and asset risk at Masterlease, said: ‘For every 1% difference, which some companies do have, we would be looking at wiping several million euros off the value of just one territory’s car parc and tens of millions across the rest of the territories in which we operate.

‘This technology means that we can track trends and be clever and proactive with our remarketing strategy across the world. If particular cars have a higher RV in one territory, we can make sure we can be smart and make use of that strength to bolster our remarketing performance.’