Andrew Leech, Fleet Evolution’s managing director
A Fleet Evolution survey identified that well over 92% of respondents would consider an electric car but are nervous about relying on one for 365 days a year. The same survey found that the average commute driven was just 7.6 miles, with most employees covering around 200 miles a week and only venturing further a total of 5 weeks a year.
Couple this with how dramatically electric cars have progressed. For instance, 5 years ago the typical employee would have had to recharge their car every 2-3 days, and every 80 miles on a longer trip. Whereas today, there are a whole raft of electric cars covering 200 miles with ease, from the £30,000 Hyundai Kona to the £100,000 Tesla.
Chargers are fast, with many giving another 100 miles range in less than an hour. However, there may be times when you’re making a longer journey and want the reassurance a diesel provides, or maybe you just want a bigger car for your holidays. To widen the appeal of electric cars, Fleet Evolution have created ‘Electric Flex’.
This offers as a bolt on to a customer’s salary sacrifice scheme. It allows our customers to take an electric car with the added flexibility of a few days rental of a diesel built into their contract.
Andrew Leech, Fleet Evolution’s managing director explains, We already offer free charge points at work and home with our scheme but we want to remove all obstacles to electric car take up. Electric flex not only means employees can swap for a traditional car should the need arise, employees can also specify a larger car if they wish. Picture this: a customer needs a 7-seater for a 2-week holiday to Cornwall? No problem. The employee just gives us a few hours’ notice and they can swap their electric car for a hire car of their choosing for that period; when you return, just swap back! If life throws a last-minute party opportunity their way, they can take a car for the weekend with minimal notice, or even same day for overnight use! All this is bundled into their salary sacrifice. They just specify the amount of days and type of car needed, order, and we’ll handle the rest!”
We think this latest enhancement brings electric cars within the reach of virtually all employees, especially with the reduced cost of acquisition that salary sacrifice brings.
