Europcar grows zero-emission collection and delivery fleet

Europcar has increased the use of zero-emissions vehicles for its delivery and collection service.

It has deployed 25 MG4 electric hatchbacks across the company’s branch network to be used exclusively as ‘runners’ supporting the delivery and collection of vehicles for customers.

The investment supports Europcar’s target to achieve 25% of all delivery and collection miles in electric vehicles (EVs) to further reduce its overall environmental impact.

“Europcar data for 2023 underlined our commitment to help our customers make an environmental difference,” explained Tom Middleditch, head of electric mobility at Europcar.

“50,000 more EV rental days were taken in 2023 compared to 2022, covering 3.5 million EV miles. And the MG4, which we brought onto our fleet at the start of last year, proved to be a great fit for many customers.

“It is also the ideal model to support our goal to reduce emissions in our own operations, with its long range and advanced driver tech. It, therefore, made sense to invest in 25 more MG4s for our delivery and collection runners, used alongside other makes and models as well as the electric bikes that support the service.”

Since March 2023 Europcar has doubled the number of dedicated electric runner vehicles on its internal fleet, including the latest addition of 25 MG4s.

In February, a third (33.6%) of all Europcar delivery and collection mileage was completed in an EV, the highest proportion to date, and ahead of the 2024 target of 25%.

By the end of the first quarter, the Europcar delivery and collection team had completed 280,000 EV runner miles - a 28% increase on 2023.

“The Europcar business has taken a number of steps in the last 12 months to reduce our impact on the environment, from applying connected technology to almost 100% of our fleet to know when vehicles are ready to collect, to achieving 77% EV usage amongst our own company car drivers,” said Kevin Rand, UK operations director at Europcar.

“Significantly increasing the number of electric runners on our fleet means our own drivers have become real EV champions, fully engaged in our goal to reduce emissions.”