This week’s roundup of fleet news.
VW Ireland – success of finance can boost the
nation
Go deeper with GlobalData
The head of Volkswagen in Ireland has called
for greater government support of the automotive industry and said
vehicle finance can help boost the sector and the country’s ailing
economy.
Writing in the Irish Independent,
Simon Elliot, chief executive of Volkswagen Ireland, said vehicles
sales are an important barometer for the economy and pointed
especially to commercial vehicle fleets. In particular, renewal in
the commercial vehicle leasing sector is vital to economic
stimulation.
“Vans are needed for small, medium and large
business use, and if they are changing their vans there is a good
chance that the business is doing okay. So I tend not to look at
the car sales statistics as my barometer for the economy, but van
and commercial vehicle numbers,” he said.
Referring to the automotive sector generally,
Elliot said the industry was “burdened by red tape, protocol,
taxation” and called the Irish government to help motivate and
support to consumers to help the market grow.
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By GlobalDataElliot pointed to the UK’s twice-yearly
registration dates and called for a similar scheme in Ireland,
which currently has one annual registration date on 1 January. He
also called on the Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT) to be
scrapped.
“We need two registration peaks in Ireland,
not one, to stimulate demand not once but twice a year. In doing
so, this takes pressure off stock holding and marketing costs for
the manufacturers and dealers alike. We need a root and branch look
at the VRT system. In my opinion, it should be scrapped,” he
said.
According to Elliot, one of the reasons for
Volkswagen’s success in Ireland had been the group’s finance
products offered through its captive finance arm, which he said
lent €100m last year, and called on greater finance choice for
consumers.
“There is little doubt that the automotive
industry gives people a release, a dream, so let’s try and help
those dreams become a reality. The first obstacle is often
finance,” he said.
UK insurer launches
SME product
Equity Red Star, the underwriting arm of
specialist motor insurer Equity Insurance Group, is offering a new
mini-fleet product aimed at companies operating between two and 10
vehicles.
Called SME Protect, the product will have its
own wording and rating but work alongside Equity’s existing
Fleetsure policy, which is also having its policy wording widened
with the need for additional endorsements reduced.
Mark Bacon, active underwriter at Equity Red
Star, said: “As a small business owner you will have the ability to
insure all your vehicles under one policy which gives the benefit
of blanket certificates, one overall fleet rated premium and wider
policy cover.”
Both policies will be supported by dedicated
teams in Swansea and Brentwood, fleet management and vehicle
insurance packs to help deal with the claims process, and
Equitracks Telematics’ black box and in-vehicle camera
technology.
UK fleets consider
dangers
Risk is at the forefront of UK fleet managers’
minds at the moment with research published by road safety charity
Brake on the use of agency drivers, and an industry seminar on risk
management.
Responding to the statistic that 42% of UK
companies use temporary staff as drivers, who are more likely to be
involved in collisions, The Fleet Safety Forum, a division of
Brake, has published guidance on its subscription service
minimising such risks.
Guidance for fleet management includes working
with driver agencies, safe driving and vehicle-checking policies,
and a best practice case study for fleet operators.
Meanwhile, the Risk Management Seminar, run by
repair and claims company Total Accident Management, will include
advice on company fleet law, particularly following the Corporate
Manslaughter Act, which has expanded to include employees driving
their own vehicles for business purposes.
The seminar is scheduled for 6 July at the BMW
Group Plant in Oxford and will be addressed by Nigel Grainger,
senior consultant at Fleet Risk Consultants and Ross Burrows,
barrister-at-law at Motor Law Expert.
grant.collinson@vrlfinancialnews.com
richard.brown@vrlfinancialnews.com
