Employees who have previously taken cash options are returning to company car schemes due to the financial appeal of EVs, according to Arval UK.
Shaun Sadlier, head of consulting at Arval UK, said the shift was predicted when zero and low benefit-in-kind (BIK) rates for EVs were unveiled in 2019, but is now becoming apparent.
He added, “Many cash takers liked their company car but didn’t like paying what they perceived as high benefit-in-kind and that was why they opted-out. Now, with low benefit-in-kind in place for EVs for at least five years, many more are now returning to company car schemes.
“We predicted that this would start to happen some time ago, but it’s now becoming noticeable in several of the major fleets with which we work. It’s a welcome development that will feed demand for zero-emission vehicles and lead to wider, faster adoption.”
Sadlier added that, while BIK was the key factor in choosing a zero emission vehicle, there were also a range of other considerations.
“If you talk to fleet managers and their drivers, there’s a lot of enthusiasm around the vehicles themselves. It’s as simple as many people really liking EVs as their day-to-day mode of transport. We are beyond the early adopter phase and heading into mass-acceptance.
“All it takes is a couple of EVs on a fleet to disprove the reservations some people hold about these vehicles. They can see that misgivings such as range anxiety are actually of limited importance for the vast number of journeys that are made.
Arval UK recently updated its own company car scheme to increase adoption of EVs and two thirds of its company car drivers have now made the switch.
Sadlier said: “All of our consultants and many of our sales team have switched to EVs.
“They act as ambassadors for the technology, developing personal experience to share with customers, friends and family – as more people drive EVs, consumer confidence will increase.”