Fleet Europe 58

JUNE 2012 - # 58

NEXUS COMMUNICATION - FLEET EUROPE #58 - periodic magazine - JUNE 2012 - Deposit Office Liège X

Management

Face to Face Hans den Hollander (Cisco) Wim Buzzi (Coca-Cola Enterprises)

DOSSIER

Leasing in Europe Lessors’ strategy & presence, upcoming trends & new developments

SCOPE

Fleet Market What is going on across Europe and in the US

MANAGEMENT

Accenture Study Public view on Electric Vehicles

FLEET EUROPE FORUM & AWARDS 2012 – November 22nd 2012 in Cannes (France)

“PARTICIPATE, LEARN, SHARE AND CELEBRATE”

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SE AT.COM

EDITORIAL

Me transparency, you trust If Tarzan and Jane were business partners today, this could be a key sentence in their conversation. No one will deny that as a business client you have the right to be informed in the best possible way by your partners. This best possible way means accurate, transparent, rapid and ready to be used information, all of this vital in an ever more global economic environment.

For years now fleet managers have been asking their leasing companies for information and tools to benchmark their fleet and manage it proactively. And for years lease companies and other fleet suppliers have been replying either that they do this already or are thinking about it. Strange though, that the demand for transparency keeps coming back.

It is strange that the demand for transparency keeps coming back.

In this economic world where trust and faith in financial institutions and other business partners seem to be gradually evaporating, could openness and transparency be a competitive advantage? Naïve you say? Maybe, although it is my conviction that a business partner appreciates such openness and honesty and that they are key conditions for establishing a long-term partnership.

Naïve again, you say? Maybe, although I predict that in our business, strong and true partners have the best chances of success. It is my belief that the world of fleet management will more and more encompass the CSR element where HR, sustainability, customer and employee satisfaction will become more and more important.

To regain and recreate trust, you have to be open and listen to your partners. One of the key dates to meet and discuss with your fleet partners and peers is November 22, 2012. This is the date of the sixth edition of the Fleet Europe Forum in Cannes France, around the theme: ‘How the global context influences the European Fleet Management Business’.

You can find all information by visiting www.fleeteurope.com/events .

Steven Schoefs, Chief Editor sschoefs@nexuscommunication.be Twitter : @StevenSchoefs

A Reader’s Manual Fleet Europe reaches international fleet decision makers in over 19 countries. This reach impelled us to rethink our editorial approach for the Fleet Europe magazine, in order to better correspond to our readers’ interests. Here’s an overview of our new lay-out and structure.

DOSSIER In each issue, our editorial team analyses the latest trends, in partnership with experts on the subject. We provide an annual overview of what you, as international fleet decision maker, need to know.

MANAGEMENT

The fleet manager’s corner. With case studies, management articles, examples of best practices.

BUSINESS Background articles from the industry’s side: car manufacturers, leasing companies, third parties. With interviews and highlights of new products and services.

SCOPE A broader insight on the

dynamics of the international fleet business: taxation, legislation, trends, environment, economics. We hope you will like our brand-new approach to Fleet Europe. Enjoy your reading, and thank you for your kind patronage!

Caroline Thonnon Partner Content & Business Development cthonnon@nexuscommunication.be Twitter: @CarolineThonnon

FLEET EUROPE # 58

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CONTENT

management I Best Practices

With Hans den Hollander (Cisco) & Wim Buzzi (Coca-Cola Enterprises), Lee Miller (Boehringer Ingelheim) and Maggie Cole (Monsanto)

SCOPE

Update on company car taxation in Europe

60

42

BUSINESS

Interview with Martin Jahn Volkswagen GFI

DOSSIER I Leasing Strategy Leasing in 2012: Organization, presence, service development, tips & tricks and trends

55

7

I DOSSIER I

I BUSINESS I

Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 7 Fleet Europe Community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 7 Analysis: Ten years of car leasing - Flashback. . . . . . . . . . . P.11 The consolidation trend continues. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 16 Identity cards of the leasing companies anno 2012 . . . P. 18 Geographical presence of the leasing companies anno 2012 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 24 Tips & Tricks on car leasing management. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 28 The future of car leasing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 30 Global car leasing: CEO debate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 32

News. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 50 3 Questions to Elena Delgado – Volkswagen. . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 51 Sixt Rent a Car : Renting without frontiers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 53 Mobileye: Safety as a cost control driver. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 54 Interview: Martin Jahn (Volkswagen GFI). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 55 Interview: Christian Blank (Mazda Motor Europe). . . . . . P.56

I MANAGEMENT I News. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 34 Fleet Europe Awards 2012 : Discover the jury. . . . . . . . . . . P. 36 Cross-interview : Hans den Hollander & Wim Buzzi. . P. 42 Fleet Manager & Executive of the Year in the US. . . . . . . P. 46 The view on plug-in electric vehicles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 48

COLOPHON

Caroline Thonnon - Content & Business Development (cthonnon@nexuscommunication.be) Steven Schoefs - Chief Editor (sschoefs@nexuscommunication.be) David Baudeweyns - Sales & Development (dbaudeweyns@nexuscommunication.be) Romina De Gregorio - Internal Sales (rdegregorio@nexuscommunication.be) Thao Van de Poel - Internal Sales Assistant tvandepoel@nexuscommunication.be Kathleen Hubert - Operations & Communication (khubert@nexuscommunication.be) Filip Van Mullem - Marketing & Development (fvanmullem@nexuscommunication.be) Pierre-Yves Simon - IT & Web Manager (pysimon@nexuscommunication.be)

I SCOPE I

News. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 58 Company car taxation in Europe. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 60 Chief editors’ view on local fleet markets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 62 Market: Fleet trends in the US . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 64 Market: Italy feels the heat. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P. 66

Contributors: Tim Harrup, Frank Jacobs, Yves de Partz Special thanks to: Vincent Rupied, Bernard Gracia, Bart Vanham , Accenture Layout: Un pas plus loin - info@unpasplusloin.com

EDITOR

Thierry Degives, Managing Partner at Nexus Communication SA, Parc Artisanal 11-13, 4671 Barchon (Belgium) T. : +32 4 387 87 94 - Fax : +32 4 387 90 63 - www.nexuscommunication.be FLEET EUROPE www.fleeteurope.com - www.fleeteurope.com/shop Reproduction rights (texts, advertisements, pictures) reserved for all countries. Received documents will not be returned. By submitting them, the author implicitly authorizes their publication.

Circulation: 15,000 copies (The cleansing and qualification process has been realized by Dun & Bradstreet Belgium, 2012)

P.5

AlphaCity Get ahead with intelligence – due to innovative company CarSharing.

Redefine the mobility of your employees. AlphaCity: the new CarSharing solution from Alphabet for business and private use. The idea? As simple as it is clever: your employees use AlphaCity car pool vehicles – and you save money on taxis, trains and rental cars. It’s that easy. AlphaCity means reduced total cost of ownership – and what’s more, lower total mobility costs. AlphaCity: the first leasing-based CarSharing solution with state-of-the-art keyless technology.

Satisfaction guaranteed.

www.alphabet.com

dossier I Leasing Strategy

Best value for money DOSSIER

Leasing Strategy from p.11 to p. 33

Financing your fleet is one of the most cost challenging exercises. The difficult economic and financial times have made it even more vital to ensure cost control on the fleet manager’s side, while for lease companies it has become harder to find new money to finance new company cars.

As a result, the consolidation process so much in evidence in a number of economic sectors is still underway in car leasing. And on top of this leasing companies are looking for service diversification and are expanding their car leasing and mobility offerings. In

this yearly dossier, we present our ‘traditional’ comparative list of the major leasing companies’ international presence, we analyse the leasing history and we delve into the future with an overview of the strategy of today’s major leasing companies. Last but not least seven CEO’s of renowned leasing companies share their vision on car leasing, while international fleet managers enrich you with some useful tips & tricks, enabling you to manage your fleet even more efficiently. ■ Steven Schoefs

Join Fleet Europe’s community As you know, Fleet Europe is not only about analyzes, interviews and factual information, but it is also about sharing experiences and best practices. The more you acquire experiences from your peers, the more you can build expertise to manage your fleet. Therefore we propose to you different applications and tools to interact with the international community of fleet managers and fleet decision makers.

Newsletter

Issuu.com

Calaméo.com

Register to the Fleet Europe Newsletter and receive twice a month the highlights of the international fleet sector. www.fleeteurope.com

Discover the digital edition of Fleet Europe Magazine. Have a look at the more recent edition, or look at our archives. www.issuu.com

You can also discover the digital edition of Fleet Europe Magazine here. This digital version is adapted to be read through your smartphone and iPad. www.calameo.com

Facebook

Discuss

Discover the latest magazine, picture from our events, event announcements… If you like our pages, click on ‘LIKE’ and share it with your contacts! www.facebook.com/FleetEurope

Fleet Europe Forum 2012 : How does the global context influences the European fleet business ? Discuss with your peers.

Linkedin Join the Fleet Europe LinkedIn group and connect with international fleet professionals, fleet decision makers, suppliers and experts.

Already more than 1,415 members. http://www.linkedin. com/ groups?about=&gid =157239

Have you reconsidered your leasing policy due to the difficult economic times in the last 12 months ?

25% 50% 13%

12%

Twitter

Follow the latest tweets of @FleetEurope2012 and connect to Chief Editor @StevenSchoefs and Partner Content & Business Development @CarolineThonnon

Yes, from leasing to self-funding Yes, towards a consolidation of the number of lease suppliers Yes, towards a multiplication of the number of lease suppliers No, there I have not reconsidered my leasing policy

FLEET EUROPE # 58

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From 109 g/km CO²*– the most efficient E-Class of all time.

The E 300 BlueTEC HYBRID.

A Daimler Brand

At 4.2 litres of diesel per 100 kilometres, the new hybrid offensive from Mercedes-Benz – the E 300 BlueTEC HYBRID – is setting the benchmark when it comes to fuel consumption in the luxury business class vehicle segment. The modular hybrid concept with lithium-ion battery sets new record values in terms of efficiency with economical and comfort-enhancing innovations like the ECO start/stop function. Furthermore, it wins people over with its impressive driving experience and exemplary fuel consumption figures. The new efficiency record holder is also available as an estate. Find out more at www.mercedes-benz.com/fleet

*Fuel consumption urban/extra-urban/combined: 4.3–4.2/4.3–4.2/4.3–4.2 l/100 km, combined CO emissions: 112–109 g/km.

Figures do notFLEET relate to the specific emissions# or fuel EUROPE 58consumption of any individual vehicle, do not form part of any offer and are intended solely to aid comparison between different types of vehicle.

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FLEET EUROPE # 58

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Shape your future mobility with ALD Automotive The New World of Mobility is now coming live...

Looking for next-generation solutions in flexible mobility, delivering employee satisfaction, social responsibility and cost efficiency?

ALD Automotive innovates with mobility solutions to best fit your needs and launches new offers such as 6 Wheel Lease in the Netherlands or ALD 2wheels in France.

Stay tuned at aldautomotive.com for the launch of ALD newmobility and see how efficient your mobility will become.

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FLEET EUROPE # 58

dossier I Leasing Strategy

We are just half way It has been 10 years since Arval founded in France the Corporate Vehicle Observatory (CVO), which scans and forecasts fleet management practices across a growing number of countries – currently 16. This article brings together experiences gathered over 10 years by Arval and the CVO to highlight some fundamental trends in this industry. Among other sources, it makes use of the freshly delivered 2012 CVO International Fleet Barometer.

After decades of widespread use of mileage allowances, these ten years have witnessed in nearly all markets a vigorous increase of fleets registered in the name of businesses. The CVO has monitored over the period the net intentions of fleet managers to increase or decrease fleet sizes, an indicator that has come to closely mirror the ups and downs of conjuncture. It is hardly a surprise Chart 1

that they now reach a new low in 2012, after a relative improvement following the previous episode of 2008-09.

Meanwhile, the share of vehicles in full service leasing among these business fleets has been growing steadily.

Chart 1 shows three clusters of countries. The two most mature fleet leasing markets, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands distinguish themselves with a high but nevertheless stagnating share of leased fleets, while the other large markets (including France, Italy, Germany) have significantly extended the penetration of fleet leasing; Spain also belongs to this category but at a notably higher share of leasing, even if this dynamic is currently on hold; finally the smaller newcomers, among which Poland leads the game, having recovered part of its backlog with a noticeable leap.

CAGR 2011/2002*

+24 %

United Kingdom France Germany Netherlands Italy Spain Belgium Portugal Greece Poland Czech Republic Switzerland Austria Romania Luxembourg Hungary Slovakia

+20 % Size of bubbles > Full service leasing fleet in 2011

+16 %

+12 %

+8 %

+4 %

+0 %

Europe CAGR = +2,6 %

Share of full service leasing in business fleet in 2011

+-4 % 0%

8%

16 %

24 %

32 %

40 %

48 %

56 %

Sources : local associations, Arval estimates Date include all passengers cars and light commercial vehicles up to 3,5 tons *CAGR 2011/2007 for Romania

FLEET EUROPE # 58

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FLEET EUROPE # 58

+4 % 8

8

7

7

2008

2009

2010

8

+0 % 2011

Operating leasing (%)

Europe CAGR = +2,6 %

Share of full service leasing in business fleet in 2011

2012

Base : companies with corporate vehicles +-4car %credit Self-purchase = outright purchase + credit (another than Data have been consolidated over three years average for France,0Germany, Italy,8Portugal, Switzerland, % % 16 % Poland, Belgium, Czech Republic, Spain, UK, Greece - one year for the Netherlands

dossier I Leasing Strategy

24 %

32 %

40 %

48 %

56 %

Sources : local associations, Arval estimates Date include all passengers cars and light commercial vehicles up to 3,5 tons *CAGR 2011/2007 for Romania

Beyond these persistant contrasts across countries, the global evolution of the main financing methods (Charts 2 a & b) confirms 100 empl. the opposite situation of operating ARVAL used cars market Index Seasonnallyleasing adjusted across size segments.

Chart 2a - Main fleet financing method of European business

39

36

38

39

36

39

36

110

36

34

32

Index 100 = Jan 2007 to March 2008

105

23

2

25

2

3

24

24

3

3

Businesses above 100 employees analysed by the CVO (only since 2008) show a clear challenge between operating leasing and a firmly resilient outright purchase.

The latter managed even to briefly regain its passed domination in 2011; it keeps imposing its popularity in countries like Switzerland, Poland and Greece, but also the UK itself.

Below 100 employees fleet leasing is in the contrary at the bottom end of the picture, with a clear domination of purchased fleets; the timid growth of operating lease is rather achieved against finance lease and credits.

Operating leasing (%)

100

26

95

Self purchase (%)

90

Finance leasing (%)

85

Car credit (%)

80

2008

2009

2010

2011

201275

5 6 5 7 5 5 6 6 6 7 9 7 7 9 8 9 8 0 8 0 8 0 0 9 1 1 1 1 2 00 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 201 201 201 201 201 201 201 201 201 04 07 10 01 04 07 10 01 04 07 10 01 04 07 10 01 04 07 10 01 04 07 10 01 04 07 10 01

-2

01

Base : companies with corporate vehicles Self-purchase = outright purchase + credit (another than car credit Data have been consolidated over three years average for France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Switzerland, Poland, Belgium, Czech Republic, Spain, UK, Greece - one year for the Netherlands

Finally, in quantitative terms, the overall impression for specialised fleet lessors is that hardly half of the task is done and an immense potential remains within reach in small and medium enterprises for those able to set up the adequate sales approach. Will they be the existing captive networks, the multi-brand or a new generation of providers? The field is open.

Service integration made the difference During these past ten years, competition among funding modes have been widely ruled by the two key differentiating features of fleet operating lease: the integration of services and the asset risk.

The increase over the years of the subscription of services within fleet leases is a good indication of how deeply the roots of this product have grown. Levels of 70 to 90% on maintenance and tyres are now common in large businesses with over hundred employees, the subscription measured by the CVO, passing 80% in the Netherlands

Chart 2b - Main fleet financing method of European business

100 empl.

44

49

46

46

49

Self purchase (%) 32

31

30

29

29

15

15

14

14

7

7

8

8

8

2008

2009

17

2010

2011

Finance leasing (%) Car credit (%) Operating leasing (%)

2012

Base : companies with corporate vehicles Self-purchase = outright purchase + credit (another than car credit Data have been consolidated over three years average for France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Switzerland, Poland, Belgium, Czech Republic, Spain, UK, Greece - one year for the Netherlands

lessors: CO2 reporting, telematic and the UK. On the contrary, interest for insurance and accident services or accounting support to management remains strongly deal with new leasing standards are Chart 2a - Main fleet France financing method European business contrasted with being of among these recent expectations. among the smallest subscribers.

However, a contrary move has also On more innovative services, the been observed: alternatively to the 100 empl.

39 39 39 expectation of38 fleet users was 36 integrated services of one lessor, rather encouraged by the crisis 36 the period has seen the emergence 36 36 34 episodes experienced over these of specialised fleet service providers 32 Operating leasing (%) ten years and fed innovation among who have proposed not only to advise 23

25

26

24

24

Self purchase (%) Finance leasing (%)

FLEET EUROPE # 58 2

2

3

3

3

Car credit (%)

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dossier I Leasing Strategy

fleet managers but to unbundle the elements of services offered so far by leasing companies; some propose to pick up the most competitive segments in each player’s offers – lessor, insurer, repair networks, etc – and integrate them into their own bundle of services. This approach has attracted various large fleet users and has stirred to some extent an added competition in the industry.

