All articles by Girish Gupta
Girish Gupta
The hidden perils of grey fleet
Girish Gupta reports on the real cost of grey fleet to the public and private sector. With employees enjoying the convenience of using their own car and claiming back the costs, a so-called grey fleet solution can appeal to companies Primarily, it frees them from the need to acquire or lease vehicles, and appears to have little legal responsibility attached.
New car finance up 15% in May
New car finance rose 15% by volume in May compared to the same period last year, with more than half of all buyers using dealer finance, according to figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) Paul Harrison, head of motor finance at the FLA, said: “Dealers offering value-for-money deals has meant that the amount of dealer finance provided to consumers for new cars has grown by a fifth in the last 12 months compared with the previous 12-month period.”
The true cost of company cars
The true cost of operating a fleet is being overlooked as 44 percentof businesses use maximum monthly rental as the criteria for calculating the cost of company cars. Gary Killeen, GE Capitals UK fleet commercial leader, said: Without taking into account all the extra costs in operating a fleet, such as vehicle insurance, national insurance costs and the impact of corporation tax, managers can find they are in for a nasty surprise at the end of the financial year.
FLA launches website for car buyers
A new Dealer Directory has been set up by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) to help car buyers find their way through the many finance options available. The website, www.financingyourcar.org.uk,gives full contact details for the 500 car dealerships approved by Specialist Automotive Finance (SAF), launched by the FLA in 2007 with an aim of raising consumer awareness of finance sold in dealerships by raising standards and improving skills amongst staff.
Raise VAT recovery rate, says BVRLA
The British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA) has called for the current VAT recovery rate of 50 percenton leased fleets to be raised, and has accused HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) of ignoring its advice.
Subscribe to our Newsletter
Get industry leading news, data and analysis delivered to your inbox
New car finance up 15%
Car finance on new cars increased 15 percent by volume in May compared to the same period last year, with more than half of all buyers using dealer finance, according to figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA).