FLEETS could lose out on thousands of pounds worth of Government cash to help pay for green vehicles if they choose the wrong conversion after a radical shake-up in the grants system at Powershift, which promotes the use of alternative fuels. From this month, Powershift is ditching its 'leap of faith' approach to handing out grants for alternatively-fuelled vehicles or conversions.

It found that sub-standard conversions used by some companies were producing no tangible benefits over traditionally-powered vehicles apart from lower fuel costs, but users were still eligible for thousands of pounds in grants.

From next month, Powershift will target cash at the greenest of the green vehicles, using its first Powershift Register as a guidepost to the best 'green' converters and manufacturers in the country. The size of the grant will be determined by how clean the fuel conversion is, using four tiers up to a maximum limit of 75% of the cost of the conversion. The present top limit is 50%.

Companies which apply for inclusion in the register will be graded on three selection criteria. The first is to ensure the financial security of the company is sound. The second determines the level of experience the company has in clean fuel technology and that staff employed in manufacturing, servicing or converting CFVs are properly trained. The third stage is specific information on safety and emissions for each model they produce.