However, with an added cost layer to be absorbed and a commodity-like approach of procurement, the business model still struggles to assert its cost effectiveness and Size of bubbles > Full service leasing fleet in 2011 added quality, and only a handful of fleet service operators seem to have secured their viability.

GR 2011/2002*

+24 %

+20 %

+16 %

The maturity test: the used car markets Reliable data studying used cars markets are scarce and often hardly consistent on long periods. It is a fact +8 % however that remarketing activities have been shaken over these ten year by amplitudes of adjustments that were so far unknown to most professionals. The first +4 % half of the decade witnessed a number of sporadic localised crises, notably stirred by an increasing Europe CAGR = +2,6 % +0 % freedom of intra European cross border transactions that brought adjustments of some countries’ markets to surrounding price levels. Some well established markets, +-4 % so far relatively stable and32sometimes 0% 8% 16 % 24 % % 40 % too reliant 48 % on generally accepted pricing guides, were shaken by harsh ources : local associations, Arval estimates ate include all passengers cars and light commercial vehicles up to 3,5 tons adjustments. External factors also interfered strongly, CAGR 2011/2007 for Romania like in the case of the sudden closure of the Algerian market in 2005 to categories of used vehicles offered by lessors, or the impact on premium used cars of the drop of eastern European exchange rates.

+12 %

Chart 3 ARVAL used cars market Index

110

Seasonnally adjusted

Index 100 = Jan 2007 to March 2008

105

100

95

90

85

80

75 5 6 5 7 5 5 6 6 6 7 9 7 7 9 8 9 8 0 8 0 8 0 0 9 1 1 1 1 2 00 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 201 201 201 201 201 201 201 201 201 04 07 10 01 04 07 10 01 04 07 10 01 04 07 10 01 04 07 10 01 04 07 10 01 04 07 10 01

-2

01

2007-March 2008. It illustrates the depth of the adjustment suffered by used car markets. Not less relevantly it also highlights their only partial recovery ever since.

Today, while the industry in its majority apply advanced control tools elaborated through the previous troubles, the current period casts new doubts on the evolution of United Kingdom used cars markets, again putting to the test the resale France processes of leasing companies and the nerves of their Germany shareholders.

Netherlands Italy Shareholders watch profit & loss accounts. It should Spain be remembered that IAS asset reevaluation rules Belgium Portugal were implemented as from 2004 by all traded leasing Greece companies.

Their strongly procyclical effect generated Poland violentCzech adjustments in the accounts of some of the most Republic Switzerland prominent leasing players, sharpening the caution of Austria current owners and potential new investors.

Romania The acute risk awareness among leasing providers Luxembourg Hungary shareholders that emerged from these and their Slovakia circumstances undoubtedly contributed to the maturity of the industry. Residual value risk has become the focus area in any merger or acquisition in the industry. It was Share of full service leasing however soon going to be completed by another one: in business fleet in 2011 funding. new funding reality 56 The % Direct bank owned leasing companies as well as manufacturers’ captives have long drawn their funding from the bank system with no substantial limitation of volumes. After the interbank crisis suddenly capped available liquidities, lessors had to explain to their customers that liquidity costs had become a substantial part of the funding cost. The Basel regulations that now governs the allocation of funds are directly conditioning the ability of any leasing provider to fund its new operations. Bank subsidiaries are not exempt of these tensions reflected in their internal funding conditions; financial captives of industrial groups are affected in the same way since they have seen the CDS increase the cost of direct emissions and are widely funded as well by banking groups. Quantitative funding restrictions, a new reality in this industry’s landscape, are likely to trigger some future transactions on leasing companies, or alternatively to block others in the absence of liquidity on investors’ side.

All in all, it has been ten fascinating, breath taking and nerve testing years, probably just what one needs to get prepared for 10 more years of transformation. ■

These rough lessons were however just a preparation for the used car crisis that was to come from the summer 2008. The Chart 3 is based on an analysis of each used car sale by Arval over the period and measures the difference of actual prices to statistical long term resale values. Observed differences are expressed in an index for which value 100 reflects the pre-crisis period January Chart 2b - Main fleet financing method of European business

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FLEET EUROPE # 58

100 empl.

Vincent Rupied Arval Strategic Marketing & CSR Director

FLEET EUROPE # 58

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If there is one trend about which almost all leasing companies are in agreement, it is that the industry is still set to see further consolidation via mergers and takeovers. It is often not possible to know of such transactions until they are completed and the ink is on the page, but it is interesting here to take a look at what some of the major players told us about recent moves and future plans.

...................................................

S

ome of these involve genuine mergers of one sort or another which have recently taken place.

Of equal interest, however, are the expansion plans of the major companies, which may well lead to more mergers either between established heavyweights or by partnering with smaller local operators.

The biggest takeover last year was the acquisition of ING Car Lease by Alphabet.

On the picture, the two coCEO’s of the new Alphabet, Norbert van den Eijnden en Ed Frederiks.

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FLEET EUROPE # 58

>>

dossier I Leasing Strategy

The consolidation trend continues • ALD Automotive states that its strategic partnership with Wheels, Inc. in North America is showing extremely promising results for its global key customers. For 2012, the same priorities will remain, with a strong focus on emerging fleet markets.

• Alphabet was involved in some of the major transactions of 2011 with the acquisition of ING Car Lease in September. This boosted the company’s growth sharply and Alphabet now ranks among the top five in the segment. Alphabet has also partnered with UniCredit Fleet Management, a subsidiary of UniCredit Leasing, and established a network in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Romania. The long-term goal is to continue adding countries to the Alphabet network.

• In January 2012, Arval announced the opening of a subsidiary in Denmark, as the first step in a broader plan to become established in Scandinavian countries: a subsidiary in Finland will be opened in the next few months. Recently Arval realized also newly-acquired subsidiaries such as Commerz Real Autoleasing in Germany. Arval is also making progress in emerging markets including Brazil, India and Turkey.

Next to that the PHH Arval Global Alliance has expanded Down Under. Its new strategic partner in Australia and New Zealand is sgfleet.

• Hertz signed an agreement to acquire Donlen in 2011. Donlen is a leading provider of fleet leasing and management services in North America.

• LeasePlan is looking at setting up an operation in Russia in 2012. This is initially to support the requirements of its international customers and recognise the growth potential in the Russian market. Last year, LeasePlan was able to strengthen its lease activity in Portugal, through the takeover of SC Multirent.

• Last month Business Lease Group, operating in full operational service leasing and mobility services in the Netherlands and Central Europe, acquired KBC Autolease Polska. KBC Autolease Polska has a fleet of some 2,800 cars in its Polish portfolio. The takeover brings the total number of cars held by Business Lease Poland to 6,100 cars.

Leasing companies are looking beyond their roots and a further consolidation of the lease market is expected in the years to come.

•A thlon Car Lease is currently preparing for the opening of a new subsidiary in Sweden. Expanding into this new market is a result of Athlon’s strategy to follow customers into new markets, in order to provide a seamless international service.

•D aimler started its Mercedes-Benz Financial Services operations in India last year. The company says that it is constantly evaluating market opportunities in growth markets and additional innovative financial services products.

• North America’s second largest vehicle fleet management organisation ARI, announced at the end of last year that it has acquired a UK company, Fleet Support Group. Fleet Support Group was in operation since 1987 and had 55,000 vehicles (cars and trucks) in its portfolio.

It is clear that the leasing companies are looking beyond their roots, and the landscape may look quite different again a year from now. The expansion strategies on the one hand, and the important cash requirements on the other hand are of big influence here. If we may believe the specialists this landscape will count less players, with a clear distinction between the true international lease players and the regional and local oriented lease companies. ■

Tim Harrup & Steven Schoefs

FLEET EUROPE # 58

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dossier I Leasing Strategy

Future outlook

CSR

Strategy and products

Organisation and evolution

Who’s who in lease land?

P.18

ALD Automotive

Arval

Mike Masterson, CEO

Philippe Bismut, CEO

Total number of staff

Over 4,300

Total number of staff

4,400

Shareholders

Société Générale

Shareholders

BNP Paribas Group

Active in the market since

1947

Active in the market since

1989

Presence in Europe

29 countries

Presence in Europe

19 countries

Total Vehicles in Europe

881,000

Total Vehicles in Europe

668,000

As of January 1, 2012, ALD Automotive’s fleet included 917,000 passenger vehicles and light commercial vehicles, an increase of 9.0% over the previous year. This follows a growth of 0.9% in 2009 and 6.5% in 2010, and a compound annual growth rate of 9% over the last 9 years. 2011 has been a record year in terms of fleet size, registrations and used car sales. In 2012, full service leasing should show moderate growth in Western Europe (around 3%), while other European markets may grow by around 10%. In BRIC countries growth is expected to be strong. ALD Automotive being the only international company that is settled in all of these countries, it expects to gain a competitive advantage from this leading position.

ALD Automotive sees its duties as twofold: Firstly, taking traditional services to another level: more advice on ‘best buy’ selection, more benefits during the contract life through optimizations, closer control and monitoring of all costs. Secondly, ALD Automotive sets out to explore ‘new frontiers’ together with customers. For example, ALD believes that additional cost savings will come from enhancing driver behaviour. This will help to control insurance costs and unexpected repairs. Also, technology – and on board telematics in particular – has a major part to play: in this respect, the ProFleet2 solution offered by ALD Automotive UK is a best seller and is now being deployed in Spain, and other countries will follow. In terms of product development, ALD Automotive explores new mobility services not only related to company cars. The overall economic situation in general, and newly introduced taxation schemes in particular, certainly have an influence over car policies. Overall, the trend is to right-size (or down-size) the car policy in terms of models and engines, and reduce the driver choice to a smaller portfolio of OEMs.There is a structure dedicated to New Business within the Sales and Business Development department of ALD International, whose primary goal is to be the single point of contact of European Procurement counterparts, orchestrate and consolidate the input of the 37 subsidiaries, and handle pan-European strategic negotiations.

ALD Automotive can provide safety and accident management reports on an ad hoc basis. The ProFleet2 solution offered by ALD Automotive UK is a best seller. Several options are available from the track & trace module to the full reporting of driving behaviour (speeding/braking), enabling the customer to target those drivers who are the most at-risk. Since the most adapted transportation mode can also be public transport, ALD offers a mobility budget service now tested in Benelux, enabling employees to tailor their mobility according to their personal needs.

ALD Automotive believe the leasing business will continue to grow, mainly thanks to countries where the leasing solution is not yet popular despite large automotive markets (CEE, BRICs in particular), and thanks the penetration of leasing among SMEs in more mature countries.

• Market: moderate growth, but more and more differentiated across countries • Residual values: quite uncertain and to be monitored closely, but no crisis expected • Electric vehicles: still spreading – user satisfaction and operational details will be key • Mobility: also gaining ground, with the Benelux as a Lab for Europe

FLEET EUROPE # 58

Arval’s leased fleet continued to progress in 2011 (3% up from 2010), supported by the thriving activity of its recently established subsidiaries (Brazil, Russia, India, Turkey…). Leased fleets for instance increased by 36% in both Brazil and India, and 50% in Turkey. Vehicle purchases slightly exceeded the previous record achieved in 2008, with 210,700 units. The number of vehicles sold (191,000) showed strong growth, up 28% compared to the previous year.

The Corporate Centre is responsible to define, implement and manage the group’s strategy at an international level, while ensuring its implementation in each of the subsidiaries. Within Arval the International Business office has been created to address the needs of those Clients who really want to drive an ‘International Approach’.

Arval studies various cost reduction solutions such as systematic model comparison, downsizing, contract optimisation in terms of duration and mileage, and also conducts specific consulting missions based on savings identified through Arval Consulting. Arval Consulting is Arval’s centre of analysis, expertise and advice. Its services are based on consideration of TCO (Total Cost of Ownership), which makes it possible to analyse and compare all the cost parameters (acquisition, utilisation and resale). The corporate mobility plan is proposed as a comprehensive output of these analyses. In 2010, customers who had adopted this approach were able to mitigate the rising cost of financing their fleets and modify their vehicle selection strategy so as to better manage or even reduce their budgets, generating savings of €424 on average per vehicle and per year. Contract extensions are one of the solutions that Arval advices to its customer, in order to soften the impacts of a period of economic turmoil or an increase in the price of liquidity.

Onboard electronic active and passive safety equipment are already an important step toward enhancing driver safety. On top of financial and environmental goals, the objective of Arval’s ‘Measure & Management’ programme is increased safety through improving driver behaviour and reducing accidents. To achieve this, the programme employs two complementary methods: providing eco-driving training to drivers, and monitoring the use of vehicles by means of an embedded telematics solution.

Companies will be more and more seeking integrated solutions and full outsourcing offers from suppliers like Arval, who are prepared to take on risk on their behalf, and to allow them to focus on their core business.

• Market: continued concentration of the industry • Residual values: used car prices are not expected to recover pre-crisis levels • Electric vehicles: : the ‘electric vehicle solution’ does not fulfil every customer’s needs, and we believe it is important to explain the practical implications, economic benefits or potential disadvantages of such a choice.

• Mobility: car-sharing - promoting a new, simple and convenient kind of mobility, which complements other travel systems

Although the product of car leasing is well-known, fixed and well-established, the leasing companies are constantly looking to differentiate themselves from their competitors. They look for new business opportunities, they develop new services and they try to adapt their product in the best possible and least costly way, to the wishes of their clients. Here you can find an overview of the identity cards of the most important lease companies in Europe. We thank the lease companies for sharing their ideas and strategy elements with us.

Alphabet

Athlon Car Lease

Norbert van den Eijnden & Ed Frederiks, co-CEO’s

Hans Blink, CEO

Total number of staff

Over 2,000

Total number of staff

1,100

Shareholders

BMW

Shareholders

De Lage Landen

Active in the market since

1997

Active in the market since

1916

Presence in Europe

18 countries

Presence in Europe

10 countries

Total Vehicles in Europe

Over 440,000

Total Vehicles in Europe

233,000

The acquisition of ING Car Lease in September 2011 boosted the company’s growth sharply. Alphabet now ranks among the top five in the segment with over 474,000 financed cars under management. It is represented in 19 countries. Alphabet will be using this stronger position to design and implement more innovative leasing and business mobility solutions to respond to its customers’ needs. Alphabet is constantly observing new and emerging markets that might show strong growth in the future.

Fleets are a major expense for companies, so customers and prospective clients are often very focused on cost savings. Alphabet has tools to analyse fleets and show direct costs such as fuel, services and taxes, and indirect costs generated by internal processes. Rather than just reducing monthly leasing rates, Alphabet can now lower costs in a sustainable, long-term manner. The car policy essentially determines the choice of vehicle for drivers. Any alterations could have an impact on employee motivation, since cars are often used as incentives. However, changing a car policy is a way to lower costs, so Alphabet tries to achieve this without limiting the drivers’ choices. One example is the introduction of a policy to reduce the carbon footprint without limiting drivers’ options in a certain segment. Drivers often have questions regarding the fleet, be that basic information about vehicles and how to select them, or about operating the vehicles, collecting them, or managing a collision or breakdown.

Alphabet has a fully-fledged programme to respond to these issues. It includes cost-efficient support when selecting vehicles, programmes to reduce fuel consumption and to handle damages. International or pan-European processes are handled by the International Sales and Key Account Management teams. These, in turn, work in close cooperation with local teams. All communication is then geared towards the international and local stakeholders and the drivers as well. Customer needs and individualised service are the focal point of all communication.

The Alphabet safety and accident management reporting tool is ideal when it comes to providing data for analysis. Alphabet compiles a series of responses to reduce the number of accidents and improve driver safety. Drivers might need special training for certain kinds of driving.

In the full-service leasing segment, we are seeing growth in the core markets and very strong growth in the new markets. Products themselves will be more harmonised, too. European tax regulations, specifically regarding VAT, are changing, so customers will be organising their purchases differently. This will have a positive impact on the segment.

• Market: changes and potential changes to taxation in various European markets may have a negative impact on the fleet market • Residual values: residual values seem to have stabilised since 2010 • Electric vehicles: electric vehicles are game-changers that will produce new processes, including pay-per-use models; this also means that third parties will be involved; initiatives are already underway.

• Mobility: comprehensive mobility management will take a hold

Over the last few years, Athlon Car Lease has been able to grow its fleet at a constant pace, resulting in a fleet of over 230.000 contracts at the moment.The traditional emerging markets will be the BRIC countries. There are however still some hurdles to be overcome for these countries before we can speak of a mature full operations car leasing market. Through its presence in 10 European countries and astrong global partner network, Athlon Car Lease is able to offer customers international car leasing and mobility solutions, always taking into account the need for local variance. In 2010, Athlon integrated an international sales team into its organization and renamed it ‘Athlon Car Lease International Sales & Account Management’. At an international level, a dedicated International Tender Manager manages all international tender requests.

Several products that Athlon Car Lease is offering specifically look at cost reduction for customers and how to reduce the environmental impact of their fleet. With Save Lease, Athlon is encouraging drivers to drive in a more regulated (and thus more environmentally friendly and cost cutting) manner, and use the cheapest options to refill with fuel to achieve an overall decrease in fuel costs for customers. With the Cleaner Car Contract, customers are offered advice and help in choosing more environmentally friendly options to reduce their overall costs as well. The Green car policy also encourages customers to go for green cars which will have a direct impact on their overall fleet costs. There is a focus on consulting customers which also means providing advice regarding their car policies. Additionally, Athlon Car Lease has developed a CO2 capped car policy that helps customers implement a policy which reduces their overall CO2 footprint. As part of the policy, drivers themselves are also encouraged and rewarded to go for a lower CO2 emission vehicle.

