Ryder completes purchase and lease back of Travis Perkins fleet

Ryder was able to complete the sale and lease back of Travis Perkins’ 600-plus fleet within 96 hours, when its vehicle supplier went into administration.

Group fleet director Graham Bellman told Commercial Fleet he turned to Ryder, an independent provider of commercial vehicle rental, contract hire, and maintenance services, to keep operations running smoothly.

Travis Perkins is one of the largest builders’ merchant group in the UK. It operates 620 vehicles from 20 locations across several Travis Perkins businesses, including Wickes, City Plumbing Supplies, and Travis Perkins itself.

It needed to secure a new service provider to minimise impact on its customer deliveries across the UK in the run up to a key trading period for the Wickes business.

"It was a hugely challenging time for us - and for Ryder,” said Bellman. However, within 48 hours of being contacted, Ryder had prepared and delivered a commercial proposal for 620 rigid trucks, tractor units, and trailers.

After 48 hours, all contracts had been signed, and more importantly, says Bellman, “there was no disruption to our operational business”.

He says that Ryder’s financial and operational capability were the key drivers that helped get the deal over the line.

"It became clear very quickly that Ryder was the only company that had the foresight and financial capacity to take on these assets,” he said.

“What we needed from our service provider was the right vehicles, competitively priced, and fully compliant with additional short-term rental support for seasonal peaks. Ryder delivered on all of these requirements when we needed them the most."

As the project lead for Ryder, finance director Stephen King explained: "This was an extremely complex negotiation due to the involvement of multiple vehicle funders.

“Ryder had to deliver on its promises to buy these vehicles and execute the deal quickly and confidently to support the operational commitments of Travis Perkins. With our financial standing and the full support of our US parent, we were able to do this like no other provider, and all without taking undue risk."

A team of 26 people at Ryder were involved in the deal. "To see the company kick in and make this happen was quite something," says John Robinson, Ryder’s director of fleet sales.

"The pace at which everyone was working on administering the deal - from the initial valuation of all 620 assets, through to pricing, our UK legal counsel approving all legal documents together with the Travis Perkins legal team within three days, and finally the actual purchase - was phenomenal."

Ryder has now started delivery of its own new trucks to Travis Perkins.

Photo caption (left to right): Graham Bellman, Travis Perkins, and John Robinson, Ryder.