News - Page 2300

REPAIR costs of mainstream fleet cars differ by more than £500, according to nationwide accident repair management organisation the Fleet Accident Repair Group. FARG analysed the average repair costs in 40,000 different cases over the past three years and found some cars were almost twice as expensive as others to repair.

USED car sales were stronger and more consistent in 1997 than the previous year, overcoming early fears of a residual value crash. Andrew Wilkinson, operations director of CAP Black Book, said that used car sales have held up well throughout the year, especially in the nearly-new sector.

FLEET operators investigating the feasibility of running alternatively-fuelled vehicles are having to grapple with the tough task of forecasting residual values. With no historical market in used 'green' vehicles, their residual values are unknown territory.

AN emerging new trend for importing luxury LCV-style vehicles from abroad is likely to prove costly for operators. CAP reports a growing demand for high-spec LCVs not only from sources in Ireland and Cyprus, but also directly from Japan.

LEASE Plan is the latest fleet management company to forge a partnership with a tyre distributor to add tyre management to its portfolio. The company has signed a three-year agreement with FTM to provide a full tyre management service with reporting provided by dedicated software.

HONDA has released details of the new Swindon-built Civic estate - due to arrive in the UK next May. Christened the Aero deck, the newcomer is the fifth Civic derivative and will be built alongside the Accord and Civic five-door models at Honda's Swindon plant.

BMW and SEAT have joined Vauxhall in deciding to attend the 1998 Fleet Motor Show after missing this year's event. Confirmation that the three manufacturers will attend the event at Donington from May 11-14 next year means 22 car manufacturers have booked so far. And the exhibitors will include Cadillac which, on a separate stand to Vauxhall, will allow fleet managers and fleet decision-makers to see the new luxury car marque which will go on sale in the UK around the time of the show.

FLEETS could be eligible for major VAT reimbursement following recent tribunals and court cases. The first of these is a mechanism for fleets to prove a car is bought purely for business purposes - and therefore reclaim VAT on its acquisition price - if they insure it only for business purposes. This argument has been successfully used by an accountant who insured company cars solely for business mileage, specifically excluding social, domestic and pleasure use, and none of the cars return to employees' homes in the evening.

COMPANIES considering a cash for car option for their employees should pay as much attention to the emotional values of a company car as to the financial arguments at stake. Addressing the relative benefits of funding a cash option through either full expense relief claims or the Fixed Profit Car Scheme, David Rawlings, senior manager with Deloitte & Touche's automotive sector group, advised fleets not to lose sight of the value employees place on a company car.

FLEETS could soon be paying for their fuel via a smart chip installed in their car with information downloaded by electronic data interchange or the Internet. Shell and other fuel suppliers are actively involved in the hi-tech revolution and while Tim Betts, manager of Shell Fuel and Fleet Services, admitted the technology was already available the costly infrastructure had still to be established.

THE Government must lead the fleet drive towards gas-powered vehicles, according to Tim Betts, manager of Shell Fuel and Fleet Services. With 85% of the cost of a litre or gallon of petrol or diesel being taken by the Government in tax, Betts said: 'Alternative fuel is in the hands of the Government more than it is in the hands of the oil companies. Uptake will be driven by the Government moving tax duties from one fuel to another to persuade industry to move towards another type of fuel. They have done that with both diesel and liquefied petroleum gas in the past.'

FLEETS are still awaiting a final ruling in the massive VAT claims brought by Allied Domecq, TC Harrison and RoyScot Leasing against Customs & Excise. The case concerns the right of companies to recover VAT on cars bought for business purposes, a right extended to leasing companies for the cars they buy to lease to customers since August 1995.

FLEETS could cut operating costs by up to 35% if they tightened fuel purchasing controls and acted on management information. That was the claim of Tim Betts, manager of Shell Fuel and Fleet Services, who said he was surprised at findings in the recently Tolley Swan National Survey of Company Car Schemes 1997/8 which showed that just 12% of fleets checked fuel used against expense claims and only 2% of fleets used information supplied by fuel card companies.

FLEETS should prepare themselves for announcements of changes to company car tax in next March's Budget, according to Alison Chapman, tax partner at Deloitte & Touche. She said next spring would be the logical time for any policy changes to be unveiled, given the lead times for any new legislation to come into effect, and the Government's explicit desire to see an integrated transport strategy play an important role in helping it to meet its environmental commitments.

FLEETS have been tricked out of hundreds of pounds after receiving bogus speeding tickets claiming their company-liveried vans have been caught by roadside cameras. The Metropolitan Police has urged companies to be on their guard against receiving the full colour tickets which tell the recipient they have been caught by a speed camera and to pay a £130 fine to avoid being taken to court.

