News - Page 2109

RADICAL new plans for corporate manslaughter charges to make employers more accountable for the safety of their employees on the road were left out of the Queen's Speech - but fleets are not 'off the hook'.

TWO of the leading associations that support the fleet industry this week threw their backing behind the Fleet Show and its new London location.

LEADING fleet bosses will be able to see Jaguar's new X-type saloon months before it reaches the showrooms next year. Fleet industry specialists and company chiefs are to be invited to attend secret briefing sessions on the Coventry firm's radical luxury baby model.

A NEW fleet tyre service that aims to shake-up the 'stale' fleet fast-fit sector is to be launched next spring, funded with £2 million from a major tyre industry backer. The new internet-based venture, called Tyreserve, is backed by Stapleton's Tyre Services, a UK wholesaler of car tyres that runs a 50-strong network of retail centres and is a subsidiary of the international Itochu corporation of Japan.

DEALER and contract hire group Caffyns has almost doubled pre-tax profits in the first half of 2000, boosted by the disposal of two branches.

THE first all-new Ford Mondeos have been delivered to start the manufacturer's biggest-ever fleet demonstrator programme, with 400 Mondeos on the road by the end of this year and 1,200 by early 2001.

Jaguar has stepped up its challenge in the compact prestige sector by introducing Sport versions of the S-type luxury saloon targetted at high-performance rivals like the BMW 5-series.

SPECIALIST motor industry solicitor Amery-Parkes has launched in conjunction with The Institute Of The Motor Industry a legal advice service for the IMI`s 29,000 members.

CREATIVE Training has teamed up with companies including MG Rover, BT Cellnet and Iveco Ford Truck on a £250,000 development of a new defensive driver training package.

GLASS'S Information Services has published the 2001 editions of ICME Repair Times and Services Schedules.

TRANSPORT minister, Keith Hill, has launched Minibus Management, a new book designed to help community groups manage their vehicles effectively and efficiently.

C H JONES has launched an online range of fuel management services for fleets through its new <A HREF="http://www.efuels.co.uk" target="_blank"> website</A>.

MITSUBISHI Motors has appointed two new dealers - Fairweather Mitsubishi in Dundee and Holdcroft Group in Stoke-on-Trent - taking the manufacturer's total of appointed dealers to 123, the highest level for five years.

SOUTH Gloucestershire Council is driving home the Government's Think! road safety campaign by displaying the logo on its 197-strong vehicle fleet.

THE final building blocks for the new CO2-based company car tax system are in place - and fleet managers must ensure they do everything possible to prepare their drivers for this new regime.

FIVE months of fleet sales decline ended in November with a 2.1% year-on-year increase in registrations, putting the sector back on track to top one million units for the fourth year in succession.

MG ROVER is aiming to live up to the name of its holding company, Phoenix, as it plans to rise from the ashes of its troubled history in 2001.

FLEET diesel sales increased 1.2% year-on-year in November - the fifth monthly increase this year - taking sales in the sector this year close to last year's 11-month tally.

A FLEET of almost 40 Audi TT Coupe quattros are to be supplied by the German manufacturer to Brands Hatch Leisure Group for use at the company's driving schools at Brands Hatch and Oulton Park.

INDEPENDENT car hire company LCH Car Rental is to provide a full range of courtesy vehicles to accident management service Town & Country.

VOSPERS Vehicle Contracts has granted a new contract to AA Business Services to provide a roadside repair and recovery service for its 2,000-strong fleet in the face of a stiff competition.

CERTIFICATED bailiff and debt-collection company Collect Services is swapping its vans for cars for its 35-strong road team because cars are less prone to damage than light commercials.

DRIVING Services has won the tender to supply National Driver Improvement Courses for drivers who are involved in accidents in North Yorkshire.

Sir Richard Branson has taken delivery of three new Honda ST1100 Pan Europeans for his Virgin Limobike service. The bikes are painted in new Virgin/Honda livery and were handed over by Mike Vallance, general manager of Honda UK's motorcycle division.

RENAULT has published a full price list for its new Laguna range, which will go on sale in the UK in February, targeting rivals from Ford, Vauxhall and Volkswagen. The announcement follows a 6% average price cut across its range in a flurry of activity by volume manufacturers to reduce prices.

CITROEN has revised the Xantia range following its price reduction, focusing on its best-selling models. There will be five models - Forte and LX versions of the 1.8i and 2.0HDi, with a range-topping 2.0HDi SX.

MITSUBISHI has introduced a special edition of the Galant based on the 2.0-litre version with leather trim, 16 in alloy wheels and a CD player.

TRIALS will soon begin on the prototypes of the super-luxury Mercedes-Benz Maybach saloon - which will become the world's ultimate luxury car.

MANUFACTURER price cuts are throwing fleet buying arrangements into disarray and have raised fears that some company cars could be sourced cheaper by individual retail customers and not through a bulk purchase.

PERRY Group has sold its vehicle rental subsidiary Perry Contract Hire to First National Vehicle Contracts for £1.3 million - and issued a profits warning. The decision was taken due to what Perrys described as the further deterioration of the used car market and profitability of new and used car sales.