“That’s why we don’t find the ACFO research out of the ordinary in any way – if anything it’s hugely encouraging that such a high percentage of fleet managers are actively looking at it.”

Leasedrive Velo, which has just launched an Essential Guide to Car Salary Sacrifice Schemes agrees that the schemes are predominately HR rather than fleet driven.

"Take-up of salary sacrifice schemes for cars has been slower than it ought to be,” said Roddy Graham, commercial director at Leasedrive Velo, who blames poor take up on HR departments.

“In many cases, they have not taken the time to fully understand the ins and outs of salary sacrifice or, when convinced, properly develop an implementation plan and clearly communicate the benefits of the company car as a benefit under salary sacrifice.”

Given that the company car is one of the most valuable, high profile Leasedrive Velo’s guide concludes that salary sacrifice provides a “creative way to enhance the total remuneration package in the eyes of the employee at no additional cost to the employer and as a tax-efficient scheme for the employee, saving them both money”.

ACFO membership secretary and director Stewart Whyte said: “We know that many ACFO members have seen merit in a salary sacrifice-type arrangement, as an extension to the range of employee benefits on offer.

“Some have also seen this as a complete alternative to the use of more traditional fleet operating methods. This range is a major feature of the depth of experience across ACFO and the diversity of demand forms across the membership.”

However, he stressed that there is no single solution that suits all scenarios and so fleet operators must research all the options available.