CONTRACT hire outperformed all other acquisition methods in 1997, with its share of company car acquisitions rising by 9.1% and its share of the overall company car fleet growing 6.4%. MarketLine International reports that while outright purchase remained the most popular acquisition method, its overall share of the company car fleet declined for the second year running in 1997, falling to 52.8%.

The contract hired share, meanwhile, rose to 41.9% as more and more companies took advantage of the flexibility and value added services offered by contract hire companies. Contract hire accounted for the majority of company car acquisitions for companies running 50 or more cars, and was the leading acquisition method in the 51 to 100 car segment with a market share of 54%.