Athlon is currently working on developing a business case for a one-stop-shop offering with the large CSR-Innovation network to even better support customers in introducing (PI)-hybrids and EVs to their fleets. To ensure maximum benefit, Athlon Car Lease is collaborating closely with all new and existing players in the value chain to reach this goal. Two examples of this are the partnership with Tesla Motors, and involvement in the European Streetscooter project (an initiative by a consortium of firms to develop and manufacture a electric vehicle for the mass market).

Athlon believes that recent trends towards reducing congestion and fuel expenses, an increased interest in and adoption of electric vehicles, a better work-life balance, alternative modes of transport, a new way of working etc. will further increase. It believes that there are now the first signs of a new era of mobility that introduces new demands that will further change.

• Market: further consolidation of the leasing industry and development of high potential markets • Residual values: the past 2 years have shown that a risk reward needs to be included in the leasing price.

• Electric vehicles: Athlon Car Lease is a true believer in the added value of hybrid and electric vehicles to the overall sustainability (monetary and environmentally) of its own organization, as well as of customers.

• Mobility: Athlon Car Lease International has its own dedicated mobility management division Athlon Mobility Consultancy, which gives integral mobility advice based on the pillars of cost efficiency, sustainability and becoming an employer of choice.

FLEET EUROPE # 58

P.19

dossier I Leasing Strategy

GE Capital

LeasePlan

Arthur Mathysen Gerst, Managing Director Fleet Leasing EMEA

Vahid Daemi, CEO Total number of staff

6,257

Total number of staff

19,000 (GE Capital in EMEA)

Shareholders

Volkswagen Bank / Fleet Investments

Shareholders

Public quoted company

Active in the market since 1963 Total Vehicles in Europe

994,000

Total Vehicles in Europe

210,000

Organisation and evolution

24 countries

12 countries

GE Capital combines a decentralized and centralized team structure. It has highly skilled and multicultural PEA account directors and consultants at European level to local sales force and operations in the 12 countries covered across Europe. Activating an international fleet program requires coordination, planning and strong project management. GE Capital has a dedicated Pan-European team that takes care of the implementation process, giving customers a unique point of contact and clear visibility on how the launch is progressing in all markets. The PEA team is also responsible to support PEA Fleet Directors in establishing and rolling out their fleet strategy and ensuring adequate service level delivery in countries. GE Capital combines an international perspective and a thorough understanding of national differences: Our consultants are based in all countries where it operates - their experience in managing pan-European fleets and their knowledge of local regulations and local market expertise are an invaluable resource to help customers transform their fleets.

Strategy and products

Presence in Europe

Presence in Europe

GE Capital has a well-established consulting offering called ‘Key Solutions’ to help customers optimise their fleet costs. GE Capital has dedicated consultants at the pan-European level and in the countries, using consistent processes & methodologies to produce customise cost analysis and recommendations to customers. The dedicated team of 14 key Solutions consultants provides advice and real saving solutions to GE’s customers: In 2011, GE Capital delivered around 1200 cost optimisation studies to customers across Europe and identified €60M potential savings. The crisis has led to: the implementation of greener car policies to save more CO2 and fuel. We are seeing the average CO2 moving below 130 g. As the retail market has been declining, there is a regained focus from car manufacturers on the Fleet Market and therefore some good opportunities for customers.

CSR

Active in the market since 1992

GE Capital is developing Driver training programs. Clear Drive is an ecodriving program designed to promote safer, cleaner and cost-effective driving through web-based tutorials and e-alerts. Clear Drive is available across Europe in 8 languages. The Safe Solutions risk management programme follows the structured five step Six Sigma process to expertly lead customers towards full work related road safety compliance. From legislative guidance to a bespoke programme of auditable driver risk assessments and training, Safe Solutions brings measurable cost savings to customers, captured via on-going cost benefit reviews and supported by a secure online application that provides centralised management and reporting of all risk management activities, such as driver risk assessment status and score, online training status and driver licence points. Safe Solutions is complemented by a comprehensive Accident Management service, one of the benefits of which includes initiation of a proactive driver interview process following an incident, enabling early identification of any remedial action needed.

Future outlook

Customers are outsourcing more and more services as they want to further reduce the resources allocated to car fleet management to focus on their core business. Companies now want the leasing provider to interact directly with drivers.

P.20

• Electric vehicles: municipalities and service companies will continue to drive EV adoption in 2012, commercial businesses will run pilots but with limited volumes.

• Mobility: some new mobility solutions will develop driven by 2 main aspects: first the search for new cost reduction opportunities. Looking at all costs related to business travel rather than just leasing cost will develop. Customers now look at Total Cost of Mobility. Secondly employees are now looking for the best solution to fit their travel needs : this will lead to more flexibility in the leasing products and the development of “tailored” mobility solutions.

FLEET EUROPE # 58

LeasePlan’s fleet size peaked in 2008 at 1.39 million but the financial crisis saw some defleeting as companies looked to reduce staffing overheads.

2010 focused on recovery and in 2011 performance stabilised; part of which was demonstrated by growth in fleet numbers: from 1,293,516 vehicles at the end of 2010 to a fleet of 1,327,943 at the end of 2011 (+34,427 or 2.7%).

LeasePlan’s potential expansion into Russia will be the next focus when it comes to international expansion. It expects to continue growing business the developing markets in which it is already present in as they mature. LeasePlan will also be focusing on the small and medium enterprise segment as it believes this is an opportunity to further expand the client base. Penetration of this segment is at an early stage in some markets and well-established in others. LeasePlan will also be further developing its business in the international fleet segment. LeasePlan’s group structure is designed to encourage best practice sharing and service harmonisation within the different group countries. The LeasePlan countries are grouped into regions that are headed by Regional Senior Vice Presidents who report directly into the Managing Board of LeasePlan Corporation. Each LeasePlan market operates with control of its own financials and local strategy (taking into account the whole group strategy). LeasePlan International (LPI) manages all major international clients through dedicated account management teams.

LeasePlan offers a wide range of consulting and cost reduction support at both local and international levels with the ability to manage the process and support the client in implementing changes. It can provide numerous tools and services, including several globally harmonised solutions related to: fleet policy, safety, environmental , OEM support, cost savings identification, benchmarking (general and market specific), market data & trends, taxation. Additionally, LeasePlan also offers bespoke consultancy services to clients on both local and international level through specialised fleet consultants. Internationally, LeasePlan provides globally consolidated reporting including benchmarking and trend analyses on: • Fleet and OEM composition • TCO and cost saving opportunities • Fleet emissions • Risk management Whenever customers choose to take their accident management service through LeasePlan, the company is able to locally report on many aspects of the accident process (e.g. date, cause, own damage, third party etc.) as well as the claims costs. This information is the basis for detailed analysis and the key to unlocking a successful risk management strategy. For panEuropean insurance contracts LeasePlan is able to provide consolidated international insurance reporting including all relevant insurance key performance indicators such as loss ratio, cost per car, multiple claimants, type of claims and claim frequency. Using this report LeasePlan is able to provide consultancy on reducing loss ratios, driver training etc.

Although the leasing market is seeing some recovery, leasing companies and their clients will still need to approach fleet carefully during the next few years. There are many exciting potential developments in fleet that will see both leasing companies and their clients moving away from purely transactional dealings to more value orientated relationships.

• Market: changes and potential changes to taxation in various European markets may have a impact on the fleet market • Electric vehicles: will continue to grow as a relevant segment for corporate fleets • Mobility: those companies looking at fleet and mobility with a broader value based strategy will continue to lead the market

Business Lease

Sixt Leasing

KBC Autolease

Harm Nijlunsing, CEO

Mark Thielenhaus, CEO Thorsten Haeser Dr. Rudolf Rizzolli

Stany van Besien, CEO

Total number of staff

285

Shareholders

Autobinck Holding

Shareholders

Sixt AG

Active in the market since 1989

Active in the market since 1967

Presence in Europe

5 countries

Presence in Europe

27 countries

Total Vehicles in Europe

43,550

Total Vehicles in Europe

118,000

In recent years, Business Lease has continuously expanded its fleet through acquisitions (Masterlease Netherlands in 2010 and KBC Autolease Polska in 2012) and domestic growth. As a result, the fleet has evolved from 29,900 vehicles in 2009 to a managed fleet of more than 43,550 vehicles in 2012. Despite the economic turmoil, Business Lease anticipates that growth will pick up again in the Central & Eastern European region in the future. Business Lease serves both local and international customers through its local offices or centrally through its international sales team. Business Lease tailors its organization to the needs and requirements of its customers, wherever they may be.

Business Lease provides leasing, financing and mobility services to customers with any type of car brand, passenger car model and/or commercial vehicle.

Business Lease has a concise and no-nonsense approach with a focus on flexibility in terms of service.

Its philosophy revolves around the customer experience and driver requirements. This, together with expert knowledge, contributes to the creation of service packages that meet the highest possible standards.

After all, leasing companies all offer the same cars, so the focus must lie on the performance and quality of the services provided. One of Business Lease’s key strengths is a coordinated regional approach throughout the Business Lease countries, which allows us to offer a consistent level of services and unified contracts for Czech, Dutch, Hungarian, Polish and Slovak-based companies. Although there are clearly local differences between the countries in which we operate, there are also significant similarities, such as the following: • Respect for all of our business partners • Excellent relationship with our suppliers • Commitment to continuity, norms and values • Drive to innovate Mobility and Corporate Social Responsibility have much in common. Business Lease therefore supports and initiates a wide variety of CSR initiatives.

These initiatives provide customers with, for example, environmental and energy-saving consultancy advantages through the internationally nominated Blue Care program. It goes without saying that Business Lease pursues a CO2-neutral policy. Apart from sustainable programs like Blue Care, Business Lease also keeps a keen eye on safety issues. Accident prevention has always been a top priority, which is why, in addition to standard winter tires, Business Lease also offers special driver programs in all countries. Unfortunately, it is simply not possible to prevent all accidents from occurring, so Business Lease helps its customers manage the number of accidents with the aid of (online) reporting tools and personalized advice.

Over the past few years, we have seen an increasing number of leasing companies being sold or simply retreating from the market. Due to the continuing global financial crisis and limited availability of funding, Business Lease expects further consolidation throughout the market in coming years.

•M arket: stable or slightly expanding.

Further consolidation of leasing companies.

•R esidual values: pressure on vehicles that are less fuel efficient •E lectric vehicles: stable/slight growth •M obility: Growing importance

In Europe Sixt Leasing has increased its figures: growth of 14% during the last 7 years, and in spite of the financial crises has maintained stable turnover and profit levels. Sixt Leasing coordinates all international activities from its headquarter in Pullach (Germany) to ensure harmonized services and products. Operations are decentralized to reflect local requirements. Sixt Leasing has started 2011 services in the Netherlands, UK, Northern Ireland; Ireland, Serbia and some further counties outside Europe. Sixt Leasing is about to open in Belgium soon. In at least four further countries in and outside Europe Sixt Leasing will start to offer mobility solutions.

Clients are advised proactively on fleet cost reduction potentials. The international reporting system has been redesigned to increase client transparency and to support thorough analysis further. The new FleetIntelligence could be used on desktop as well as handheld devices. Car policies are adapted to local requirements in order to reflect driving habits, model preferences and ensure ‘best-buy’ options. Sixt International Headquarter receives and analyses all international tenders. After a decision to participate the documents are prepared and allocated in the Sixt International network. Following an internal action list process, during the offer phase questions will be answered, requested cars configured, international calculations consolidated and adjusted. The customer then receives the complete international tender response and offers from one central contact person. Presentations, negotiations and the implementation of international concepts and mobility solutions are centrally coordinated and locally implemented from an operational point of view.

Total number of staff

240

Shareholders

KBC Groep

Active in the market since 1982 Presence in Europe

6 countries

Total Vehicles in Europe

56,000

Despite the economic downturn KBC Autolease reports that its general portfolio grew by 33% during the last 3 years (of which 20% in Belux and 120% in CEE). For the next 3 years, KBC Autoleases is convinced that there is still a potential in the CEE countries even if the growth will be lower than in the past. It expects small growth in Belux too although the new fiscal rules in Belgium might have a negative impact on volumes. KBC Autolease is a subsidiary of the KBC Lease Group which provides a variety of leasing products to 5 core CEE markets, and with its HQ in Brussels. Within this group, KBC Autolease Belgium has been appointed to serve as the competence centre for full-service car leasing, given its more than 25 years experience in this domain.

To support customers in their quest for savings, both quick wins and structural, KBC Autolease has developed the ‘Fleet Performance Indicator’.

This unique and user friendly tool is based on the customer’s actual fleet details and it allows simulations on financially important variables such as fuel consumption, CO2 etc. to be made. For new customers it has a whole set of consulting tools which can be tailored to give specific advice.

KBC Autolease is flexible towards the demands of customers. Together with them it analyzes what options are best for their specific fleet: sometimes it is better to replace existing fleet with, for example, greener cars or in other cases the alternative to extend contracts might be the most suitable option. For thePan-EU structure KBC Autolease has chosen to remain lean and simple whereby international staff can fully rely on the support from specialists out of Belgium, while developing the CEE countries and sharing Best Practices. Locally, in the various countries, within the local teams at least one person has been appointed to closely cooperate with the international department and the specialists.

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KBC Autolease has an accident management reporting which includes all types of incidents (including fines).

With the passing of the crisis the trend towards outsourcing of mobility services increases also in CEE countries. Independent leasing companies with an integrated consulting and procurement know-how along with high quality services are better positioned to meet growing requirements, especially in transparency and reporting.

The evolution involves a changing approach from full service leasing companies towards risks which are inherent to their business activities: stronger credit policies; closer customer monitoring – payment behaviour; more prudent residual value settings.

• Market: increasing • Residual values: recovering, but not to precrisis level • Electric vehicles: slightly increasing with growing car alternatives • Mobility: one stop shopping, growing flexibility, extension of mobility services

• Market: stagnation in Western countries, small growth in CEE. • Residual values: stabilised • Electric vehicles: starting small growth • Mobility: progressively more interest for global mobility

FLEET EUROPE # 58

P.21

dossier I Leasing Strategy

Daimler Financial Services

Citroën Finance Banque PSA Finance

Volkswagen Financial Services

Klaus Entenmann, CEO

Philippe Alexandre, CEO

Frank Witter, CEO

Total number of staff

2,800

Total number of staff

7,322

Daimler AG

Shareholders

Shareholders

Volkswagen AG

Active in the market since

1960

PSA Peugeot Citroën

Presence in Europe

14 countries

Active in the market since

1949

Presence in Europe

17 countries

Presence in Europe

29 countries

Figures have developed steadily according to strategic milestones. Daimler Fleet Management is focusing on its core strengths and joins forces with its affiliate automotive partner MercedesBenz in order to offer its customers the maximum in one-stop shopping service: vehicle + services from one source, keeping the total fleet efficiency in mind. The Corporate Sales Team is in charge of acquiring and managing international fleets in cooperation with the national Daimler Fleet Management and Mercedes-Benz Financial Services companies and the local MercedesBenz sales organizations – with a focus on keeping smooth implementation processes at a local level and taking care of everyday fleet matters, always keeping local regulations and requirements in mind.

Daimler AG is constantly improving the TCO of the vehicles offered. Daimler Financial Services contributes with attractive leasing and service offers as well as tailored insurance solutions with discounts for safety technology.It looks at the car policy on a constant basis. New vehicles are launched constantly, in particular with new engines and engine types which are developed.

So it is only through continuous updating that the car policy and the fleet remain efficient and driver-friendly at all times. The Corporate Sales Team will be a customer’s main contact for panEuropean or Worldwide RFP’s and RFQ’s. Daimler Financial Services provides consolidated information and a tailored offer for customers’ requirements.

Future outlook

CSR

Organisation and evolution

7,065

Shareholders

Strategy and products

Total number of staff

P.22

Daimler Financial Services provides its customers with accident management reports, providing information about the type of accidents and the damage. In addition, it organizes driver safety training for fleet managers in order to increase awareness for safety topics. Telematics are already a ‘must’ on the commercial vehicles side.

With the upcoming rise in numbers of e-vehicles in fleets, telematic solutions may also make sense, for example in checking the battery volume of these vehicles at all times.

As times are challenging customers need a reliable partner that offers quality services and can cope with the future challenges such as new power-train concepts and IFRS definition/introduction.

• Market: stable with a trend to increase.

• Residual values: stable with a trend to increase • Electric vehicles: growth at lower levels

FLEET EUROPE # 58

Total Vehicles in Europe 211,000

The Citroën portfolio has increased, by 2% in 2011 compared to 2009. This has been achieved despite considerable variations from country to country depending on the extent to which the economic crisis affected the various markets. Progress has been due in particular to maintaining a good quality loan book, a responsive strategy on refinancing in line with the extremely tight market, and a successful range of vehicles with the launch of new C3, C3 Picasso, new C4, new C5, new Berlingo & Nemo and the new DS Line over the last 3 years. Residual values have remained stable at a good level compared to others leasing companies. Innovative services have been launched, including the creation of full services packages, insurance & telematics services. These have been made available to as many entities as possible. Coordination and support for local branches – which have the benefit of their own sales and marketing teams – is handled centrally.

