Advertisement Feature: Rolling out the red carpet for smaller fleets

Advertisement feature from Alphabet

Companies with small and medium fleets deserve the same service and support as large car and van operators, says Alphabet

Whatever the size of the organisation behind a small or medium fleet, they deserve the same support and red carpet treatment from leasing suppliers as major fleet operators, according to Alphabet, one of the UK’s largest leasing and fleet management specialists.

Businesses with fewer than 100 vehicles account for the vast majority of the UK’s total fleet population, yet larger leasing companies have typically served this sector of the market at one step removed via brokers.

Alphabet, however, has decided to diversify its approach to the market, investing to scale up its direct business for small and medium fleets, alongside its well-established large fleet offering.

“The number of businesses with smaller fleets continues to grow, however fleet managers are facing increasing pressure,” said Stuart Cunningham, general manager direct sales, Alphabet. “Organisations are navigating an uncertain and complex landscape, and as businesses evolve and priorities change, so do their requirements for vehicles.”

The responsibility for managing these requirements, however, is rarely a full-time position for these companies. Instead, fleet management is often an additional, and sometimes unwanted, part of a much bigger HR, finance or general management role.

“Nearly all (98%) small and medium fleet managers are juggling fleet responsibilities on top of an already busy ‘day job’,” said Cunningham.

“Managing a fleet comes with its own unique challenges and it can be a stretch on existing roles within the business, meaning time to review and address changing fleet needs may be limited. That’s why we want to make the process of fleet management as easy and stress-free as possible, particularly for organisations that don’t have the benefit of a full-time fleet manager.”

Rather than replacing brokers, he described Alphabet’s approach as complementing them, bringing with it access to a wider range of products and services, including consultancy, expert advice and driver support throughout the life of a vehicle. Cars and vans sourced through brokers are generally acquired on a vehicle-by-vehicle basis, with the focus on the price of a lease rental, rather than a longer term wholelife cost perspective that assesses the most cost-effective way to meet the transport and travel needs of each individual business.

“We can analyse fleet make up and requirements, offer a wide range of funding, rental and in-life solutions to choose from, and explain the latest taxation, legislation, vehicle, mobility solutions and EV charging developments,” said Cunningham.

By freeing capital to invest in the core business, leasing typically makes sound strategic sense, but there is still considerable scope for flexibility within contracts, rather than blindly accepting the benchmark three-year holding period.

Alphabet offers terms ranging from one-year to five, allowing businesses to limit their long-term commitments or amortise depreciation over a longer timeframe to reduce monthly rentals.

In addition, its personal contract hire and salary sacrifice schemes bring the HR benefits enjoyed by employees working for larger corporates to smaller businesses, delivering an attractive solution to the duty-of-care perils that employers face when staff drive their own cars for business.

“Private vehicle or ‘grey fleet’ responsibilities are often overlooked and many businesses still aren’t aware that the same legal duty of care obligations apply to private vehicles when they’re being used for business travel,” said Cunningham.

“Non-compliance can have significant financial, legal and reputational consequences, so it’s critical employers have appropriate policies and measures in place, including licence, insurance, and MOT checks to protect their business, employees and other road users.”

Alternatively, companies could find that the most cost-effective and flexible car and van solution is to rent, not lease, vehicles, scaling up their fleets only for periods of peak demand, or keeping workers mobile while on probation or fixed-term contracts, without the long-term commitment of a lease.

Alphabet’s rental team is available 24/7, giving customers access to a wide range of vehicles in as little as two working hours.

Even keeping vehicles on the road day-to-day can be stressful, requiring authorisations for service and maintenance work, not all of it budgeted, followed by the nuisance of dealing with invoices from multiple garages.

“We can also help save time and expense when it comes to organising maintenance solutions for their fleet thanks to our nationwide service, maintenance and repair network,” said Cunningham.

“And for those with light commercial vehicles (LCVs), we offer additional specialist maintenance and repair options as well as access to our LCV Conversion Partner Network who can take care of everything from designing branded vehicle livery to fitting bespoke racking.”

With the economy heading into uncertain times as energy prices drive inflation skywards, cost is never far away from the decision-making process, and there’s no escaping the fact that company cars, fuel and rental vehicles are typically the biggest cost in an organisation’s travel budget and a significant general overhead.

This is where external consultancy can really help fleet managers, analysing operational and employee needs and identifying areas where efficiencies are possible.

“This might include re-evaluating existing funding methods, improving fleet utilisation to reduce downtime, and reviewing fleet policies and vehicle selection while taking total cost of ownership (TCO) into consideration,” said Cunningham.

“Moving to a TCO approach can provide greater clarity and understanding of the true cost of running a fleet by factoring in things like fuel, tax, accident and maintenance spend on top of vehicle cost so fleet managers can make more informed decisions.”

A TCO approach is vital for under-standing the economics of operating electric vehicles, with grants, tax breaks, National Insurance savings and lower ‘fuel’ costs all combining to offset the higher acquisition or lease cost of EVs.

But, while going green might be the right thing to do for both the business and the environment, the practical steps of transitioning to EVs, including the development of a charging strategy, can be a daunting prospect.

This is an area where fleets of all sizes are benefiting from working with an expert to smooth the switch to ultra-low and zero emission vehicles, as the clock ticks down to 2030 and the end of the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles.

“Our consultants can ease the pressure by working with customers to analyse their current fleet and operational requirements to assess the suitability and cost associations for introducing EVs, as well as helping to define business goals, strategies, and fleet policies,” said Cunningham.

“We also work with an experienced charging solution partner to provide our customers with access to innovative charging solutions at home, in the workplace, and on-the-go to make the switch to zero emission vehicles as easy as possible.”

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