Arval refreshes green vehicle list

By Amanda White 04 March 2010

Arval, Europe’s leading fleet and fuel management company, has strengthened its ongoing commitment to its Corporate Social Responsibility and refreshed its own company car choice list for employees so that it not only includes a wider variety of the lowest emitting vehicles on the market, but it also provides clear financial incentives for staff to select them. As a holder of  ISO 14001 certification, Arval has been capping the CO2 of its 315 strong company car fleet since 2008 when the ceiling was 160g/km, resulting in the major decline in the average CO2 of the fleet.  Arval has now gone a step further in its mission to reduce emissions further by reducing the 160g/km ceiling and encouraging employees to be greener in their vehicle selection. The new choice list is underpinned by Arval’s True Cost of Operations (TCO) approach which focuses on whole life costs and is restricted by CO2 thresholds. Arval’s Fleet & Road Safety Manager worked with the Arval Consulting team to set maximum CO2 limits for each entitlement band as well as pulling the most efficient vehicles into a special ‘ECO group’ which is made up of a range of sub 110g/km vehicles, with some emitting less than 99g/km. CO2 thresholds under the new policy:

Benefit Entitlement (based on grade within the company)	Maximum CO2
G1	up to 135 g/km
G2	“   “  145 g/km
G3	“   “  155 g/km
G3+	155 g/km +

Cars within the ‘Eco group’ include the new BMW 320 Efficient Dynamics, VW BlueMotion and Ford Econetic models as well as efficient versions of the Mini Cooper and the new Audi A3 1.6 with a CO2 of 99g/km. Hybrid models such as the Honda Insight and Toyota Prius are also featured on this list. An additional incentive to the normal tax breaks and reduced running costs that low emitting vehicles bring, is that nearly all employees selecting a vehicle from this group will receive the incentive of a trade down allowance from Arval; a monthly payment included within their salary. This approach gives the fleet manager the power to ensure that vehicles used by company drivers provide acceptable mpg performance and CO2 emissions as well as promoting the move to a lower emitting, more efficient vehicle an attractive option for drivers. Tracey Young, Fleet & Road Safety Manager comments: “As with previous choice lists, we expect this initiative to deliver a further reduction in our average fleet emissions as more Arval drivers opt for cleaner and more efficient vehicles allowing them to reduce their environmental impact as well as their costs.” “While the list provides an environmental focus our whole life cost approach means that there remains a wide variety of vehicles for employees to choose from. With the manufacturers now delivering a wave of cleaner vehicles, and many under 110g/km, the greener option is often a compelling one.” “With the market moving at such a pace, we expect the introduction of cleaner and more efficient vehicles to continue, so our choice list is something that we will continue to review and refine on an ongoing basis.” The choice list is one of several sustainable initiatives that Arval has introduced to make its fleet ‘greener’ with the company also involved in two electric vehicle trials. For the past two years Arval has had a Smart EV on its fleet, available for employees to use on short journeys and an effective way of demonstrating how electric vehicles can successfully play a specific role within a vehicle fleet. Arval is also taking part in the Technology Strategy Board’s electric vehicle trial with an employee using a Mitsubishi i-MiEV as their primary car for the next 12 months, testing its practicality and reporting back on their experience.

Categories: Fleet news , Arval

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