The company is developing a dedicated leasing offer for electric vehicles. It also offers specific follow up of real fuel consumption and CO² emissions.

The support for Citroën’s business growth is also provided via a wide range of financial solutions for business customers. The bank provides all forms of purchase, financial and operational lease agreements, along with a range of services designed to respond to customer needs. Citroën Finance is wholly integrated in the business process of Citroën and its network: for example, the Citroën Finance quotation system is linked with the Citroën reference system which guarantees the automatic update of car specifications, prices, discounts and residual values. In addition, maintenance contracts are exclusively design by Citroën, and Citroën cars are exclusively repaired at Citroën official dealers’ or service points with genuine Citroën parts. All work can be carried out at the same place: maintenance, tyres, windscreen, repairs following a road accident… This integration fully optimizes the supplier chain for the customers: Brand / Finance / Network.

Accident management is available via insurance provided by local services in selected countries.

At a global level, driver safety is a priority for the PSA group. Since, 2003 there have been more than 400,000 Citroën vehicles supplied with Ecall/bCall across Europe.

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From 2009 to 2011 Volkswagen Financial Services has grown 1.101.000 to 1.203.000 contracts worldwide. It will continue to exploit the further growth potential in mature European markets based upon its solid market position and good customer relations on all steps of the value chain: • Expansion in the insurance business • Expansion in the segment of nearly new used cars • Expansion in worldwide fleet management Growth in developing markets in Eastern Europe, especially Russia, Asia and Latin America based on experience in the established markets.

In general Volkswagen Financial Services has a TCO approach for international customers needs and main drivers are: cost awareness, green fleet demand, internationalization and complexity. Innovative mobility packages address customer relevant topics, for example the TEAM-Edition at football championships, fuel efficiency… The Volkswagen Financial Services offering includes an attractive vehicle, a financing or lease offer including auto insurance, an extended warranty, up to four years of maintenance and inspection. Product packages offer customers comprehensive mobility based on calculable monthly costs, help to avoid discussions about price and discounts, lead to positive effects on volumes and prices and protect residual values.

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Exploitation of further growth potential in mature European markets based upon Volkswagen Financial Services’ solid market position and good customer relations at all stages of the value chain: • Expansion in the insurance business • Expansion in the segment of nearly new used cars • Expansion in worldwide fleet management Growth in developing markets in Eastern Europe, especially Russia, Asia and Latin America based on Volkswagen Financial Services’ experience in the established markets

Peugeot Finance Banque PSA Finance Philippe Alexandre, CEO Total number of staff

3,000

Shareholders

PSA Peugeot Citroën

Presence in Europe

14 countries

Total Vehicles in Europe

227,000

The portfolio has slightly decreased, by 2% in 2012 compared to 2009 although there are wide variations from one country to another depending on the extent of the crisis on local car markets. Decreases have been limited, however, thanks to maintaining a good quality loan book, a responsive strategy on refinancing aligned with the extremely tight market and a successful range of vehicles with the launch of 3008, 5008, new 308, 207, 206+, Bipper, new Partner, RCZ and the 508 over the last 3 years.

Peugeot can also count on a good level of residual values, and has launched innovative services, with the creation of full services packages, insurance & telematics services, rolling these out to a maximum number of entities. The Central Office has responsibility for coordinating and supporting the various branches. Each European country has a marketing and commercial team dedicated to B2B customers.

The Peugeot offering includes the development of dedicated leasing offer for EV’s with a split or global offer. The company always promotes the best in class Peugeot vehicle in term of consumption. Online Fleet Management Solutions are provided in 6 countries (France, UK, Spain, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands) including certain main functionalities: over/under mileage follow up, contract duration, upload of personalized reports, telematics reports, follow up of the maintenance interventions on vehicles. Additionally, the service offering includes follow up on fuel refilling, fuel consumption estimation, recording of fines. End of contract services include the return of vehicle declaration, and during a contract life Peugeot takes care of reporting on claims (accident, theft, wreck). Peugeot Finance supports Peugeot business growth by offering a large range of financial solutions for business customers. Peugeot Finance provides all forms of purchase, financial and operational lease agreements, along with a wide range of services meeting fleet customers’ needs.

Accident management is available with insurance provided by Peugeot services in selected countries.

Security of employees is addressed via Peugeot Connect SOS and assistance allied to Peugeot Connect Fleet. There is also complete monitoring of CO2 emission in order to ensure that clients can achieve more respect for the environment.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

FGA Capital Oddone Incisa, CEO Total number of staff

1,997 (staff of FGA Capital company)

Shareholders

Fiat Group Automobiles / Crédit Agricole

Active in the market since

Over 80 years

Presence in Europe

7 countries

Car leasing has still room for growth, certainly in the new and emerging markets.

Total Vehicles in Europe 137,000

The volumes are stable compared to the previous year. FGA Capital is organized on a Pan European basis, decentralized. At central level FGA Capital (HQ) defines strategies and develops agreements with third parties.

FGA Capital is able to offer to the customer a number of models with low TCO (total cost of ownership). Thanks to a full range of models, FGA Capital is able to offer downsizing to the customer.

All customers can have access to reports that are focused on accident management. FGA Capital also supports fleet customers in safe driving programs in cooperation with its insurance company.

Basically this depends on the European accounting rules. The Full Operational lease (off balance sheet) product will remain attractive to customers but more and more the focus will be on service products. The lease companies will act as super fleet managers without having the cars as assets on their balance sheets.

• Market: stable • Residual values: due to the commercial policies on new vehicles, the RV could be under pressure • Electric vehicles: will not grow • Mobility: no relevant evolution

Electric vehicles’ sales will continue to increase in the coming years, but not in every customer segment.

Fleet customers are outsourcing more and more services as they look for dedicated specialists to manage their fleet.

Residual values are recovering but will not reach the precrisis level.

FLEET EUROPE # 58

P.23

dossier I Leasing Strategy

Leasing presence country by country Austria

Belgium

Czech Republic

ALD Belgium T. fleet: 63,160 FSL+FL: 44,896 FM: 18,264

ALD Czech Republic T.fleet: 12,242 FSL+FL: 12,153 FM: 89

Croatia

Denmark

Finland

France

Germany

ALD Finland T. fleet: 19,001 FSL+FL: 17,819 FM: 1,182

ALD France T. fleet: 287,591 FSL+FL: 178,136 FM: 109,455

ALD Germany T. fleet: 116,030 FSL+FL: 58,362 FM: 57,668

Estonia

Greece

ALD International

ALD Austria T. fleet: 3,934 FSL+FL: 3,398 FM: 536

Alphabet International

Alphabet Austria Alphabet Belgium Present Fuhrparkman- T. fleet: 32,698 agement GmbH T. fleet: 3,881

-

Alphabet Danmark T. fleet: 1,059

-

Alphabet France Alphabet T. fleet: 60,238 Fuhrparkmanagement GmbH T. fleet: 108,441

Arval (*)

Arval Autria LF: 298

-

-

-

-

Arval France LF: 209,717

Arval Germany LF: 30,283

Athlon Car Lease International

Through Partner Athlon Car Lease Belgium T. fleet: 40,538

Through Partner -

-

-

-

Athlon Car Lease France T. fleet: 32,834

Athlon Car Through Partner Lease Germany T. fleet: 25,733

Business Lease

-

-

Business Lease Czech Republic T. fleet: 7,000

-

-

-

-

-

LeasePlan International

LeasePlan Österreich T. fleet: 24,182

LeasePlan Fleet LeasePlan Ceská Management N.V Republika s.r.o T. fleet: 54,813 T. fleet: 18,145

LeasePlan Danmark A/S T. fleet: 23,470

-

LeasePlan Finland Oy T. fleet: 19,224

LeasePlan LeasePlan France S.A.S. Deutschland T. fleet: 100,515 GmbH T. fleet: 79,883

LeasePlan Hellas SA T. fleet: 10,252

Citroën Finance

Citroën Bank T. fleet: 7,291

Citroën Lease T. fleet: 6,473

Citroën Business Finance T. fleet: 24

-

-

-

-

Citroën BusiCitroën Bank ness Finance T. fleet: 50,225 T. fleet: 101,432

-

Sixt Leasing AG

Sixt Austria Headquarters Sixt Leasing Austria

Starting 2012

Sixt Czech Republic Headquarters Speed Lease a.s.

Sixt Croatia Headquarters A-Anticus d.o.o.

Sixt Denmark Headquarters Mobility Service Danmark A/S

Sixt Estonia Headquarters Transporent OÜ

Starting 2012

Sixt France Headquarters Sixt Location Longue Durée

Sixt International Sixt Greece Headquarters Headquarters Sixt Leasing AG Lion Rental S.A.

Peugeot Finance

Peugeot Bank T. fleet: 8,497

Peugeot Lease T. fleet: 5,783

Peugeot Finance T. fleet: 35

-

-

-

Peugeot Lease T. fleet: 99,537

Peugeot Bank T. fleet: 65,157

-

KBC Autolease

-

KBC Autolease Belgium FSL: 41,187

CSOB Autolease Czech T. fleet: 5,565

-

-

-

-

-

-

Daimler Financial Services

Daimler Fleet Management Austria Mercedes-Benz Financial Services Austria GmbH

Daimler Fleet Management BeLux Mercedes-Benz Financial Services BeLux NV

MercedesBenz Financial Services Ceská republika s.r.o.

-

MercedesBenz Finans Danmark AS

-

-

Mercedes-Benz Daimler Fleet Financial Management Services France GmbH S.A.

-

FGA Capital

-

-

-

-

FGA Capital Danmark A/S T. fleet: 109 FSL: 109

-

-

Fal Fleet Services S.A. T. fleet: 36,135 FSL: 24,149 FM: 11.986

-

-

GE Capital (*)

Present (via Germany)

Present

-

-

-

-

-

Present

Present

-

Volkswagen Financial Services

Porsche Bank AG s.a. Volkswagen ŠkoFIN s.r.o.

Via Partnership D’Ieteren Finance n.v.

Partnership with Porsche Bank Austria

-

Partnership with Nordea Bank

-

Volkswagen Bank

Volkswagen Leasing GmbH

Volkswagen Bank GmbH

(*)

Arval Begium LF: 27,281

Arval Czech Republic LF: 9,044

These figures are dated end of December 2011

P.24

FLEET EUROPE # 58

ALD Croatia T. fleet: 2,850 FSL+FL: 2,768 FM: 82

ALD Denmark T. fleet: 20,273 FSL+FL: 17,395 FM: 2,878

ALD Estonia T.fleet: 1,077 FSL+FL: 1,071 FM: 6

ALD Greece T. fleet: 3,940 FSL+FL: 3,940 FM: -

Arval Hellas LF: 2,416

-

T. fleet Total fleet / FSL Full Service Leasing / FL Financial Leasing / FM Fleet Management / LF Leased Fleet

Alongside the information on their strategies and developments (see pages 18 to 23) the major leasing companies have advised us of their presence in the different countries within and outside of Europe.

The figures that you will find on the following pages are dated end of February 2012.

Hungary

Ireland

Italy

Latvia

Lithuania

Luxemburg

Netherlands

Norway

Poland ALD Poland T. fleet: 6,997 FSL+FL: 6,716 FM: 281

Portugal

Romania

ALD Hungary T. fleet: 3,975 FSL+FL: 3,609 FM: 366

ALD has a partnership with Johnson &Perrott

ALD Italy T. fleet: 100,387 FSL+FL: 99,125 FM: 1,262

ALD Latvia T. fleet: 1,122 FSL+FL: 1,115 FM: 7

ALD Lithuania T. fleet: 763 FSL+FL: 747 FM: 16

ALD Luxemburg T. fleet: 8,966 FSL+FL: 8,764 FM: 202

ALD Netherlands T. fleet: 24,067 FSL+FL: 22,344 FM: 1,723

ALD Norway T. fleet: 8,516 FSL+FL: 6,168 FM: 2,348

Present

-

Alphabet Italia S.p.A T. fleet: 25,378

-

-

Alphabet Luxembourg SA T. fleet: 1,450

Alphabet Nederland B.V. T. fleet: 87,341

Alphabet Fleet Alphabet Services Norge Polska Fleet T. fleet: 82 Management T. fleet: 10,343

Arval Hungary LF: 3,191

-

Arval Italy LF: 131,410

-

-

Arval Luxemburg LF: 3,130

Arval Netherlands LF: 29,703

-

Through Partner

Through Partner

Athlon Car Lease Italy T. fleet: 7,273

-

-

Athlon Car Lease Luxemburg T. fleet: 1,826

Athlon Car Lease Netherlands T. fleet: 114,156

Athlon Car Lease Athlon Car Lease Poland Portugal T. fleet: 2,938 T. fleet: 1,150

Business Lease Hungary T. fleet: 1,750

-

-

-

-

Business Lease Netherlands T. fleet: 26,000

Business Lease Poland T. fleet: 6,100

-

LeasePlan Hungária Zrt T. fleet: 8,862

LeasePlan Ireland T. fleet: 10,092

LeasePlan Italia S.p.A. T. fleet: 88,152

Via Partnership Via Partnership LeasePlan Lux- LeasePlan LeasePlan embourg S.A. Nederland N.V. Norge AS T. fleet: 7,975 T. fleet: 119,541 T. fleet: 36,965

LeasePlan Fleet Management Polska SP. z.o.o.

T. fleet: 18,609

LeasePlan Portugal T. fleet: 93,348

LeasePlan Romania T. fleet: 6,267

-

-

Citroën renting T. fleet: 1,176

Sixt Hungary Headquarters Wallis Autóparkkezelö Kft. -

Arval Poland LF: 15,507

ALD Portugal T. fleet: 13,530 FSL+FL: 12,709 FM: 821

ALD Romania T. fleet: 6,735 FSL+FL: 5,344 FM: 1,391

-

Present

Arval Portugal LF: 7,031

Arval Romania LF: 4,297

-

-

Citroën Lease T. fleet: 1,854

-

-

Citroën renting T. fleet: 1,698

Sixt Ireland Sixt Leasing Italy Sixt Latvia Headquarters Partner Headquarters New leasing Leasys S.p.A. Transporent SIA. franchise partner in May 2011

Sixt Lithuania Headquarters Transporent UAB

-

Sixt Benelux Headquarters Sixt Leasing BV

-

Sixt Poland Headquarters Eurorent Sp. z.o.o.

-

Sixt Romania Headquarters Sixt New Kopel Romania SRL

-

Peugeot Lease T. fleet: 3,091

-

Peugeot Leasing

Peugeot Renting T. fleet: 2,580

-

-

KBC Autolease Polska T. fleet: 2,830

-

Peugeot Renting T. fleet: 2,178

-

-

-

K&H Autolease T. fleet: 2,058

-

-

-

KBC Autolease Luxemburg FSL: 3,366

-

-

Mercedes-Benz Financial Services Italia Mercedes-Benz CharterWay S.p.A.

-

MercedesBenz Financial Services BeLux NV

Daimler Fleet Management Netherlands MercedesBenz Financial Services Nederland B.V.

Mercedes-Benz MercedesLeasing Polska Benz Financial Sp. z.o.o.

Services Portugal -Instituição Financeira de Crédito S.A.

-

-

-

Leasys S.p.A. T. fleet: 92,047 FSL: 88,148 FM: 3,899

-

-

-

FGA Capital Netherland BV T. fleet: 1,521 FSL: 1,378 FM: 143

-

-

-

-

-

-

Present

-

-

Present

Present

-

-

Present

-

Partnership with Porsche Bank Austria

Volkswagen Bank GmbH

Volkswagen Leasing GmbH

Partnership with Nordea Bank

Partnership with Nordea Bank

Partnership Volkswagen with importer Pon Financial Aautodisfusion Services Losch

Volkswagen Møller BILFinans AS

Volkswagen VW Financial Bank Polska Services S.A. Volkswagen Leasing Polska S.A.

(*)

These figures are dated end of December 2011

Partnership with Porsche Bank Austria

T. fleet Total fleet / FSL Full Service Leasing / FL Financial Leasing / FM Fleet Management / LF Leased Fleet

FLEET EUROPE # 58

P.25

dossier I Leasing Strategy

Russia

Serbia

Slovakia

ALD International

ALD Russia T. fleet: 12,783 FSL+FL: 11,233 FM:1,550

ALD Serbia T. fleet: 1,795 FSL+FL: 1,781 FM: 14

ALD Slovakia T. fleet: 1,718 FSL+FL: 1,649 FM: 89

Alphabet International

-

-

Present

Arval (*)

Arval Russia LF: 5,616

-

Arval Slovakia LF: 3,871

Athlon Car Lease International

-

-

Through Partner

Business Lease

-

-

LeasePlan International

Planned for expansion 2012/2013

-

Citroën Finance

-

Sixt Leasing AG

Sweden

ALD Slovenia T. fleet: 1,272 FSL+FL: 1,247 FM: 25

ALD Spain T. fleet: 53,126 FSL+FL: 45,545 FM: 7,581

ALD Sweden T. fleet: 18,539 FSL+FL: 15,838 FM: 2,701

ALD Switzerland T. fleet: 4,192 FSL+FL: 4,127 FM: 65

ALD Turkey T. fleet: 6,855 FSL+FL: 6,855 FM: -

ALD UK T. fleet: 72,035 FSL+FL: 65,739 FM: 6,296

-

Alphabet Fleet Services Espan_a T. fleet: 34,784

Alphabet Fleet Services Sverige T. fleet: 3,381

Alphabet Fleet Management (Switzerland) Ltd T. fleet: 3,945

-

Alphabet (GB) Limited T. fleet: 104,106

-

Arval Spain LF: 8,052

-

Arval Switzerland LF: 5,598

TEB Arval LF: 6,884

Arval United Kingdom LF: 89,524

-

-

Athlon Car Lease Spain T. fleet: 6,530

Subsidiary Through recently started Partner

Through Partner

Through Partner

-

Business Lease Slovakia T. fleet: 2,700

-

-

-

-

-

-

LeasePlan Slovakia B.V. T. fleet: 6,077

-

LeasePlan Servicios, S.A. T. fleet: 81,917

LeasePlan Sverige AB T. fleet: 27,094

LeasePlan Schweiz AG T. fleet: 15,154

LeasePlan LeasePlan LeasePlan Otomotiv Servis UK Ltd Emirates ve Ticaret T. fleet: 143,732 Joint venture Joint venture

-

-

Citroën Credit & Leasing T. fleet: 16

Citroën Renting T. fleet: 2,651

Citroën Finance T. fleet: 13,817

Citroën Finans

Citroën Contract Motoring T. fleet: 23,880

Sixt Russia Headquarters Limited Liability Company RentaLine

Sixt Serbia Headquarters AAA-1 RENT d.o.o.

