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BY DANIEL ATTWOOD
 As many as one-third of grey fleet drivers who lease cars without maintenance cover are failing to have vital safety work carriedout. The findings follow on-site inspections of almost 6,000 cars – both company and private– being used for business.“If non-essential service and repair costsare not covered by the allowance, our evidence shows that cars are neglected,”said Simon Hill, of fleet consultants TotalMotion. “We estimate that around a third of drivers surveyed were in this position.” The problem stems from drivers beingtempted to take non-maintenance contractsprovided by brokers when they are not enti-tled to a company car or have chosen to opt out and take cash. The difference between a contract withfull maintenance cover and one without istypically around £60 to £80 per month. By opting for a non-maintenance contract, anemployee can easily upgrade from a FordMondeo to a BMW 3 Series. A fully-maintained Mondeo 2.0-litre dieselestate from one internet broker costs £491 a month on a 36-month/60,000-mile contract. The same company offers a BMW 320d Touring for £474 a month on a non-main-tained contract.“But when a driver discovers that new tyres on a prestige car cost £250 each andbrake discs can add another few hundredpounds, they find they can’t afford the work,”said Mr Hill. “It is the brokers that are creat-ing this problem. If a driver has £300 a month, he should be sold a fully maintainedcontract, but then he is told he can afford a prestige brand, but what he is not told is theadditional maintenance costs he faces.”Mark Sherry, of internet broker Car Partner Fleet Solutions, which advertises allits vehicles with non-maintained contracts,said the industry was becoming aware of theissue. “This is definitely a problem,” he said“We find that employees of small companiesgenerally take non-maintained contracts. They are more price sensitive.”Mr Sherry says he now advises anyonedriving more than 20,000 miles a year to takea contract with maintenance cover included.However, the decision lies with the employee.“And they often don’t think about the main-tenance costs,” he said. ACFO chairman Julie Jenner said morestringent checks or a move back to company cars were the only answers.“ACFO has always recommended that fleet operators ensure that service recordsand MoT certificates, where required, areprovided to the company – and on a regular basis,” she said.“In reality, though, I am not sure that thishappens as it can be an administrationburden where companies have a largenumber of opt-outs. Of course, this problemdoesn’t arise when company cars aretaken.”
Roadworksrage
Reader questionsHighways Agency policy 
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GreenerPorsche
Cayenne getsless thirsty 
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NEWSP5DAILY RENTALP17CAREERSP19
 
Police trials of electric one-persontransporters like theSegway (
 pictured left 
)as an environmen-tally-friendly replace-ment for patrol cars,are receiving mixedreactions.
Low-carboncars like thediesel-power-ed Volks- wagen PoloBlueMotion( 
 pictured 
 ) are gradually being introducedby rental companies but there areeconomic reasons why progress is slow.
Getting drivers tocomplete paperwork is a constant battle for Katy Warren, fleet administrator  for Cancer ResearchUK. Find out moreabout her in our Fleet CV column.
Win a sat-navsystem worth£500
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COMPETITION
FleetNews
Business motoring strategy and finance
10.01.08£2.25fleetnews.co.uk
 H E L P I N G  Y O U  R  U N  A  
 C H E A P E R   C L E A N E R   S A F E R  
 F L E E T
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Fleet alert over‘neglected’ cars
Phone useincreasesroad delays
 The argument for banning employ-ees from using hands-free phones while driving is gathering momen-tum after new research proved that motorists on mobile phonescontribute to traffic congestionbecause they drive more slowly. The research found that motoriststalking on mobile phones whiledriving on dual carriageways andmotorways were slower and lesslikely to overtake.“The average person’s commuteis longer because of that person who is on the phone in front of them,” said University of Utahpsychology professor Dave Strayer.“If you talk on the phone whiledriving, it’s going to take you longer to get from A to B, and slows downeverybody else on the road,”explained researcher Joel Cooper, a doctoral student in psychology. The findings back previousresearch that using a hands-freephone is as dangerous while driving as using a hand-held phonebecause it is the conversation itself that is the major distraction.Earlier studies also found that mobile phone users followed at greater distances, were slower tobrake and to regain speed after braking.Strayer said it was important toshow how mobile phone use affectstraffic. “When people have tried todo cost-benefit analyses on whether  we should regulate phones, they don’t factor in the cost associated with increased commuting times,excess fuel used by stop-and-gotraffic and increased air pollution.”