PHH Vehicle Management Services' accident management division has topped the 100,000 vehicle mark, thanks to a new deal covering Northern Electric's fleet of 2,200 cars and vans. Northern Electric joins three fellow electricity companies - East Midlands Electricity Board, Yorkshire Electricity and Seeboard - with vehicles on PHH's books.

HUMBERSIDE Constabulary has taken delivery of 20 LPG-powered Proton Personas as part of extensive trials which could see the majority of its fleet switching to gas power. The fully liveried vehicles will be used as general purpose patrol cars covering around 25,000 miles a year and are expected to receive part-funding under the Government's Powershift programme.

NEW evidence proving that some franchised dealerships are pre-registering cars to meet sales targets has been uncovered. Vehicle pre-registration and so-called 'false sales' have been among the most contentious issues facing the UK motor industry in recent years, and a practice strongly denied by UK car makers. Barely a month passes without at least one manufacturer dealer network being falsely accused of massaging new car figures to hit sales bonuses.

NATIONAL pub, restaurant and hotel group Greenall has taken delivery of 16 Peugeot 306 estates for its technical service department. Department engineers install and maintain dispensing and cellar cooling equipment at 2,300 locations across the country. The vehicles were supplied to Warrington-based Greenall through local Peugeot dealer Halls of Warrington.

OUTSOURCING specialist ITNET has decided to outsource the running of its own 270-vehicle fleet to Fleet Cost Management. ITNET's in-house fleet team remains in place, handling fleet management for many of its customers. However, from now on FCM will handle all acquisition, maintenance, and accident management for ITNET's own fleet, which operates from 13 offices across the UK.

JAGUAR has restructured its corporate sales and service department in preparation for the future expansion of its product range and to further increase its share of the UK business market. Christine Downton has been appointed manager - corporate operations to head up the new department.

FLEET operators could risk heavy fines if they fail to observe new Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency rules on the registered ownership of vehicles. New regulations designed to clamp down on road tax evasion come into effect in January and fleet operators and leasing companies who fail to comply face fines of up to £1,000.

PHH Vehicle Management Services could face a challenge to its takeover of Harpur UK's fuel card operations as unease about the deal spreads through the fleet industry. At least one major player is believed to be considering making representations to the Office of Fair Trading and several others have privately expressed disquiet after the acquisition was announced last week.

AMBITIOUS USA-backed auction group CMA/ICA has bought BRS Car Auctions after months of speculation. BRS Car Auctions last month denied industry rumours that it was a takeover target for the acquisitive auction group after closing its Stoke auction centre, but the deal was finalised this week.

PARCEL delivery company DHL is planning to convert its 900-strong diesel van fleet to run on liquefied petroleum gas - the largest move of its kind yet seen by the fleet industry. So far the delivery company has converted five Ford Transits to run on LPG supplied by Shell. If this initial step proves successful its remaining vans will gradually be replaced with petrol models which can then be converted in a £1.4 million project.

LAST-minute bookings for the 1997 Fleet News Roadshow can still be made. The first Fleet News Roadshow was held on Tuesday (December 2) at Sopwell House, St Albans and the second Roadshow is at The Donington Thistle Hotel, East Midlands Airport next Tuesday (December 9).

COMPETITION for a share of the £26 billion UK used car market is set to intensify as new players enter the market. Giant car supermarket sites have established a firm foothold in the second-hand car market, and they will increasingly be challenged by dealerships which have lost their franchises, according to 'The Used Car Market - A 1997 Report', compiled by British Car Auctions and Sewells International.

THE used car market is moving from a 'hard sell' environment to a softer approach where customers shop for cars, according to 'The Used Car Market - A 1997 Report', compiled by British Car Auctions and Sewells International. This development presents new challenges for fleet operators looking to maximise residual values, with buyers of secondhand cars demanding well maintained vehicles with warrantied mileages, and comprehensive service histories.

DORSET-based Vauxhall dealer Tice and neighbouring company Hamworthy have renewed their fleet deal for up to 200 cars. The Poole-based companies have signed a new three-year solus badge deal after the dealership first won a similar contract three years ago. The deal is part of a national arrangement between Vauxhall and Hamworthy's parent company, engineering giant Powell Duffryn.

GOVERNMENT Car Services costs were £7.6 million in 1996-97, according to a Parliamentary written answer from chief executive Nick Matheson. The organisation operates a 176-strong fleet of cars and a further 63 vehicles, largely Ford Transit vans, which it uses to transport Government ministers and VIPs and has an inter-building courier service which operates nationwide.