Government changes to taxation of vehicles could alter the entire fleet market set up, said Caroline Sandall, deputy chair of the Association of Car Fleet Operators (ACFO).
Vehicle taxation plans will be linked to emissions, and there are number of ways that can be addressed by government, Sandall said. There are also changes underway in the emissions testing, with Real Driving Emissions on-road testing being rolled out later this year.
“It is an acutely difficult time. It is probably the most challenging time in the company car business in 20 years,” said Sandall. “When you are planning fleet you are planning on a three to five year cycle. Yet, we don’t really know what they are going to be doing in three or five years, and that is not good for business.” ACFO is pressing government for clarity to enable the industry to plan.
The growing number of procurement professionals who now manage the company fleet must stay on top of what is going on, she said. You need to be careful that if you have a small list of specific company vehicles that are then targeted by government to vastly increase the tax, you could find the company or employees are suddenly paying much more tax and are very unhappy, she pointed out.