Drivers tempted by non-maintained lease contracts to get prestige cars
Drivers opting for non-maintained lease contracts are causing fleets a headache
 
EVENTS
ROUND-UP
Finishing touches being put to Europe conference
Smart move
Coventry City Council hastaken delivery of a fully electric Smart car as part of a 100-car market trial prior to the introduction of thetwo-seater vehicle. The car  will be made available on a lease arrangement toselected UK corporatecustomers.
Master stroke
Cliniserve has takendelivery of 27 new Renault Master 120.35 vans through Renault  Trucks distributor MV  Trucks. The vans willreplace the company’sremaining Iveco vehicles.By the end of the year,Cliniserve will have anall-Renault fleet of 70 vehicles.
Porsche hybrid
Porsche’s forthcoming four-door Panamera will come with a hybrid option. Thetechnology seen in theCayenne Hybrid prototype will enter the market at theend of the decade, after thelaunch of the regular Panamera.
Engine changes
Peugeot and Citroënhave added a new engineto their MPV offerings.Both the Peugeot 807and the Citroën C8 now offer a 2.2-litre HDidiesel engine with173bhp and 295lb-ft of torque. It returns42.8mpg with CO2emissions of 191g/km.
NEWSIN BRIEF
210.01.08
 
www.fleetnews.co.uk
 
Final preparations are beingmade for the seventh annual
 Fleet News
Europe Conferencein Brussels next month. The event chairman will beChristopher Macgowan, a former chief executive of theSociety of Motor Manufacturersand Traders in the UK and now  vice-chairman of the Motorists’Forum. There is a record speaker line-up for this year’s event,sponsored by Hyundai and BCA, which has already attracted a number of top-level directors asdelegates.Issues covered at the event include green fleet in Europe,market expansion, the future of residual values, fleet safety,technology, the manufacturer  viewpoint and an internationalperspective. Among the speakers will be Vincent Rupied, internationaldirector of the Corporate VehicleObservatory, Steffen Schick,chief operating officer, Fleet Logistics, and Pascal Serres, vice-president, ALD Interna-tional. This year’s event takes placeat the Marriott Hotel, Brussels,on February 7.For information, ticket salesand sponsorship enquiries,contact Luke Clements on 01733468325 or email luke.clements@emap.com.
Full details of the conferenceare available on the dedicated
 Fleet News
Europe website at  www.fneuropeconference.com
ppl/ppgDIESEL
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SUPER UNLEADED
........109.4/497
UNLEADED
......................103.4/468
FOUR STAR
......................105.2/478
LPG
......................................52.2/237
UK FUEL
 PRICES
 Fleet News
and its sister company CAP, the vehicle data specialist, would like to hear from fleet oper-ators. We are preparing a feature andreport on fleet operators’ experi-ences, and CAP is offering a  TomTom satellite navigation unit as an incentive to take part. Onelucky respondent will be drawn at random to win the sat-nav system. All responses will be treated instrictest confidence and your name/company will not bepublished, but we do need your details for you to be eligible to winthe prize draw. We have threequestions for you:
Have you changed your fleet car supplier in the past three years on the grounds of unsatis-factory ordering processes or customer care in general duringthe configuration and orderingstage? (Yes or no)
Have you experienced prob-lems configuring cars with theexact combination features andoptions that you require? (Yes or no)
What percentage of your timeas a fleet manager is spent solving vehicle specification and configu-ration issues? (Answer as a percentage)Please email your answers to:fleetnews@emap.com and put “FN/CAP response” in the subject line.Responses must be receivedbefore January 25, 2008, and thename of the lucky TomTom winner (but not their responses!) will appear on the
 Fleet News
  website – www.fleetnews.co.ukOne in 10 employees who drivefor work admitted they fell asleep while at the wheel during thepast 12 months. During the sameperiod, 2% fell asleep three timesor more while driving. The consequences of noddingoff while at the wheel can bedevastating. An estimated sixpeople die each week in crashescaused by tired drivers. The figures, from research by road safety charity Brake andbreakdown recovery firm GreenFlag, are from a survey of 4,640drivers including 2,510 who drivefor work. The poll was conductedat random and included a rangeof motorists, including company car, LCV and HGV drivers.“It’s crucial that companiesintroduce thorough proceduresto ensure employees are not endangering themselves andothers when driving for work,”said Cathy Keeler, head of campaigns for Brake. “But drivers themselves must alsotake responsibility. Gettingbehind the wheel when you’venot had enough sleep is deadly.” The research found that people who drive for work are morelikely to drive after insufficient sleep. Half of employees whodrive for work say they some-times drive after less than fivehours’ sleep. According to the Department for Transport, drivers who get behind the wheel after less thanfive hours’ sleep have only a onein 10 chance of staying fully awake on a lengthy journey.David Richards, marketingdirector for driver trainingcompany DriveTech, said:“Driving tired is a very seriousissue and journey planning is thekey to being safe.”
