Cost advantages and lower environmental impact head the list of reasons why UK businesses are electrifying their company cars, suggests research from the latest Arval Mobility Observatory Barometer. The factors mentioned by fleet and mobility decision makers in the research were topped by reduced fuel expenses (66% of those questioned – up from 54% in 2021) and, in second place, tax incentives … [Read more...]
Beat the heat & recirculate
The ultimate hack for driving this summer is the recirculation button on the AC unit in most vehicles. We all know it’s there, but many of us don’t know how best to use it. Graham Conway, Managing Director at Select Car Leasing, UK’s largest independent specialists for car and van leasing, has revealed exactly how we should be using the recirculation feature to get the most from your vehicle's … [Read more...]
Newslines 8 August
The RAC wants the Government to do a u-turn on ending the plug -in car grant. The incentive was ended this spring to encourage motorists to choose pure evs but after a disastrous summer of new car sales RAC EV spokesperson Simon Williams said, “ With high fuel prices and the overall cost of living continuing to bite, drivers are increasingly looking to low-running-cost alternatives to petrol and … [Read more...]
Breaking the EV myth of franchise dealers
The idea that franchise dealers are required more for electric vehicle service, maintenance and repair than their internal combustion engine counterparts is a “myth”, shows new research from epyx. Statistics taken from its 1link Service Network platform, used to manage SMR for more than four million company vehicles largely operated by leasing companies, show hardly any difference in the … [Read more...]
Brits falling out of love with evs
Brits’ appetite for electric vehicles appears to be declining with fewer people saying they expect to own an EV in the next decade, according to a recent CarGurus study. Despite petrol prices reaching record highs and the sale of new petrol and diesel cars banned from 2030, UK motorists’ appetite for EVs has decreased when comparing interest in 2021 versus 2022. Notably, potential … [Read more...]
Newslines 2 August
Cardiff is a hot spot for car thieves. The Welsh capital has generated some of the highest tweets from owners asking for users to look out for their car and it’s in the UK top ten at fifth, according to the analysis by Scrap Car Comparison, and ranking just behind Athens but is worse than Rome and London. Online used car disruptor Carzam was more than £2.4m in debt when it called in … [Read more...]
Legal hurdle to speeding up EV charging
Problems created by revised regulations covering the installation of isolators for home electric vehicle chargers appear to be no closer to being resolved, the Association of Fleet Professionals is reporting. The issue was first highlighted by the AFP in March and is causing installation of home chargers to be delayed by a typical period of 4-6 weeks as well as causing uncertainty in costs as … [Read more...]
Softening of demand for cars is concerning
The cost of cars is by far the top priority for car-buyers as the cost of living crisis bites, according to new findings from Close Brothers Motor Finance’s Dealer Satisfaction Survey. Almost three quarters of dealers (74%) put the cost of the car at the top of the list of customer priorities when looking to buy, followed by the mileage (26%). Other priorities included extras like the sound … [Read more...]
Newslines 12 July
The Honda Civic was launched 50 years ago today. It has sold 27.5m around the world and the 11thgeneration order books have opened today from £29,595 and deliveries commence in September. Ferry and motoring trips to Europe are expected to escalate this summer as airports and airlines slash flights. The cost of flying and queues with the possibility of last minute cancellations after airports … [Read more...]
EV interest growing, but there’s range anxiety
A quarter (26%) of car hirers would like to hire an electric car to test one out, and a fifth (20%) would like to ‘do their bit’ for the environment (17% men and 23% women). However the survey carried out by Opinium, on behalf of iCarhireinsurance.com, a leading provider of stand-alone car hire excess insurance, did find some barriers to hiring an electric car even when drivers said they … [Read more...]