Sixt Slovakia Headquarters GentleCar, s.r.o.

Sixt Slovenia Headquarters ANTICUS d.o.o

-

Sixt Swiss Headquarters Sixt Leasing Schweiz AG

Sixt Turkey Headquarters Articar A.S

Sixt Leasing UK Partner Ogilvie Fleet Ltd

Peugeot Finance

-

-

-

Peugeot Financiranje T. fleet: 29

Peugeot Renting T. fleet: 9,181

-

Peugeot Finance T. fleet: 12,802

Peugeot Finans Peugeot Contract Hire T. fleet: 18,055

-

KBC Autolease

-

-

CSOB Autolease Slovakia T. fleet: 1,448

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

Daimler Financial Services

MercedesBenz Financial Services Rus OOO

-

-

-

Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz Financial Finans Sverige Financial SerServices AB vices Schweiz España E.F.C., AG S.A

Mercedes-Benz Finansal Kiralama Türk A.S. Mercedes-Benz Finansman Türk A.S. Daimler Fleet Services A.S.

MercedesBenz Financial Services UK Limited

Porfolio units Commercial Accounts

FGA Capital

-

-

FGA Capital and ALD T. fleet: 2,119 FSL: 2,119

-

-

FGA Capital UK T. fleet: 5,512 FSL: 4,526 FM: 986

137,443 ›210,000

-

Starting 2012

Switzerland

Turkey

UK

Others

Total Europe

Spain

-

Slovenia

ALD Ukraine T. fleet: 4,024 FSL+FL: 3,068 FM: 956

Sixth Leasing Europian partners: Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Israel, Malta, Moldova, Ukrain

-

-

-

Present

Present

Present

-

Present

-

Volkswagen Financial Services

Volkswagen Group Finanz OOO

Partnership with Porsche Bank Austria

Volkswagen Finanncne Sluzby

Partnership with Porsche Bank Austria

Volkswagen leasing

Volkswagen Finans Sverige AB

Partnership with importer AMAG

Volkswagen Doğuş Tüketici Finansmanı A.Ş.

Volkswagen group leasing

Bulgaria Partnership with Porsche Bank Austria

P.26

FLEET EUROPE # 58

668,015 (LF)

43,550 994,269 211,113

118,400

226,890 56,246

-

-

These figures are dated end of December 2011

477,127

232,978

GE Capital (*)

(*)

881,495

T. fleet Total fleet / FSL Full Service Leasing / FL Financial Leasing / FM Fleet Management / LF Leased Fleet

North America

ALD International

Arval (*)

-

-

South America ALD Mexico T. fleet: 7,328 FSL+FL: 5,133 FM: 2,195

Asia Pacific

ALD Brazil T. fleet: 10,288 FSL+FL: 8,815 FM: 1,473

Brasil LF: 10,376

ALD India T. fleet: 7,057 FSL: 7,057

ALD China T. fleet: 961 FSL+FL: 612 FM: 349

India LF: 2,949

Africa ALD Algeria T. fleet: 1,977 FSL+FL: 1,941 FM: 36

ALD Egypt ALD Morocco T. fleet: 643 T. fleet: 5,415 FSL+FL: 643 FSL+FL: 5,411 FM: 4

Moroco LF: 4,805

ROW EU + ROW

ROW 33,669 EU + ROW 915,164 ROW 18,130 EU + ROW 686,145

LeasePlan International

LeasePlan US T. fleet: 210,685

LeasePlan Brazil & LeasePlan Mexico T. fleet: 9,790

ROW 333,317

LeasePlan Australia, LeasePlan India, LeasePlan New Zealand T. fleet: 112,842

EU + ROW 1,327,586 Citroën Finance

-

Argentina: Citroën Financiation T. fleet: 1,212

-

ROW 1,212

-

EU + ROW 212,325 Sixt Leasing AG

-

Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Costa Rica, French. Guy, Dom. Rep., Guadeloupe, Panama, Peru, Uruguay

Singapore, Bahrain, Lebanon, Mongolia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, UAE

Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia

ROW 1,300 EU + ROW 119,700

Peugeot Finance

-

Argentina: Peugeot Financiation Argentina, Brazil, Mexico T. fleet: 1,468

-

ROW 1,468

-

EU + ROW 228,358 Daimler Financial Services

Mercedes-Benz Financial Services USA LLC

GE Capital (*)

US, Puerto Rico, Canada, Mexico

Volkswagen Financial Services

USA: Volkswagen Credit Inc.

(*)

These figures are dated end of December 2011

Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Puerto Rico

Australia, China, Japan, Hong Kong, Israel, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, Dubai, India

JV/Partnership in Costa Rica, Honduras, India, Australia, New Zealand, Guatemala, Nicaragua Japan, S. Korea Thailand (JV/Partnership)

Mercedes-Benz Financial Services South Africa(Pty) Ltd

-

EU + ROW 309,000

EU + ROW 1,400,000

Australia: Volkswagen Financial Services Australia Pty Limited

T. fleet Total fleet / FSL Full Service Leasing / FL Financial Leasing / FM Fleet Management / LF Leased Fleet

FLEET EUROPE # 58

P.27

dossier I Leasing Strategy

Tips & Tricks Top international fleet managers did not gain their fleet management success by accident. They have a methodical and objectives-led approach, and over time this evolves into solid experience. Here, three top international fleet managers pass on their top tips for negotiating with leasing companies.

Firstly, Bruce MacLaren is Global Category Manager with Microsoft, and was the 2010 International Fleet Manager of the Year. To his comprehensive thoughts we are delighted to be able to add those of Karel Boussu (Hospitality & Real Estate Manager at Mobistar) and Jarno Pajunen (Head of Travel & Fleet EMEA at Nokia Siemens Networks).

1

Understand what you are sourcing. Leasing is fundamentally not about price. It is about service. Do not try to fix a service issue simply by issuing a new RFP. Talk to your supplier about your requirements; even after the contract is signed.

Once you fix a problem together with the supplier, try amending your SOW to make sure it doesn’t happen again. Savings do not begin at contract signature. They begin with the implementation and must be measured over the life cycle. If you have a 10% transactional savings…but end up with 15% higher refurbishment costs at the end of contract…have you really saved anything? If you negotiate a volume related bonus how do you know you weren’t paying more than you needed to in the first place? Remember your targets and make sure that your strategy – which has to support your company’s business – is in place.

P.28

FLEET EUROPE # 58

Always remember your targets and make sure that your business strategy is in place

2

Understand what a fixed price means.

The only way to create a fixed price in a volatile pricing environment is to create an insurance margin. So, if the market price varies between 50-100, a leasing company will ‘fix’ a price at 130. You take the risk. That’s the way it works. Techniques like Eubor +- should be used with caution because their net impact is minimal. The cost of funds represents less of the TCO than the residual value.

3

Measure and evaluate what really matters.

General, generic statements of work lead to mediocre service delivery. Take the time to define what quality means to you in objective terms. If you can’t measure it, you can’t evaluate it. Don’t take the opposite extreme: thousands of KPIs. They are meaningless. Better to have less than 20 meaningful KPIs than 100 that you will never use or evaluate.

But ensure that the reporting you have in place is comprehensive and covers the entire fleet.

Jarno Pajunen, Head of Travel and Fleet EMEA, Nokia Siemens Networks

Bruce MacLaren, Senior Category Manager, Microsoft

Define regular review periods with your leasing partners and define who may and will participate

4

Prepare your Supplier Management Supplier Management needs to be planned even in the sourcing stage. Put a balanced score card into the contract. A balanced score card is a means to an end. Only through using it effectively will you see its advantages.

Define regular review periods and define who will participate. You need to measure service delivery, innovation, organizational health, value, and quality. Your processing costs will eat up any negotiated savings. And ensure excellent and continuous collaboration with key suppliers.

5

Be careful what you consider unbundling.

The cost savings promised through unbundling certain aspects must be weighed against the added complexity of managing further supplier relationships. You also need to be cautious as to what you try to unbundle. Fuel, insurance, tyres, and glass can be unbundled.

Accident management could be unbundled. However, any more than that…and most leasing companies will not participate because you are removing too much of their margin… and they can’t get their planned return on investment. At some point, they will simply advise you to go to a bank for funding. The margins they make on the service are justified as long as they are reasonable.

And check what freedom of action you have in terms of tyre suppliers, repairs and maintenance, roadside assistance etc…

Karel Boussu, Facilities and Real Estate Manager, Mobistar

6

One size does not fit all You have to find the best solution for your own company needs.

This will depend on the type of fleet, its size, the geographical coverage, markets etc. Leasing supplier selection is a long term decision – car specific contracts are typically at least 36 months and changing a supplier does not have an immediate impact on the whole fleet.

Nothing in business is free

7

Competition is good Competition between leasing companies leads to moderate pricing. Let leasing companies allied to car manufacturers and those linked to financial institutions compete between themselves. Give the leasing companies a list of predefined offers from the car manufacturers, with pre-defined discounts. Ensure competitive TCO over the long term and beware of ‘buy-in’ prices.

Tim Harrup & Steven Schoefs

FLEET EUROPE # 58

P.29

dossier I Leasing Strategy

A changing landscape

Customers want their leasing providers to take on more of a consultancy role as a mobility provider.

The rapidly changing world of cars, fleets and company mobility in general, is going to have a knock-on effect on leasing companies, or maybe they will be taking the lead.

Take-overs and mergers are a fact of life throughout the increasingly globalising world in which we live. The leasing companies certainly expect to see this continuing. One of the major leasing companies even believes that this evolution is moving in the direction of four major players on the ground.

Growth But along with consolidation, there is also the expectation of growth. This includes growth in core markets (which means Western, but increasingly now Central Europe) and very strong growth in new markets. Some of the ‘emerging’ markets, such as Eastern Europe and the BRIC countries have large automotive markets but a very under-developed leasing sector. The likely trend in these different areas will be that for the mature markets, more growth will come from greater penetration into SMEs, and that for the emerging group, it will start with large companies and filter down.

Mobility In responding to the question of what the future of leasing will look like, all

the major companies put the emphasis on mobility. While the company car remains by far the major solution for ensuring that the personnel can get to work, go and see clients, be motivated to join/stay with the company… things are undeniably changing. Who would have predicted even five years ago that leasing companies would start to offer scooters, bikes, train tickets, carsharing schemes…? But they do now, because they see their role and the products they need to offer changing.

There is a shift towards a better worklife balance, and to make sure they are not left on one side, the leasing companies are expecting to become even more proactively involved in this. “We predict that these trends will become even stronger in the next years and are continuously evolving our offering of products and services to our customers to meet their changing demands”, is the view of one, while another states: “We are experiencing an increased demand from customers towards the leasing provider to take the lead with regard to internal processes too and to take on more of a consultancy role as a mobility provider”. Where the company car driver is involved, leasing companies expect to see more direct interface, acting not just on logistical issues like car selection, delivery etc., but in particular on driver behaviour.

Out of adversity The economic situation around the world is still causing a great deal of concern. And on top of this, new accounting rules could change the playing field. Are these threats for the leasing industry? In some ways of course, yes. But the best players always look to turn adversity into advantage, and the current situation is no exception. There is a belief that it may lead to some customers looking to fleet management more than they have done in the past, because it allows the use of alternative funding schemes while still benefiting from the outsourcing of non-core activities.

Companies will be more and more seeking integrated solutions and full outsourcing offers from suppliers who are prepared to take on risk on their behalf, and to allow them to focus on their core business. In the current economic environment, solid financial forecasting is the key. The management of unbundled services through a multitude of suppliers is expected to only attract a minor part of the market.

The change is comprehensive: new clients, new geographical areas, new products, and above all a new central role as a mobility supplier. “More evolution in the next five years than in the past fifteen…”, to finish with another leasing company quote. ■ Tim Harrup

P.30

FLEET EUROPE # 58

www.vw-leasing-fleet.de/internationalfleet

International Fleet

If you’re looking for a reliable partner regarding international fleet Management, we can offer you cross border solutions and premium services for your fleet, professional full-service-leasing – locally and in Europe. Further information about fleet solutions in Europe can be found at www.vw-leasing-fleet.de/internationalfleet.

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dossier I Leasing Strategy

Straight talk from an All-Star Lineup of Leasing Executives At the NAFA exhibition in St. Louis, one of the most interesting gatherings was a panel of the top North American leasing executives. Each member had five minutes to answer a question, which they had been allocated at random.

A summary of the most important messages from the US.

What will the impact of new accounting regulations be, and what should fleets be doing to prepare?

It is all about having leases on or off the balance sheet. Following input to accounting rules from the industry, there were so many requested changes to the initial exposure draft that they have decided to release a new exposure draft. This is still being awaited, but the likely outcome

Mike Pitcher President and CEO, LeasePlan USA

Are high RV set to continue, and how will this impact fleet planning and policy in areas such as vehicle selection?

This situation tends to show the advantage of a ‘track lease’ rather than a closed end lease, as the resale value of the vehicle goes back to the fleet. There have been a couple of years of unprecedented gains in this area, and I believe this will go on beyond the predicted change of 2013. It also depends on how many vehicles are sold.

George Kilroy President and CEO, PHH Arval

What do you predict in terms of fuel prices and maintenance costs?

We are not going to see technology in vehicles slow down, it brings a great deal of advantages, even if it does cost more. Technology will have a huge impact in driver safety, and also help in fuel economy. It certainly is important when we think about potential extra costs to remember that part of

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Greg Tepas President and CEO, EMKAY

will be that accounting changes would not now occur before 2015-2016. As to what fleets should do to prepare, the leasing association itself is clearly familiar with what is going on, but a dialogue is now needed with fleets. The main question to be considered is to what extent leased vehicles will now be considered as material enough to be placed on the balance sheet.

It may be that both open and closed end leases will be on the balance sheet for a period of time, but this is not yet confirmed.”

Over the past two years, sales have been around 10 or 11 million annually, which means we are now coming into a situation where there will be 10 or 11 million used vehicles on the market… The advice to fleets is to try and keep up with and follow the trends. These inflated resale prices make it a good idea for fleets to go for early replacement if their contract terms allow. This may be a chance to go for fuel savings by replacing thirsty vehicles. If you haven’t looked at selling end of contract vehicles to your employees or others, look at it now.”

this equation is that vehicles are now lasting much longer. It can be quite expensive when something goes wrong, especially out of the warranty period. But more traditional costs such as tyres have also increased. You may want to look at which technologies you have in your vehicles, and whether they all bring advantages. There is also a question of the availability of technicians to do this work. Fleets need to look at which options are holding up resale prices.”

What will be the effect when the 35.5 mpg requirement comes into force in 2016?

To prepare for this now, fleets are already downsizing, both in cylinders and body sizes. But the fleet industry’s policy will be decided to some degree by what the vehicle manufacturers bring to the market. The current model line-up is in reasonably good shape to

Clarence Nunn President and CEO, GE Capital Fleet Services

meet the new requirements, but when the later and much stiffer standards of 2025 are taken into account, things will be quite different. This will give a boost to hybrid and electric vehicles.

In your companies, there is going to be that tricky conversation – is the car a perk or is it a tool? The HR and legal departments will need to be involved too.

The new standards are only a part of the eventual changes, and other demands will therefore play their part too.”

Carl Ortell President, Automotive Resources International - ARI

down fleet costs. Technology is not going to go away, and if fleets don’t embrace the technologies which will help drive down costs, they will be left behind. Just work out the ROI calculations for yourselves.”

How do you see the future of technology and its impact on fleets?

Technological advances will continue at the same pace. It is going to change every aspect of our lives and every aspect of fleet management and the entire supply chain. There is going to be data on every aspect of fleets. Choosing the right data and acting on it correctly will drive

What impact of alternative fuels, especially CNG? Technology, infrastructure and economics will be the drivers here. The rapid acceleration in this area, especially in heavy vehicles, has been spectacular.

Infrastructure, however, may be less of a problem for fleets which are able to return to base to refill. And wider adop-

Gary Rappeport CEO, Donlen

Will fleets have to influence driver behaviour?

