5 minute read
Q&A with John Hargreaves, KIA UK
Kia’s geared up to help fleets make the switch to electric
John Hargreaves, General Manager Fleet and Remarketing at Kia UK Limited, explains how the company is set up to welcome more fleet customers in the future
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CC&V: Moving into 2022, there are still supply issues for most car and van manufacturers, relating to the worldwide semi-conductor shortage. Will this affect Kia’s fleet offering next year?
John Hargreaves: While the whole industry has been affected by the issues with availability of some parts and components, including Kia, we have actively managed the situation and as evidenced by our strong market share in 2021, managed to maintain supply with all our major customers.
We expect some constraints in 2022, but expect to remain active in all fleet channels next year.
CC&V: With generous BIK tax incentives currently being offered on both plug-inhybrid and fully electric cars, is Kia seeing existing corporate customers switching to these vehicles, or are you still supplying plenty of petrol models into fleet?
John Hargreaves: We have benefited from the growth in hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fully electric sectors. However, petrol and diesel still make up a substantial proportion of our sales – overall, the split for us between ICE and Eco cars in 2021 is about 60/40, with the Eco balance shifting towards EV, HEV then PHEV in fleet.
There are still numerous operators taking both petrol and diesel cars, so the switch will take place over time and we are fortunate to have a product range that enables us to move with the market.
CC&V: Talking of electric, you’ve just launched the EV6. Will Kia be targeting the fleet sector with this and if so, what percentage of EV6 sales are expected to come from the corporate market?
John Hargreaves: Demand is very strong in all sectors and we do not expect to offer more than a little financial support on this car in fleet. However, in line with the market trend we expect just over 50 per cent of these cars to go into one or other of the fleet channels.
CC&V: With many businesses letting employees work from home, with less time spent in the office, do you think that your average Kia fleet customer will be reducing their annual mileage and if so, do you think your fleet offering has this covered?
John Hargreaves: There is still some doubt in the medium term of the extent of a full-scale return to pre-Covid office working.
However, it would seem inevitable that there will be less business travel in the short term; this could mean lower mileages and longer holding periods that will see our seven year warranty become an increasingly attractive proposition.
CC&V: There’s an all-new Sportage arriving in 2022, with a number of powertrains including PHEV. Are you expecting to see Sportage sales grow within the company car sector with a plug-in offering?
John Hargreaves: Next year, into all the fleet channels, we would expect the main Sportage powertrain to be HEV (around 55 per cent of mix), ICE at 35 per cent and PHEV around 10 per cent.
Consequently the PHEV will open a market into which we have not sold Sportage before and provide some incremental sales.
CC&V: In our annual survey about electric cars, our readers’ biggest concerns remained EV range anxiety and access to charging points, not the actual cost of electric vehicles. Based on our findings, do you think that electric is the way forward or do self-charging and PHEV cars have an important role to play in the transition to a fully electric fleet?
John Hargreaves: In the short term, self-charging and plug-in hybrid cars offer a bridge towards fully electric cars.
We have recently launched Kia Charge to provide a convenient means of charging cars, offering access to numerous charge point operators across the UK and Europe with a single account.
I believe range anxiety is disappearing – with affordable cars like e-Niro offering 282 WLTP-rated miles on a single charge.
Providing complete fleet management solutions
Silvey Fleet has launched a new card which gives users the ability to pay for electric vehicle (EV) charging as well as refuelling with hydrogen, petrol and diesel, allowing managers to easily incorporate fully electric and/or hybrid vehicles into their fleets and control the use of all types of fuel on a single payment card.
The new card, which offers all the benefits of an existing fuel card, will enable fleet managers to pay for EV charging across a multi-branded charging network such as ESB EV Solutions, Engenie, and Source London, amongst others.
Additionally, the new combined payment card solution provides access to the largest fuel network in the UK, helping users to save across the Discount Diesel network. It also provides one HMRC-compliant invoice for all transactions.
Fleet owners and managers have been asking how they can incorporate fully zero emission and electric vehicle alternatives into their fleets. To help fleet managers make the right decision about making the transition, Silvey Fleet now not only offers an EV payment solution but also provides a consultancy service to ensure its customers have all the information they need to make well informed decisions on EVs or recharging infrastructure or cost.
Managing Director Miriam James said: “We are committed to providing the right products for our customers along with a service specifically designed to help fleet operators understand which diesel and/or petrol vehicles could be easily replaced with an electric model.
“We can create a fleet electrification plan that meets the needs of your company.”
Silvey Fleet has partnered with AllStar to become a reseller of its One Electric fuel card. This versatile fuel card incorporates all fuels, thus allowing fleets the option of paying for all the fuels they use with just one card, be that diesel, petrol, hydrogen or electric charging.
“We are really excited to be able to offer fleets the opportunity to pay for electric charge points using a fuel card,” confirms Miriam. “Not only will EV drivers has access to a growing nationwide, multi-brand, electric charging network, but the same single fuel card can be used irrespective of how they are fuelled.
“By having just one fuel card, fleet managers not only have a complete overview of their fleet, but also all transactions will appear on one invoice – resulting in less time spent compiling data or paying multiple suppliers.”
