FLEETS could wipe thousands of pounds from fuel bills by getting non-essential car users to abandon their company vehicles and take up personal motoring schemes. Drivers would feel less pressure to hike up their driving time to qualify for tax breaks as they would no longer be paying company car tax, according to Roger Ashman, director of sales in the financial services division of PHH Vehicle Management.

This would be reinforced, he said, by drivers' personal liability for any excess mileage penalties on their personal motoring scheme contract. The danger, however, is that some drivers will find an incentive to clock up extra business miles to maximise their mileage allowance in order to finance their personal motoring schemes.

But Ashman said: 'Because drivers would own the car through a PCP scheme, they would want to protect the equity invested in the vehicle. They would consider other options when looking at business travel to keep their car mileage down. They might take the train to London, rather than drive, because they would not be trying to increase their business mileage to a certain level.'