News - Page 1816

THE DfT has commissioned a report about how to shift workplace health and safety on to the road. We present the key points.

AS the holiday season looms, many company car drivers remain unaware of the steps they have to take when motoring abroad.

IN life, if something is labelled as 'free' there is usually a catch. Buy one, get one free often means an over-priced product and 'free' holiday vouchers could mean you get to the Caribbean – but during the monsoon season and staying on a building site.

BP and Total have formed a partnership with their fuel card operations, claiming the joint venture will give fleets the largest network of forecourts in the UK.

LESS than 50% of all European fleets provide their drivers with a fuel card – the rest opt for the pay-and-reclaim method.

ELECTRONIC payment pads are springing up everywhere, removing the need for an old-fashioned signature. Supermarkets, off-licences and petrol forecourts are all becoming the latest sites to offer this new technology.

THE latest designed to make the fleet manager's role easier.

Launch dates for key fleet models.

FORD'S easily-navigated site is packed with options, from a 'build your own' section which allows users to choose a selection of Ford models and build them, virtually, from the ground up, to a shareholders' section which provides the user with useful investor information.

The latest appointments in the fleet industry.

A SOUTHERN utilities company has increased its fleet of Mercedes-Benz Sprinters after its drivers rated the vehicle highly. <p></p>

MOTOR company the Benfield Motor Group has launched a £2 million dedicated Volkswagen Van Centre in Newcastle. <p></p>

MOTORPOINT says CV sales now represent over 50 per cent of the market and CV supermarkets are directly mirroring the national trend in the growth of commercial vehicle sales. <p></p>

VOLKSWAGEN has announced changes to its UK senior management team. <p></p>

VAUXHALL is introducing a new derivative to the Vivaro van range, the Doublecab from the end of August.

RENAULT is set to beef up the heavy end of its light commercial vehicle range with the launch in September of a new rear-wheel drive Master panel van. <p></p>

RENAULT has also launched a double cab version of the Trafic light panel van following its debut at the CV Show in March. <p></p>

ISUZU and Subaru dealers will be taking part in a new rental scheme in which fleets can hire vehicles such as the Isuzu Rodeo pickup truck.

BODY builder JC Payne has launched a new range of tipper bodies for 3.5 to 7.5-tonne vehicles, with optional new side panels which can be replaced to help increase residual values at selling time.

TOYOTA has launched a new flagship HiLux called the Invincible. <p></p>

NORTHGATE has strengthened its UK market position with the acquisition of Aim Hire, a privately-run company based in Huntingdon and serving East Anglia.

A HEAD-to-head battle between the Vauxhall Vivaro and Volkswagen Transporter ended with Coca-Cola Enterprises awarding a £3 million contract to Vauxhall. <p></p>

BCA’s UK Business Development Manager - Commercial Vehicles, Duncan Ward reports from the auction halls at BCA.

WHILE buyers continue to be attracted to any van in clean condition – there is noticeable demand for high-powered examples, even in short-wheel-base form. <p></p>

USED van buyers are being warned not to expect too high a price for their vehicles. <p></p>

THE auction market is following the usual summer trends, with vehicle prices levelling out, marking a temporary end to the ‘silly season.’ <p></p>

THIS is a retail vehicle – what are you doing testing it?’ I can hear the cries now as this issue of Fleet Van lands on the desks of Britain’s van fleet operators. And to a certain extent they may be right.

IN the fourth of his series of articles from the Lex Rough Guide to Vans 2004, Peter McSean looks at van security <p></p>

DESPITE the huge advances in computer technology, around 14,000 UK van fleet operators still run their organisations on the back of a carton of Benson and Hedges. Fleet Van editor Trevor Gelken takes on the role of technophobe Arthur Awkward in a bid to show these ill-informed individuals the error of their ways. <p></p>

THE arrival of a brand new van is a fairly rare occurrence nowadays – most are facelifts or upgrades. But the launch of a new marque into the commercial vehicle sector is rarer still – and certainly worth celebrating.