Decline in fleetmarket predicted
BY DANIEL ATTWOOD
 The fleet market will decline inthe coming years as managersenforce stricter policies to reduceannual mileages and ultimately acquire fewer cars, according tothe operations manager of Lloyds TSB Autolease.David Kershaw told
 Fleet News
 that the European Commission’sdecision, which will ultimately force carmakers to cut averageCO
2
emissions to 130g/km withinfour years, will result in at least another 5% being added to thecost of a new car. “As always, it  will be the customer who will pickup the bill,” he said. This additional cost, coupled torising fuel bills and growing pres-sure to reduce carbon emissions, will force fleet managers to reas-sess downwards the size of their  vehicle fleets.“There will be a decline in thefleet sector,” he said. “Companiesare now taking seriously the needto adopt technologies such asteleconferencing and cut unnec-essary car journeys. Companies will reduce business mileages andtherefore will need fewer cars.”In addition, it is going to beincreasingly difficult to confi-dently predict residual values of models as they adopt different solutions to reduce emissions. This means fleets could be caught out if they favour one technology,such as biofuels, over another before they have proven them-selves in the market.“We are not convinced about biofuels,” said Mr Kershaw, whose company has more than130,000 vehicles under itsmanagement. “Biofuel is like LPG– it is not a long-term solution.” The new rules will also have animpact on fleets that opt for diesel-only vehicles. Most carmakersagree that diesel engine technol-ogy has been developed as far asis practical, with any further developments being too costly. Therefore, fleets should expect the popularity of newer, cleaner petrol engines to take hold.
Win a sat-system with
 Fleet News
David Kershaw, operationsmanager, Lloyds TSB Autolease
Tired driverdangers arehighlighted
daniel.attwood@emap.com
 
Green Ireland
Smith Electric Vehicles hassecured an order for 100zero-emission vans andtrucks for the Republic of Ireland. The vehicles willbe supplied through anIrish importer to bothcommercial and privatefleet operators.
People investors
 Ai Claims Solutions hasreceived recognition from the Investors inPeople scheme for thethird consecutive term. Ai Claims Solutions is a provider of services for the motor insuranceclaims market.
Best route
 Tele Atlas will integrateOrdnance Survey’s digitalroad routing informationinto its digital map databaseto help identify the most appropriate road routes for HGVs. It says the system will enable HGV drivers tocalculate the most suitableroutes based on roadheight, width and weight restrictions.
 Venson contract
 Venson AutomotiveSolutions has supplied112 company cars toHeadcount WorldwideField Marketing. Thesolus Ford diesel fleet islargely composed of Fiestas with some Focusand Mondeo models allon two-year contract hireleases. Venson is alsoproviding fleet manage-ment and accident management.
Reflex deal
Reflex Vehicle Solutions hasappointed Kwik-Fit Fleet toits network of suppliers of a range of fast-fit services,including tyre and brakerepair and replacement.Customers will have accessto Kwik-Fit Fleet’s 200-strong mobile repair fleet,as well as a network of 670centres.