There are a number of areas where we can have a huge impact, and we already see a vast spread of accident rates between fleets. The difference is culture and motivation. Safety is clearly an area where we should have a great impact. It is pretty clear that driver behaviour can have a 10 to 20% impact on

Jim Frank President and CEO, Wheels, Inc

tion of these fuels will lead to a rapid decrease in cost. Even if there are no governmental advantages, the cost equation is quite compelling. There is the ‘gallon of gas equivalent’, based on the cost of CNG. There can currently be a three times price difference between CNG and petrol. And this time it may hold up., because there is a more accessible reserve of natural gas.’’

fuel economy. Then there is driver productivity. How effectively is the driver planning routes and utilising his or her time? GPS makes it possible to have an impact here. The evidence shows that we can have a huge impact on driver behaviour and give them immediate feedback.

Driver competition helps. Employer and employee participation are both needed to make this happen. Drivers have to be made part of the solution.”

Caroline Thonnon

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MANAGEMENT I News

Orange goes for the Twizy

Orange has added the Renault Twizy to its fleet, but still…don’t phone and drive.

Mobile telephone company Orange in France has decided to add around a hundred Renault Twizy models to its fleet, reports l’Automobile & l’Entreprise. The vehicles will be used in a car-sharing format, and will enable Orange employees to move around the Ile de France region, in particular between Orange sites. With this order, Orange intends to further reduce the CO2 emissions of its fleet of 35,000 vehicles, which currently stands at a relatively low average of 126 grams. The Renault Twizy is a 100% electric four-wheeled ‘quad bike’, totally covered, with a car steering wheel and two seats, one behind the other. Only a few weeks ago the Twizy has been elected ‘eQuadricycle Passenger of the Year 2012’.

ALD and Overlease win French Post contract The French Post Office has decided to award the operational management of its fleet in France to Overlease and ALD Automotive. These companies will be in charge of the entire fleet of ‘Véhiposte’ for the period 2012-2015.

The announcement follows a call for tenders in early 2011 and means that the two companies will share the management of 53,000 passenger cars and utility vehicles, along with 15,000 scooters.

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Although the number of fleet vehicles of Ecolab has increased, there is a significant reduction in the fleet greenhouse gas emissions.

A report in Automotive Fleet shows that Ecolab has reduced its fleet greenhouse gas emissions.

This comes alongside a reduction in fuel consumption, and is despite an increase to 7,000 of the total number of fleet vehicles , and an increase in total distances driven.

The French Post has a fleet of more than 53,000 passenger cars and utility vehicles.

Fujitsu appoints Fleet Logistics

Philippe Bottequin, Business Development Director at Fleet Logistics, shakes hands with Fujitsu’s Financial Director Luc D’Hoine.

Ecological success for Ecolab

IT and Communications company Fujitsu Technology Solutions has outsourced its fleet management in the Benelux and France to Fleet Logistics. In total around one thousand cars will be involved, the first wave covering 700 of these. In deciding to appoint Fleet logistics, Fujitsu is looking to achieve transparency in its fleet operations, along with a detailed cost analysis and cost reductions. Fujitsu’s Financial Director Luc D’Hoine said that his company managed some of its fleet in-house prior to this new move, but had abandoned a project to develop a new IT system as this is not its core business.

This change has occurred over a five year period from 2006 to 2011, and represents a 12% overall reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, an 18% average improvement in fuel consumption and a fractional decrease in overall fuel consumed against a one percent increase in miles driven.

To achieve this, Ecolab has revised its fleet policy to include sustainable features and changed its vehicle models.

Global Fleet Director Gayle Pratt spoke of ‘rightsizing’, moving from large to intermediate vehicles, and from eight to six and six to four cylinders where appropriate. Drivers are also taking part in eco-driving courses.

Advertorial Alphabet

Alphabet’s Corporate CarSharing solution “AlphaCity” allows smart mobility management at Infineon

Christian Steiner Head of Mobility Services at Alphabet International Corporate mobility has taken a brand new turn with the international roll-out of the Corporate CarSharing solution AlphaCity. It offers customers far greater flexibility and an opportunity for major savings. Also, it keeps vital doors open to the future.

“Today, we can speak of a paradigm shift in mobility management,” says Christian Steiner, Head of Mobility Services at Alphabet International. “Our customers can have greater flexibility, convenience, transparency, and lower Total Costs of Mobility at the same time.” Steiner is referring to AlphaCity, the leasing-based Corporate CarSharing solution that was introduced in France, Germany and the UK. Next on the list of the international roll-out are the Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark.

Like all effective solutions, AlphaCity appears simple on the outside. The users – company employees – must register once to receive a chip equipped with RFID technology. They can then reserve a car using any web-enabled device. Complex key management is now a thing of the past. The chip serves to open and operate the car and connects the driver with the system. Thanks to advanced telematics, each trip and all expenses are automatically recorded for easy accounting. In order to help companies make better use of their resources, the leased vehicles can also be rented by employees for private purposes, which they pay for by credit card. One of the first customers to introduce AlphaCity was the Munich-based semiconductor and systems specialist Infineon Technologies. There, the new AlphaCity supplements the existing car pool. “With AlphaCity, we were able to link three major topics, namely fleet management, travel

management and personnel issues, and all three stand to gain equally,” says Jörg Gerhardt, Director Mobility Service Management at Infineon. “Our employees no longer need to fill out expense forms. We can control our mobility costs better and also, AlphaCity makes Infineon a more attractive employer.”

The figures speak for AlphaCity’s effectiveness. Four days after the roll-out at Infineon in February, more than 600 employees had already registered. The business break-even point for private drives was reached within three weeks.

For Christian Steiner, the key to AlphaCity’s success lies in its response to real business needs and market trends.

“We listened to our customers carefully to find out what they needed,” he says. “The other aspect comes from our own well-founded observations of the market, where we are seeing a definite trend towards mobility use and away from ownership.” With AlphaCity, says Steiner, companies can also smoothly migrate to electric vehicles, as they are ideal for urban trips.

For more information please visit www.alphabet.com

Jörg Gerhardt Director Mobility Service Management at Infineon

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Management I Fleet Europe Awards

Discover the jury, participate and celebrate

On November 22 in Cannes (France), Fleet Europe and its partners organize the sixth edition of the Fleet Europe Awards. Two dedicated jury’s of fleet managers and fleet specialists will reward the best case studies in terms of fleet management throughout Europe.

To assure the neutrality and objectivity of the Fleet Europe Awards the organization has established different jury’s related to the participant’s specifications for the different Award categories.

All Award categories open to international fleet managers (fleet clients) will be evaluated by a heterogeneous jury of international fleet managers, lessors, car manufacturers, fleet specialists and people from Fleet Europe.

This jury will take into account the evolution of the candidate’s fleet policy, the implementation of key issues like sustainability, safety and driver behaviour and the view on cost control.

For the Fleet Europe Industry Award, an award designated to reward the innovative efforts of the fleet suppliers, a second jury of only international fleet managers has been composed to evaluate the projects of the fleet suppliers (see page 40).

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Awards for International Fleet Managers • The International Fleet Manager of the Year Award.

• The Fleet Europe Green Award.

• The Fleet Europe Mobility Award.

• The Fleet Europe Safety Award.

• The Fleet Europe Innovation Award.

Apply now!

Winning an Award gives you the recognition and the reward you deserve.

If you want to join the Fleet Europe Awards 2012, please register at www.fleeteurope.com/forums_ awards/ or send an e-mail with your contact details to Steven Schoefs (sschoefs@nexuscommunication.be)

New Hyundai i20. Think Again.

With automatic light and rain sensors, 5 Year Triple Care with unlimited mileage warranty, rear view camera and keyless entry, the New Hyundai i20 is the perfect combination of senses to make your life easier.

See for yourself, visit www.hyundai-fleet.eu or your local dealer and think again.

Fuel consumption in MPG (l/100km) for New i20 range: Urban 34.9 - 78.5 (8.1- 3.6), Extra Urban 58.9 - 94.2 (4.8 - 3.0), Combined 47.1- 88.3 (6.0 - 3.2), CO2 Emissions 140 - 84g/km.

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Management I Fleet Europe Awards

1. Bruce MacLaren Senior Category

Manager - Microsoft

2. Alain Duez Procurement Lead & Global Fleet Commodity Lead Accenture

3. Tero Tapala Director Sales &

3

Marketing - Arval

1

4. Holger Wiegand Sourcing Operations Manager Europe 3M Europe

2

5. Ralph Ruckgaber Global Lead Car Leasing / Fleets - IBM

6

6. Erik van der Werf International Sales Director - Athlon Car Lease International

7. Reinier Willems Marketing

Manager - LeasePlan International

8. Nancy Storp Head of Marketing & 4

5

7

8

Business Development - Alphabet

9. StĂŠphane Renie Sales & Business Development Director ALD International 10. Ivor Johnson Regional Director

EMEA Global Procurment & Operations - Pfizer

9

11

11. Chan Uk Jun Manager Fleet & Remarketing - KIA Motor Europe

10

12. Hans-Georg Lutz Senior

Manager International Corporate Sales - Mercedes-Benz Cars

13. Martin Jahn Managing Director Volkswagen Group Fleet International 12

13

14

14. Javier Vazquez Director International Major Accounts - Volvo Cars 15. Janola Gustafson Director Corporate Sales - Renault

16. Hugues de Laage de Meux Head of International Key Account Sales - PSA Peugeot CitroĂŤn

17. Ian Hucker Director European 17

16

15

Fleet & Remarketing - Opel/Vauxhall Europe

18. Philippe Bottequin Group

Business Development Director - Fleet Logistics

19. Caroline Thonnon Partner Content & Business Development Fleet Europe 20. Steven Schoefs Chief Editor Fleet Europe

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19

20

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21. Paul Herremans Expert Fleet Europe

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LOW CONSUMPTION, LOW EMISSIONS AND LOW RUNNING COSTS. GIFT-WRAPPED.

» 7-year warranty* » From 3.7 l/100 km » From 97 g CO2/km

THE NEW KIA CEE’D. EXCITEMENT. QUALITY. FLEET-ABILITY. Inside the beautiful packaging you’ll find our new Kia cee’d, designed and built in Europe. The perfect role model for our fleet range: dynamic but with low fuel consumption and low CO2 emissions, high residual value and innovative technology backed up by a unique 7-year manufacturer warranty. We also offer enough variety to let each and every employee find the right model. All built and equipped to give fleet managers the ultimate peace of mind. Meet a different kind of fleet: www.kia.eu

www.kia.eu

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*7-year / 150,000 km Kia warranty for all Kia models with initial registration after 01/01/2010; valid in all EU member states (incl. Norway, Switzerland and Iceland) subject to local terms and conditions.

Fuel consumption (l / 100km) / CO2 (g / km): urban from: 4.1 / 109 to 7.2 / 189, extra-urban from: 3.5 / 91 to 4.5 / 118, combined from: 3.7 / 97 to 6.0 / 139.

Management I Fleet Europe Awards Award for International Fleet Suppliers The Fleet Europe Industry Award 2012 highlights innovative approaches, tools, products or services of the international fleet industry (manufacturers, leasing companies, or other fleet suppliers). This award is open to all innovative projects developed by the industry enabling international fleet managers to achieve their goal or to improve their fleet management.

1. Alexandra Melville Car Fleet Sourcing Lead for France and Benelux Accenture

2. Veerle Vallons Category Manager Norgine 1

2

3

3. Tortorici Giovanni

Purchasing Manager Global Supply Chain Barilla

4. Ghislain Vanfraechem Director Facilities Department Ernst & Young

4

5. Ivor Johnson 5

6

Regional Director Fleet EMEA Global Procurement & Operations Pfizer

6. Maaike van Hemmen Senior Manager EMEA Fleet KCI Europe

7. Wim Buzzi

Manager Procurement - Fleet Coca-Cola Enterprises 8

8. Janos Kis

European Fleet Management Director Diversey Europe

9. Ralph Ruckgaber

Global Lead Car Leasing / Fleets IBM

9

7

With the support of:

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www.citroenbusiness.com

DO SOMETHING GREAT WITH ELECTRICITY.

NEW CITROËN C-ZERO. 100% ELECTRIC. Thousands of scientists and engineers have utilised the most advanced technology available to ensure we are never without power. It’s up to us to use this power wisely and thanks to the new Citroën C-Zero that’s the easy bit. With 150 Kms on a single charge, zero noise, generous cabin space, regenerative braking, and an 80% range on a thirty minute quick charge the new Citroën C-Zero means you can harness the real power of electricity.

Scan the code to watch our TV commercial.

CRÉATIVE TECHNOLOGIE

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Hans den Hollander (Cisco)

Wim Buzzi (Coca-Cola Enterprises)

Sector of activity: high-tech

Sector of activity: beverages

Fleet Manager: Hans den Hollander

Fleet Manager: Wim Buzzi

Job title: EMEA Fleet Manager

Job title: Manager, Procurement -Fleet

Number of years in post: 4 years

Number of years in post: 4 years

Countries under responsibility: EMEA

Countries in account: Great Britain, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Norway, Sweden

Number of vehicles: 6,000 Financing method: Operational leasing CO2-limit: yes, 140/160 g (diesel/petrol) Tip for peers: “Listen carefully to what the people in the countries have to say about this. But don’t give them too much freedom or else you won’t achieve harmonization”

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Number of vehicles in account: 4,600 Financing method: Operational lease CO2-limit: 160 g Tip for peers:“You have to have the right governance structure in place. Make sure that all the stakeholders agree with your plans and that you keep them informed every step of the way”

MANAGEMENT I Cross-interview

Management with a big C For the second edition of our cross-interview format we asked Wim Buzzi of drinks giant Coca-Cola Enterprises and Hans den Hollander from high-tech specialist Cisco, how they organize their fleet management.

We continue to monitor the TCO more carefully than ever before. This is helping us to reinvest in our fleet but also focus on sustainability related initiatives, including EV trials and eco-driver training.”

What are the obstacles and challenges when setting up and managing an international car policy?

Hans den Hollander: “It is very important to have all participating companies aligned, and you have to be careful not to step over certain habits in certain countries which might hinder your objective of achieving a unified policy.

Then there are also legislative issues which might prohibit one single, clear policy. So in the case of Cisco we have a European policy but we also have country appendices for each country, which contain different rules according to the nature of the country, its legislation and customs.”

Wim Buzzi: “We don’t currently have a European car policy but it is an ongoing project and at Coca-Cola Enterprises we are working to develop a consistent car policy across all of our geographies. Today we have local policies in place in each country. We want to better understand what the differences are, and Hans is right when he talks of this. There are already many things which are aligned in our car policy, such as CO2 limits which are the same everywhere. But there will always be some country specifics which need to remain different and can be included on an individual basis.

The alternative would be to go for a single aligned European car policy which does not cover a particular topic. We expect to have a harmonised car policy for next year.”

How do you control your fleet and lease suppliers?

H. den H.: “When it comes to their performance level, in our service level agreements with our suppliers we have defined various KPI’s with defined targets to be achieved. Our current business model is single supplier, which means we don’t have the multi-supplier bidding effect to provide us with the lowest deal for each individual contract, so we need something else. This is in fact benchmarking prices against market data, which is done every quarter. In all this it is crucial have access to accurate and consolidated fleet and cost reports, tailored to our needs.”

W.B: “First of all there are the fleet managers themselves.

Coca-Cola Enterprises has a fleet manager in each of our geographies. They are responsible for managing their local fleet and for day to day contact with our local leasing company. They have operational control. The Central Procurement function supports this by managing the contractual and commercial relationship with our leasing partners. We have also established a Supplier Relationship Management routine with our leasing partners, including a twice-yearly performance measurement review, with a focus on service, quality, cost, innovation and sustainability. This is central to our Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability strategy.

And one of the most important elements is having solid KPI’s in place in order to allow us to evaluate performance.”

How has your management vision changed since the crisis?

H. den H.: “We were of course affected by the crisis in 2008, and at that time we were reviewing our car policy and our fleet suppliers model. So we took some measures to reduce costs, one of them being to look at the individual budgets, although we didn’t go under the benchmarks of the countries. We didn’t want to go over them either, though. We also increased contract durations from 36 months to 48 months, which generated a saving on the monthly lease cost of around 7 or 8%. On top of this we introduced a CO2 limit which clearly saves us fuel.”

W.B: “We continue to focus on ensuring that we were able to manage our costs and deliver the best value from our fleet management. At the end of 2008 we introduced a number of cost cutting measures. And also at the end of 2008 our contracts with our leasing companies were at an end. We introduced a European lease tender, with a strong focus on pricing. At this time we included a mechanism to ensure an annual pricing benchmark twice a year with the sole supplier in each country – and a recalculation matrix. This ensures that our pricing remains in line with the market.

Are you open to new mobility solutions?

H. den H.: “Absolutely! It depends how you define new solutions but I think that EV’s are definitely a new solution. This is something we are really looking at right now. We believe that EV’s are here to stay and that this will be in the near future. On top of this we are offering our personnel in the various countries the ability to opt for an allowance alongside the lease car so that they can use the best method of transportation for each journey, including of course public transport. Also Cisco employees are flexible to either work from home or in the office.”

W.B: “An increasing number of employees are expressing an interest in alternative mobility solutions, including pool cars and shared vehicles. It is clear that in big cities a ‘full time car’ may not be the best solution in the future. We are researching and learning and are beginning to incorporate thinking on mobility management within our long range planning, and a mobility programme may well emerge. It is important that we first build a strong understanding before we embark on any initiatives across our geographies.”

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MANAGEMENT I Cross interview

“We have looked at financing the fleet ourselves, but we decided not to go forward with this.”

What would Hans den Hollander like to know about Wim Buzzi’s fleet management?

What is your vision on web-based driver training?

