North Yorks salary sacrifice scheme rated a ‘huge success’

North Yorkshire County Council has rated its Green Car Salary Sacrifice Scheme a ‘huge success’ after its first 12 months in which time some 250 employees have had new cars delivered, saving approximately £1,000 per car, while total carbon emissions have fallen dramatically across the fleet.

Its three-year solus agreement with Tusker was believed to be the first of its kind in the public sector when it went live from April last year and it was announced that it would be available to around 30,000 public sector employees as part of their flexible benefits package.

It is part of the council’s Everybody Benefits flexible benefits package which is open to all staff, and only allows vehicles with carbon emissions of less than 120g/km, in line with the council’s environmental policy.

In the first 12 months of its operation, 250 staff have had new cars delivered, costing on average £1,000 per vehicle per year less than under a comparable personal contract purchase (PCP) scheme, while more cars continue to be ordered and delivered on a daily basis.

This equates to a £250,000 saving in capital costs total per year for all those who have participated in the scheme, while scheme users have also saved an average of £500 per year each in fuel costs and an average of 50g/km of carbon dioxide for each replaced car.

North Yorkshire County Council benefits and reward consultant John Robinson said: “The scheme has been a huge success, enabling employees to make savings in income tax, national insurance contributions and pension, if applicable, by having the cost of the car deducted from salary before statutory deductions.

“Early termination insurance, paid for as part of the monthly costs, further ensures that the scheme is an attractive alternative to purchasing or a PCP.”

The reach of the agreement extends beyond North Yorkshire, however, as under the terms of a Pan Government Collaborative Framework Agreement, Tusker’s salary sacrifice car scheme, SS4C, is available for use by all UK contracting public sector authorities, including Government departments, non-departmental public bodies, the NHS, local authorities, police authorities and emergency services.

“In addition, a number of other local authorities, including Northumberland County Council and Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council, have also taken advantage of our agreement with Tusker which further endorses the popularity of salary sacrifice car schemes throughout the public sector,” said Robinson.