IN BRIEF
 
www.fleetnews.co.uk
 10.01.083BY DANIEL ATTWOOD
 The Government is consideringscrapping the P11D form.It has been criticised by theInstitute of Payroll Professionalsand the Administrative Burdens Advisory Board as being one of the most costly administrativeburdens for employers – a findingborne out by the KPMG Adminis-trative Burdens HM Revenue &Customs (HMRC) MeasurementsProject. The P11D is a detailed benefit-in-kind (BIK) form that highlightsall benefits, such as a company car or fuel, made available to anemployee. Currently, many companies operate under an infor-mal arrangement with HMRCenabling them to deduct andaccount for the tax due on BIK as well as expenses in the payroll.However, these arrangementshave no statutory basis.Now HMRC is proposingchanges to the current reportingstructure that includes scrappingthe P11D form. The proposal is to include allbenefits and expenses in thepayroll. “Collecting the tax due onall benefits and expenses throughthe pay-as-you-earn (PAYE)scheme provides scope to simplify the current reporting require-ments for benefits and expenses,”said an HMRC spokesperson.“The overall amount of informa-tion that an employer needs toprovide to HMRC about benefitsand expenses could be reducedsignificantly and the entire P11Dprocess, which is currently sepa-rate from the PAYE process, couldbe abolished.”However, while HMRC’s move will be welcomed, concernsremain over the training of payrollstaff and what powers they willhave. There are also other issuesthat need HMRC’s attention, as Julie Jenner, ACFO chairman,explained: “Unless everyone getstheir new/replacement vehicle on April 6 (start of new tax year), theBIK will need to be pro-rata, which will cause further issues. There will be a fine balance in the savingof costs, time and administrationin removing the once-a-year reporting compared to the addi-tional workload, training andresources potentially required by payroll teams to cope with thechange.”Such concerns should be raisedduring the current consultationprocess, which is also looking at the removal of the £8,500 earn-ings threshold for BIK below  which tax is not paid on benefits. The consultation ends onMarch 14. HMRC does not expect implementation of payrolling of expenses and BIK until at least  April 2011, although it said the £8,500 threshold change could beimplemented sooner.
P11D form could bescrapped in review
 January is the quietest monthon the roads, with traffic volumes 10% below averagelevels for the year.Despite this, motorists are warned that traffic levels are at an all-time high on Fridays, with the afternoon scrumstarting to develop fromnoon. This makes Friday themost dangerous day to bedriving, with casualties hitting a peak of 3,766 at 5pm, comparedto an average of 3,426 on other  weekdays. According to new analysis by the RAC Foundation, driversshould also be on their guardon Saturdays, when traffic volumes peak at noon – alsothe peak hour for casualties, at 2,799. Failed breath tests arealso most common on a Saturday, with 1,599 driversand riders caught over the limit on Saturdays in 2006. Drink-driving is at its highest in thesmall hours and early evening.Sundays are the safest daysto drive, with some 12,000fewer casualties than Friday’stotal.Norwich City Council is to forceresidents who require on-street parking to pay depending on thelength of their car. While cities across Europeintroduce charges based on emis-sions, the Norfolk city took thestep of getting out its tapemeasure to penalise residents who drive long vehicles. The charges, due to be intro-duced in March, are aimed at reducing pollution as well ascreating more parking spaces.However, short cars (less than3.92m) such as the MINI Cooper S, which produces 149g/km of CO
2
, will be charged at the lowest level of £16. But longer cars, suchas the Ford Focus 1.6 TDCi, which produces just 127g/km of CO
2,
will receive a £22 annual bill.Cars longer than 4.45m, such asthe Ford Mondeo 1.8 TDCi, whichproduces just 3g/km of CO
2
morethan the MINI, will be charged at the maximum £30 per year. The council said: “As well astaking up less space, smaller carsalso produce, on average, lessgreenhouse gas emissions andair pollution than larger cars. Sosmall cars are also better for theenvironment.”Bosch has developed a new safety system that provides increasedprotection for pedestrians andcyclists. The electronic system – Elec-tronic Pedestrian Protection(EPP) – detects an impact with a human and activates systems tocushion the victim. The new technology consists of acceleration sensors fitted to thefront of the vehicle and a controlunit used to trigger actuators that raise the vehicle’s bonnet within a fraction of a second. This offers the impacting body a more efficient deformation zoneand reduces the risk of injury topedestrians.Bernd Hergert, head of theoccupant safety business unit at Bosch, revealed that the system isabout to feature in two new cars.He said: “Two vehicles with theBosch EPP system are now inseries production and additionalapplications will follow soon.”Further developments, includ-ing the use of airbags, are alsobeing considered as addedmeasures for use in impact protection. Vehicle manufacturers canprovide active impact protection with an independent control unit,or it can be integrated into theairbag control unit already present in the vehicle.
New safety system increases pedestrian protection
Te long and the short of it
Traffic peaks on Fridays
Bosch’s Electronic Pedestrian Protection reduces the risk of injurye entire P11D process could be abolished by the Government
daniel.attwood@emap.com
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