We would support the provision of web based driver training with a focus on both safety and eco-driving. However in our experience to deliver the best result, we believe that any online training should be supported by face-toface training. In the Benelux, for example, we have trained every company car driver and provide follow up training for them over a twelve month period.

This includes an online questionnaire, and then a half-day physical session where our employees are trained in eco-driving techniques. The first session identified a potential 15% saving, which can of course be hard to maintain. But participating drivers continue to receive online advice and guidance during the year. One year on, we are seeing a reduction of approximately 10% in our fuel consumption, largely due to this initiative, although I think if it had been webtraining alone we wouldn’t have had such good results.”

Are you in favour of electric cars, how would you select them, and will you introduce them into your fleet?

I would have liked to have them in our fleet now, but we need to ensure we have a genuine understanding of them first. As a result we are now undertaking various vehicle trials. In France we are trialing a Renault Fluence. In Great Britain we are trialing two Nissan Leaf vehicles. In the Netherlands we are trialing several Opel Ampera vehicles and in Belgium we are testing the VW E-Golf. The main objective is to learn about vehicle performance and to understand more about how our fleet and car policies will need to adapt in the future in order to accommodate electric vehicles. We want to make sure that when we go for electric cars, it will be successfully.”

How do you handle ‘extra costs’ for your fleet?

We use savings generated from our car policy innovations to fund new activities, so they are self-financing and are do not require additional budget.

Whilst we retain our focus on cost, we continue to track ongoing fleet innovation and the evolution within the market place.”

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“We believe that any online training should be supported by face-to-face training.”

What would Wim Buzzi like to know about Hans den Hollander’s fleet management?

How do you make CSR come alive in your fleet policy?

For the most part we focus on sustainability, and especially in the domain of electric vehicles. We have also carried out some incentive programme pilots to persuade people to drive greener cars. This is to see whether we can increase the number of low emission vehicles in this way. We are gradually reducing CO2 limits over the years, so three years ago we had a first threshold of CO2 and we are about to achieve a reduction of another 20 grams.”

What is your view of telematics in your fleet?

This is not something we are currently actively implementing in our car program, but of course we welcome everything which is being developed by the OEM’s. We only have passenger vehicles, so we don’t have tracking and tracing requirements. As internet connectivity will become more and more important in vehicle telematics, it is very likely that Cisco as a technology provider will become involved as well.”

Will the convergence of European and American accounting standards, and the new accounting regulations, affect your fleet operation?

It will not affect us greatly, in my view, so we will continue with the operational leasing model. We have looked at financing the fleet ourselves, but we decided not to go forward with this. The cost of fleet relative to the total business is not huge, as the fleet is mainly based in Europe; there are no vehicles in the USA or most other territories. This is not particularly an urgent issue for us at the moment.”

Tim Harrup Pictures: Denis Closon (Imagellan, 2012)

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MANAGEMENT I Best Practices US

Fleet magazines’ 2012 winners Lee Miller, Senior Manager of Fleet Services for pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim has won Automotive Fleet magazine’s 2012 Professional Fleet Manager of the year award. Maggie Cole, Director of Environmental, Safety & Health at Monsanto, was rewarded with Fleet Financials magazine’s 2012 Fleet Executive of the Year award.

Both fleet executives received their award during NAFA’s 2012 Institute & Expo at St. Louis.

Maggie Cole (Monsanto) is the US Fleet Executive of the Year 2012.

The Fleet Manager of the Year Award was installed in 1985 and is sponsored by Automotive Fleet magazine, Wheels Inc., and the Automotive Fleet and Leasing Association (AFLA). The other finalists for the 2012 Professional Fleet Manager of the Year award were : • Donna Bibbo, Manager of Fleet & Travel at Novo Nordisk • John Dmochowsky, Sales Fleet Manager at Kraft Foods • Dick Malcom, Fleet Administrator for State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance.

I am very proud of the passion and focus Monsanto continues to place on improving road and occupant safety for our employees as well as our families, the communities where we live and operate, and our customers

It’s a true honor to be nominated, but to actually win is incredible. I say it over and over: You cannot do this by yourself. You have to have a team, you have to have the partners, the vendors, your colleagues, fellow fleet managers - that’s how I got where I am.

The Fleet Executive of the Year Award was sponsored by CEI and Fleet Financials magazine. The other finalists were : • Caryn Helmandollar, Director of Risk Management at Ferguson Enterprises; • Michael Ahart, Vice President Transportation for Dean Foods Company; • Paul Youngpeter, Director of Fleet at Rollins Award winner Maggie Cole of Monsanto is responsible for the company’s Global Vehicle Safety and Global Off The Job Safety programs, as well as U.S. Commercial ESH.

Lee Miller (Boehringer Ingelheim) is the new Fleet Manager of the Year in the US. Caroline Thonnon

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MANAGEMENT I Plug-in Electric Vehicles

A question of There is a great deal of talk, and quite a lot of action, in the domain of electric vehicles. Yet a lot of uncertainty surrounds the whole question. Do consumers know what it is all about, do they want electric cars? To find out, consultancy firm Accenture commissioned a global survey of more than 7,000 individuals in 13 countries.

Two types of electric vehicle are considered in the Accenture survey: full electric, which can only be recharged by plugging them in, and plug-in hybrids, which can run on conventional fuel when the battery power is exhausted, but which can still be plugged in to recharge the battery and avoid using fuel for short trips. ‘Conventional’ hybrids are therefore not included. Full electric still face issues in terms of autonomy, currently limited to 100 or 150 kms. Plug in Hybrid usually have shorter autonomy on electric power but can extend it up to 1000 km on diesel or gasoline.

One of the first key findings was that there is a high level of awareness about plug-in hybrids, but insufficient information about them. In fact while 97% of those questioned had heard of electric vehicles, only 30% said that they had enough information about them to consider purchasing one.

Just over half of respondents said they had some understanding but need more information before considering them as a possible purchase, and 18% said they did not understand them enough even to consider a purchase.

A good reason for this is that only a few plug-in hybrids are currently available for order. Their autonomy on pure electricity power ranges from 5 kms for Peugeot to 50 kms for the newly launched Volvo V60 D6. Opel Ampera claims up to 25 kms.

though clearly quite a long time into the future), drew a much more positive response. Some 58% of respondents declared themselves very much in favour of this, with only 13% being against. All of this translates into around 60% of people who are to change cars in the next decade saying that they will probably or certainly consider EV’s.

In geographical terms, it is interesting to note that for all three of the above questions, the highest percentage of positive responses came from China. While The United States and the Netherlands were in the top four of those who understand the most, they are also in the bottom three of countries when it comes to wishing to see electric cars replace conventional cars!

If a decision to purchase is to be considered, a number of questions need to be answered. Firstly, the cost. Just over half of respondents said they believed conventional cars would be cheaper to buy, with just over a third opting for one of the two categories of electric car in this respect. The most significant factor in a purchase is the combined purchase, maintenance and recharging costs, which amongst others suggests that the ‘Total Cost of Ownership’ notion is now entering the private as well as the fleet world.

The decision to buy electric cars would be encouraged if the electricity is generated from renewable sources

Intention to buy The question of whether the public is in favour of electric vehicles replacing conventional vehicles over time (al-

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Power availability…

However, outside of the cost element, another highly important factor surrounds the recharging and range of the battery. Having a battery charging point available at home is very important for 63% of respondents, with a driving range at least equal to a full tank of petrol meriting the same importance for 53%. Around half also pointed to the desirability of having charging points at work or in public car parks. Slightly less important is the availability of government subsidies to offset the purchase cost premium. Other types of incentive do rate highly though: no car tax drew a positive response from 86%, free parking

Accenture presented respondents with a series of PEVs, each with a different combination of charging and cost attributes. The respondents stated their preferences for each PEV by “trading off” attributes against each other. This approach enabled us to weight the importance that consumers gave to these factors.

PEV in comparison to a conventional car was significantly less important, recording a weighting of 15 percent (compared to the 22 to 25 percent for the leading factors). The flexibility over when to charge carries a similar significance.

psychology When adding the purchase and maintenance cost (15 percent) to the cost of charging (25 percent), the entire cost of owning and running a car was the most significant overall factor. Our study, however, demonstrates current preoccupations with nonpurchase price factors that need to be taken into account as motivators.

The cost of charging compared to filling the tank of a conventional car ranked as the most important consideration (see Figure 10). The back-up availability of diesel or gasoline/petrol carried almost the same weight, providing us with the first hint that PHEVs may be more popular than full EVs. The time it takes to charge an empty vehicle battery ranked next. Surprisingly, the total cost of purchasing and maintaining a

from 65% and toll discounts for 44%. The question of convenience of use which is posed both by an electric car’s range and the recharging element (where and how long), also leads to the survey finding that in all age ranges, something like two thirds to three quarters of respondents expressed a preference for plug-in hybrids rather than full electric vehicles.

Of all of these concerns, the range itself is the most important. When asked how far they would like to be able to drive with a fully charged battery, 32% opted for 200-400 km, and 26% for 400-600 km. A further 26% wanted an even higher range, which would equate to a modern fuelefficient diesel, for example. The current range of electric cars is around 150 km. Of those who had expressed a preference for full electric, almost all cited lower running costs as the major reason. … and generation The generation of electricity for cars is another question which occupies the minds of those who understand that a ‘green’ car is not quite so green if the electricity which drives it is generated in a traditional, polluting manner.

This is demonstrated by the fact that a full 85% of respondents said that their purchase decision would be encouraged if the electricity was generated from renewable sources such as, wind, hydro, solar… on the other side of the coin, almost half of people said they would be discouraged from purchasing an electric vehicle if they knew that the power was nuclear-generated. And in overall terms, younger drivers are more concerned about the energy source than older drivers.

These drivers are obviously the next generation of owners, and the generation question will therefore have to be taken very seriously, alongside the development of the vehicles themselves. The Accenture survey states that for these reasons, electricity providers are likely to face considerable challenges… not only involving how the power is generated, but also involving pressure on the system if vast numbers of electric cars are plugged in at night, for example. Battery swapping (a system which would mean full power can be regained in the same amount of

Figure 10. When consumers make decisions regarding electric vehicles, they place different levels of importance on the components.

Time when

to charge 14%

Total cos t (purchase maintena nce) com and pared a conven tional car to 15% Relative importanc

Charging time for an empty bat tery 22%

e of each componen

Time when to charge • Time when you can charge will be decided by the service provider operating at the charging point • You can charge whenever you need/want

Total cost (i.e., cost of purchase and maintenance) compared to a conventional car with the same level of performance • 10 percent less • Same • 10 percent more • 20 percent more

t in the decision

Availab gasoline/d ility of iesel bac k-up 24%

Cost of cha rging com pared to filling the tank of a conventio nal car 25%

to purchase elect

ric vehicles

Charging time for an empty battery

Availability of petrol/diesel back-up

• Fast charging fixed at 20 to 30 minutes

• Yes • No

Cost of charging compared to filling the tank of a conventional car with the same level of performance

• Slow charging fixed at six to eight hours

• 50 percent less

• Variable charging: you do not know how long charging will take (minimum six hours and no maximum time)

• Same

• 25 percent less • 25 percent more

Base: All respondents Note: The term electric vehicle (EV) is defined as plug-in EVs (PEVs), including both full EVs and plug-in hybrid EVs (PHEVs).

Methodology note: Results based on a conjoint analysis

When consumers make decisions regarding electric vehicles, 14 they place different levels of importance on the components.

time as it takes to fill a tank with petrol), was not found to be generally popular, although far more popular with the younger generation. This finding seems to fit with the gradual move away from car ownership to car use by the ‘Y’ generation.

Mindset From this survey, Accenture concludes that while all types of electric vehicles will play a more significant role in the future, the landscape will be mixed, efficient combustion engines and multi-fuel vehicles also having a role. Electricity providers are set to benefit from this addition to their normal business, but they are likely to face challenges from newcomers. And included in these newcomers, of course, will be ‘petrol stations’, the place where consumers have always been used to buying replacement power for their cars! As is amply demonstrated in the survey, the electric car domain embraces both technology and consumer mindsets. And of the two, Accenture puts it like this: “The key challenge with the plug in electric vehicle phenomenon is not technology, but consumer behaviour and psychology. We have identified the need for a mind shift in consumers with regard to their prejudices, attitudes and assumptions about plug in electric vehicles”. ■ Tim Harrup Thanks to Accenture - Source : Survey Plug-in electric vehicles.

Changing perceptions hedging bets, 2011

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BUSINESS I News

Business Lease acquires KBC Autolease Poland

Harm Nijlunsing, CEO of Business lease Group : “This takeover is a result of our strategy to expand in Poland, one of the most dynamic markets in Central Europe.”

Business Lease Group, operating in full operational service leasing and mobility services in the Netherlands and Central Europe (Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary) has acquired KBC Autolease Polska, a wholly-owned subsidiary of KBC Lease Belgium. KBC Autolease Polska provides fleet management, rental and leaseback services alongside operational leasing, and has a fleet of some 2,800 cars in its Polish portfolio. The takeover brings the total number of cars held by Business Lease Poland to 6,100 cars, seventh largest on the Polish market by market share. The transaction marks a further stage in the strategy of the KBC Group to concentrate on retail customers and SME’s in its core markets: Belgium, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary.

Milestone for Garmin Garmin has announced that it has passed the threshold of 100 million navigation assistance devices sold throughout the world. The company points out that it is not just car drivers who benefit from these systems, bur aeroplane pilots, leisure travellers, explorers, scientists, walkers, cyclists and even treasure hunters! The company is investing in increasing its production capacities and in making strategic acquisitions. On the way to 100 million sales, Garmin sold its first unit in 1991, its millionth in 1997 and its 25 millionth in 2007.

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Alphabet launches Alphacity in UK Alphabet has launched Alphacity, its car sharing scheme, also in the UK. This system provides companies with on-demand personal mobility, managed by Alphabet. It is in particular designed to overcome some of the disadvantages of a pool car system, and decrease the use of employees’ own cars for business requirements.

The cars are leased in the normal manner, but then made available for employees to use via an on-line booking system. Alphabet Chief Executive in the UK Richard Schooling describes some of the benefits as follows: “The cars are aspirational. The experience of using AlphaCity is fun and high-tech. And the membership aspect fosters a feeling of shared responsibility that mitigates against colleagues returning cars late, dirty or without fuel.

Alphacity, also available in the UK.

CarsOnTheWeb launches iPhone app European web-based car auction company CarsOnTheWeb has announced a new iPhone app. This will allow users to search for available cars on their mobile devices and to bid for them wherever they may be. The application is available in the twelve languages of the website. Johan Meyssen, CEO of COTW, explained his company’s thinking in introducing this new application: “Car traders need to able to respond as quickly as possible to maintain the highest bid in auction. Therefore, being able to bid on vehicles, regardless of time and place, is a big advantage”.

People’s Business • KIA Motors has announced that Paul Philpott is to become President and CEO of KIA Motors UK and Ireland on July 1st.

• Mark Thielenhaus, Head of Sixt Leasing, will leave the company at the end of the year. Mr Thielenhaus (left in the photo) will be succeeded by Rudolf Rizzolli (right), who will join the company on June 1st and work alongside him for the remaining six months of the year.

• Continental Powertrain has announced a new head for its Electric Vehicle Business Unit. This is to be Xavier Pujol, a Spanish engineer who has been with Continental since 2006.

• Nissan Austria has appointed a new Managing Director. The company has announced that Bruno Mattucci is taking over from Bastien Schupp, who is moving on to become head of marketing at Nissan Europe.

• Giuseppe Tommaso is the new Fleet & Remarketing Director at SEAT. Mister Tommaso worked for years at Kia Motors Europe as Fleet & Remarketing Manager and lately as General Manager Business Development. Now he has taken over from Elena Delgado (see 3 Questions to article, page 51) who has moved to Volkswagen.

DirectLease introduces CarForMe Lease company DirectLease has launched the new CarForMe concept in Belgium. This new lease formula introduces a new way of choosing and financing a company car, as the initiative to opt for a car is with the employee and the employer deducts the monthly lease rate for the car from the gross

salary of the employee. To the employer this new initiative means no extra costs, for the employee it means having the possibility of driving a company car and of benefiting from fleet management services for a small amount of his salary. DirectLease is convinced that CarForMe (www.carforme.be) provides an innovative answer to the demand of employees and employers for reasonable and affordable mobility.

Up! elected Car of the Year in NY

The little Up! has left a great impression in the Big Apple.

The Volkswagen Up! has beaten 33 other candidates to be voted World Car of the Year at the New York International Auto Show. The model thus follows its older sisters Golf (2009) and Polo (2010) in being awarded this prestigious title. The citycar finally beat off challenges from the BMW 3-Series and the Porsche 911, which occupied the other podium places. Commenting on this decision, the World Car jury (made up of 64 automotive journalists from 25 countries) said: “The little Volkswagen Up! has altered what we have come to expect from the citycar segment.”

Renault-Nissan takes majority stake in Lada manufacturer The Renault-Nissan Alliance is forming a joint venture with Russian public company ‘Russian Technologies’. The objective is to restructure the debt of Russian car manufacturer Avtovaz (Lada) and to give the Renault-Nissan Alliance a majority indirect shareholding in the company. Another clear objective is to

launch new products. In terms of figures, Renault will be injecting around 300 million dollars and Nissan 450 million dollars. Renault already owns 25% of Avtovaz, but Nissan has no existing stake. The new joint venture will hold around three quarters of Avtovaz when the transaction is finalised in 2014.

