Peter Soliman, chief executive of Fleet Logistics, said actions taken to reduce costs particularly among larger companies operating across Europe will not be temporary measures and will become part of normal operating in the future.
“Cutting back on CO2 output and creating policies that have a cap on CO2 help cost reduction,” he said. “These things also look good to the outside world.
“Companies are also putting more responsibilities on drivers to contribute towards the insurance excess on accidents, for example.
“And initiatives around centralizing sourcing for all of Europe have now become the accepted approach over the last few years.”
Fleet Logistics, which marks 15 years in business this year, has seen its own operations increase tenfold during the last four years as companies have signed up to its services in an effort to make savings.
The organisation claims its customers are able to take advantage of pan-European deals made possible by its presence in multiple markets, as well as its experience in benchmarking costs and exploiting contacts and expertise.
He said: “Clearly some leasing companies have tried to increase prices during the recession. One fleet faced a £700,000 charge for increased mileage. As we are able to benchmark and have knowledge across several markets we were able to negotiate that down on the company’s behalf to £500,000.
“Also we recently had a case of an Audi Q7 being ordered by a fleet and the member of staff it was ordered for leaving the company within a few months.
“The company faced a €10,000 (£9,000) early termination charge, but we were able to find another fleet to place the car with, so it was a win-win situation.”
Meanwhile Soliman also said increased professionalism and higher standards have also led to greater awareness of costs and how they may be reduced.
“Across global markets we have seen a massive increase in professionalism of people leasing with these subjects, and even in the last three or four years the quality of people in the industry has increased dramatically.
“It used to be based more on relationships between people across businesses, but now it’s much more about what people can deliver for the bottom line.”
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