Lex Autolease, the fleet finance arm of Lloyds bank, saw a 29% year-on-year rise in the number of vehicles it leased to small firms in 2014.
The company witnessed an increase of 110% in van leasing by small businesses in 2014 compared to the previous year, while the number of company cars leased by these firms grew by 21% over the same period.
According to the company, the increase in vehicle leasing indicated that SMEs were increasingly looking to streamline their operations and cut overheads by limiting the number of depreciating assets on their balance sheets.
Simon Barter, head of SME Direct at Lex Autolease, said: "The UK’s nimble SME sector is focused on streamlining and operating more efficiently, and as many small companies shifted their business plans to expansion last year, they started looking at new, innovative ways of restructuring their operations.
"Company vehicles was one such area, and the sharp growth we’ve seen shows that increasing numbers of small businesses are seeing the benefits of leasing in delivering key, sustainable changes to their vehicle management that both streamline their operations and reduce costs."
The most popular colour of cars for SMEs was black, with the number of black cars leased rising by 39.3% year-on-year in 2014. White remained the second colour of choice, but this only rose 13% year-on-year in comparison.
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