3 questions to

ALD Automotive launches 6-Wheel Lease in the Netherlands ALD Automotive has introduced 6-Wheel Lease, a formula allowing customers to combine a car lease with the lease of an electric scooter, in the Netherlands. The e-scooter can also be leased separately. Either option can be interesting for companies in or near big cities. Figures released by RAI Vereniging (the Dutch Bicycle and Automobile Association) show a pronounced rise in popularity for the e-scooter, of which 20% more were sold in the first quarter of 2012 than in the same period last year. Since the start of 2010, over 10,000 e-scooters were sold in the Netherlands.

Daimler announces joint venture for electric cars in China Daimler has created a 50/50 joint venture with Chinese electric and car battery manufacturer BYD, the new enterprise being known as BYD Daimler New Technology Ltd. (BDNT). The brand name will be Denza. The two companies have been working together in the automotive field since May 2010.

This latest initiative is set to create an electric vehicle for the Chinese market, a market which Daimler North East Asia Chairman and CEO Ulrich Walker believes is ready for what he described as the ‘leading edge design, technology and personality’ of the car to be produced. He also pointed out that Daimler is the first manufacturer to form such a joint venture for the development of a pure electric vehicle.

Elena Delgado Head of Fleet Sales at Volkswagen AG

1. What did you decide to go from SEAT to Volkswagen?

After more than 13 years of experience in the Fleet Business, to move to Volkswagen AG as Head of Fleet Sales, Rent a Car & Used Car Europe means absolutely a step forward for me, because I will move to the leader brand in the European Fleet Market. It represents a big challenge for me since I will have now to contribute to the success of Volkswagen and its very ambitious targets for the next years.

2. What are your objectives and ambitions this year?

I will build on my predecessors´ work to further improve Volkswagen´s fleet performance with a particular focus on small and medium size customers, to establish efficient business processes, to professionalize used car business and remarketing and to further refine our RAC strategy.

3. What can we expect on the Volkswagen model front in the second half of this year that is interesting for fleet customers?

The next big thing by our product portfolio will be the launch of the New Golf in November 2012. The Golf VI was a big success in 2011, achieving the leader position in its segment with more than 90.000 units sold in Europe in true fleet.

The next generation, the Golf VII will represent again a big revolution and we believe it will become even a bigger player in the fleet business offering a perfect mobility solution.

Steven Schoefs ■

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BUSINESS I Sixt Rent a Car

Renting without frontiers “Sixt anticipates harsher general conditions for vehicle rental given the generally bleaker expectations by analysts for the European economy in 2012”, says Michael Kieppe, Head of Sales International at Six Rent a Car. As a result Sixt expects moderate growth for the B2B segment in the European car rental industry in 2012.

Nevertheless, internationalisation plays a key role and Sixt wants to increase the proportion of rental revenues generated abroad. Last year, Sixt entered the US rental market.

“In February we started in Florida and by the end of the year we had Sixt stations at the airports in Miami, Atlanta, Fort Lauderdale and Orlando”, states Michael Kieppe. “Our activities in the USA are also benefiting the development of Sixt’s network in the neighbouring franchise countries such as Mexico, the Latin-American and Caribbean countries.

More and more companies are now thinking about efficient mobility solutions instead of simply the company car.

How will this impact the business strategy of Sixt?

M. Kieppe: “The aim is to offer products and services that are tailored to individual customer requirements. To this end Sixt’s approach is to analyse the customers own mobility requirements and to respond to these with customized combinations of offers. These include rental and leasing solutions as well as carpool solutions or car-sharing. ‘Sixt

unlimited’ is a good example of integrated mobility products.

For a fixed monthly fee it offers frequent travellers vehicles at Sixt wants to offer products any time at over 600 Sixt staand services that are tailored to individual customer tions in Europe. Alongside this requirements, such as the car‘DriveNow’ constitutes a carsharing scheme DriveNow. sharing product for mobility demands in major cities. DriveNow is a joint venture between Sixt and BMW. So far, the offer is available in Berlin, Munich & Düsseldorf. Further metropolitan cities in Germany and Europe are set to follow. Finally the services offered by Sixt Mobility Consulting play a key role in providing competent fleet management. This company advises customers on all questions of fleet management independent involving manufacturers and lessors. Sixt Mobility Consulting will keep developing its services further and expand its Steven Schoefs customer base.” ■

it’s not the c a r it’s our c a re

All leasing companies supply the same cars.

Therefore it’s all about care and the quality of service. Please visit our website at www.businesslease.com.

BUSINESS I Volkswagen Group Fleet International

A reliable business partner is key in today’s business The financial problems in the Eurozone make business people nervous. Is this justified or is this an ideal moment to seize opportunities?

Martin Jahn: “The situation in Europe and the world is indeed a challenge in terms of political decisions. That’s why it is important for companies to have a reliable business partner on their side. The Volkswagen Group offers this security by way of economic products and customised services. And of course we won’t stop but continue to optimise our processes and adapt to new economic and political challenges accordingly.”

Martin Jahn is the successful Managing Director of Volkswagen Group Fleet International. Since the beginning of this year Volkswagen Group Fleet International operates truly globally as Germany has also been included in the coverage, along with the United States, Canada, Russia, Argentina, Brazil and Turkey.

For the past two years Martin Jahn has been in charge of international fleet business at Volkswagen Group as the Managing Director of Volkswagen Group Fleet International. While most car manufacturers are prudent when talking about sales and growth in Europe in 2012, Volkswagen Group is still making good headway and is doing very good fleet business.

“In contrast to the car market as a whole, the fleet market had a positive start to the new year”, Martin Jahn says to begin the discussion. “The Volkswagen Group has also benefited from this positive start, and was able to increase its market share even further.”

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In the last issue of Fleet Europe you mentioned your desire to pay more attention to customer service and fleet customer satisfaction. What are you going to do in concrete terms?

M. Jahn: “Due to the increased orientation of our customers in terms of internationalisation, we have repositioned ourselves internally. With our new global structure, we can respond to future tenders more quickly and provide country-specific solutions in consultation with our importers. In addition, we will work with Financial Services AG and the after sales department even more closely to continue to be able to provide our customers with a range of tailored financing and services and a wider range of after sales products, alongside our balanced commercial model portfolio. ” Volkswagen Group is preparing the introduction of electric vehicles in 2013. Do you believe EVs can change the mobility habits of corporate clients?

M. Jahn: “There is an interest in e-Mobility everywhere even in vehicle fleets. That’s why we deliberately include major clients in our fleet tests. We see this group as ‘leaders’ in market penetration for electric mobility. In order for this to work, the right sales and service concepts must be created in the near future. In the medium to long-term, we see a coexistence of different engine technologies on the part of our customers.”

BUSINESS I Mazda Motor Europe

The Fleet Triangle What recommendation does Martin Jahn has for the lease companies so that the triangle of fleet client – car manufacturer – leasing company can be optimized?

“In addition to the original purchase cost and bonuses, each leasing company should pay attention to the residual value of stability, innovation and the sustainability of the manufacturer”, says Martin Jahn.” This means they can offer their customers much more than just mobility.”

In product terms, your Group is focusing more and more on the urban compact segment with up!, Citigo and Mii. Is this an answer to the trend of downsizing or does it fit into a larger mobility approach?

M. Jahn: “Our mobility range covers all classes up to 40 tonne trucks.

The Volkswagen up!, Škoda Citigo and SEAT Mii models complete the lower end of our product portfolio. Other new introductions in 2012, the Volkswagen CC and the Golf VII in autumn, the Audi A3, SEAT Ibiza and Leon as well as the Škoda Rapid, show that we are active across all classes and see downsizing as an overall approach to making our range of vehicles more effective with new engine technology in all sectors.”

Volkswagen Group Fleet International covers international fleet agreements for Volkswagen Group, except for Germany. Can you explain why Germany has to be a special case?

M. Jahn: “Germany has also been included since this year, along with the United States, Canada, Russia, Argentina, Brazil and Turkey.”

What is your all-time favourite Volkswagen Group car?

M. Jahn: “Given the large number of current models as well as the icons of the past, that question is not easy to answer. However, ultimately my passion lies with the Porsche 911, particularly the Targa of the 1970s.” ■

Fleet business as a sales driver Just after the Geneva Motor Show came the news that Mazda Motor Europe was to further restructure due to poor sales figures and a worrying Asian and European economy.

But Christian Blank, Director European Fleet Operations, confirms to Fleet Europe that continuity in terms of sales, service and customer relationships is guaranteed.

“The European team based in Leverkusen was put in place to develop and institutionalize certain important pillars of the fleet business - drive residual values, initiate panEuropean sales and training activities, get the right models developed for fleet customers, while much of the actual selling has been done by our national sales companies. These central activities have proved to be successful in the CX-5 launch, and we have now captured these in our core business processes. Fleet customers will continue to see great TCO, residuals, and superb product offerings from Mazda. On top of this, we have increased our fleet presence in a number of European markets at the beginning of 2012, which will further improve our ability to serve our customers.”

How important is the fleet business for Mazda Europe?

Christian Blank: Mazda’s fleet business in Europe has been and will continue to be a key priority for the senior management and the entire organization. Even though we have experienced challenging times in the past year driven by the evolution of the Yen and the economic crisis in Southern Europe, Mazda’s fleet sales have acted as a stabilizer to the overall business.”

“The fleet business will continue to be a key priority for the entire Mazda organization”, says Christian Blank, Director European Fleet Operations at Mazda Motor Europe.

What are your ambitions with the Mazda CX-5 and the upcoming 6?

C. Blank: “The CX-5, the first Mazda vehicle to benefit from our entirely new SKYACTIV technology, has secured almost 5,000 orders in the German market before the official launch in May, and is predicted to sell over 40,000 units in Europe in its first year. The CX-5 enters the growing C-SUV segment and is well positioned to compete in the fleet market. An impressive CO2 value of only 119 g/km for the 2.2 SKYACTIV-D 150PS diesel 2WD is anticipated, giving CX-5 a leading place in fleet policies where the pressure to reduce CO2 emissions is increasing. With the launch of the new Mazda6 at the end of this year, the second step in rolling out the innovative SKYACTIV technology will take place. A class leading CO2 level will ensureMazda6 appeals to fleet decision makers and drivers alike. The new Mazda6 will build upon the fleet success of the current vehicle by adding a diesel automatic derivative for the first time. As a result a sales mix to fleets of around 30% in Germany and almost 60% in the UK is expected.” ■ Steven Schoefs

Steven Schoefs

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BUSINESS I Mobileye

When safety becomes a cost control driver Now that cost control and eco-friendliness are integrated key elements in the fleet management of most international companies, driver behaviour and safety seem to be next on the to do list. So it was not the biggest surprise when a jury of international fleet managers rewarded safety and telematics specialist Mobileye with the International Fleet Industry Award for the C2-270 collision-avoidance tool at the Fleet Europe Awards in October last year.

What about bicycles or pedestrians?

Isaac Litman: “These are also protected by Mobileye. The camera uses our unique patented technology to identify and track them. On top of this, it recognises when a driver is veering out of his driving lane, and warns him accordingly.”

The C2-270 collision-avoidance tool provides real-time audio and visual warnings to the driver.

Mobileye markets collision avoidance tools aimed to optimise fleet management and control, reduce TCO and create a safe work environment for its customers. Mobileye systems are based on proprietary cutting-edge computer vision, and operate with a single smart camera mounted on the windscreen, screening the road ahead and alerting the driver of imminent dangers.

“Mobileye C2-270, our flagship product, provides real-time audio and visual warnings ”, says Isaac Litman, CEO of Mobileye .

“It sees and assesses the likelihood of a collision with a car, a motorbike or any other vehicle. The driver is warned almost three seconds before impact, giving him time to react and avoid the collision. These elements can be pre-adjusted to the fleet manager’s parameters.”

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What are the major benefits of the system?

I. Litman: “In terms of road safety, Mobileye C2-270 helps avoid collisions and therefore reduces injuries and saves lives. Additionally from the fleet manager’s perspective, Mobileye instils better driving habits among drivers, which translates not only into fewer collisions, but also less wear and tear, lower fuel consumption and ultimately, lower TCO. The fleet manager also obtains information on driving behaviour, enabling him to manage fleet risk and take action in problem areas and design driver training programs.”

Can C2-270 interact with other telematics systems?

I. Litman: “Yes, it can either be used as a stand-alone system, or be connected to existing fleet management systems. These systems can include blackbox recorders, driver training systems and others. All the information generated can then be used for programmes such as risk management and driver evaluation.”

You announced some additional functionalities at the IAA Motor Show in Frankfurt. Can you explain these?

I. Litman: “We introduced Intelligent High-Beam Control, which automatically turns the vehicle’s high beams on and off. The adjustment is made in time, so that an oncoming driver is not dazzled. This convenience feature is an industry-first one in the aftermarket sector. We also launched Speed Limit Indication, based on our proprietary Traffic Sign Recognition capability. The camera identifies and recognises speed limit signs the same as a human eye, and communicates this information to the driver.”

How do you see future developments by Mobileye in the fleet safety domain ?

I. Litman: “Today, awareness of the necessity to assist the drivers due to inattention issues – is constantly increasing. We will add more detection capabilities for traffic signs as well as warning against collision with general objects, and rear view cameras. We will also add fatigue detection capabilities to help reduce fatigue related accidents.” ■ Tim Harrup

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SCOPE I News

Universal recharging a step closer

Several car manufacturers support a universal charging system for electric cars in Europe and the US. A number of car manufacturers are supporting a move to eliminate one of the potential drawbacks (and perhaps even two) to the more widespread integration of electric cars into general operation. Audi, BMW, Chrysler, Daimler, Ford, General Motors, Porsche and Volkswagen have announced at the EVS26 (Electric vehicles) exhibition which took place in Los Angeles, that they are to support a universal charging system for electric cars in Europe and the United States. The system for use in public charging stations will be ultrafast DC charging. Vehicles will be fitted with a ‘Combined Charging System’ which will enable this type of charging along with AC-charging at home, using one inlet plug and one software system.

The fast charging element means that cars will be able to be charged in 15-20 minutes. The first cars to be fitted with this system will be available next year.

Pay as You Drive Insurance set to rocket Consulting firm Ptolemus Consulting Group has published a report on the impact of telematics on vehicle insurance. The ability of telematics to record exactly when a vehicle is being used has led to a vast increase in the number of ‘Pay as You Drive’ customers. Ptolemus says that there are currently 2 million drivers insured in this way across the world, and that it expects to see this figure reach 100 million by 2020.

Frederic Bruneteau, Managing Director, comments: “This is good news for consumers worldwide.

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Low mileage- and safe drivers will stop subsidising fraudsters, road warriors and dangerous drivers. And save up to 50% on their car insurance premiums… PAYD redefines entirely the way to charge for motor risks. Underwriters (insurers – ed.) must adapt to the new connected way of doing business”.

EU aims to liberalise vehicle migration It should be easier to migrate cars bought and registered in one EU member state to another one. Such a move should not necessitate a second vehicle registration. That is the opinion of the European Commission, which has prepped a plan to simplify the reregistration of vehicles in another EU country. That could save up to €1,5 billion, the Commission estimates. Every year, about 3,5 million vehicles migrate from one EU member state to another.

One frequent example are employees driving a company car provided by their foreign employer. They would no longer be obliged to register their vehicle in the country where they work. The Commission also thinks that car rental companies could save a lot of money by transferring cars between EU countries during the holiday season without having to re-register these vehicles.

The proposal should also simplify the import of second-hand vehicles from other EU countries.

LCV market in Europe declines European registrations of light commercial vehicles (up to 3.5 tonnes) dropped by 11.8% in March, bringing the total decrease year to date to 9.6%. Over the first quarter as a whole, around 450,000 new vans have been registered in Europe. The most spectacular decreases have been seen in the southern markets of Spain and Italy, which have plummeted by 22.6% and 36.1% respectively. Of the other ‘big five’ markets, Germany was only down by 1%, with France and the UK close to 6% and 9% down.

Safe hydrogen cars on the way According to Marnix Wagemaker of the Technical University in Delft (the Netherlands) safe hydrogen cars are just a matter of years. Emitting no more than pure water from their exhaust pipes hydrogen cars are a popular R&D-subject with mainly Asian manufacturers. But the under pressure storage of the hydrogen is a major drawback for this type of cars: highly explosive and requiring huge infrastructural adaptations to the known fuel network. The Dutch researchers of the TU of Delft and the Vrije Universiteit of Amsterdam however are convinced that hydrogen doesn’t necessarily needs to be stored under high pressure. They believe a battery-like storage system could do without the high pressure loadings and thus the costly and potentially more dangerous actual systems. Hence their claim that a mass-production of safe hydrogen cars is rather less than a daydream.

7 out of 10 cars in Europe have ESP

No less than 72% of all cars and light commercial vehicles newly registered in Europe today are equipped with ESP (Electronic Stability Program), says Bosch.

The company has manufactured 75 million of the anti-skidding system since 1995. More and more countries are demanding that ESP be part of the standard equipment of new cars. In Europe, this is already the case for all new models that have gone to market since October 2011. From November 2014, ESP will become mandatory for all new cars in Europe. Studies show that ESP can prevent up to 80% of all accidents caused by skidding. Bosch claims that EPS is the most important safety device in cars after the safety belt.

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SCOPE I Taxation

Key lessons learned from the Fleet Europe Taxation Guide 2012 We did it again! With the assistance of the PwC Automotive Network, we updated the car taxation regulations in 28 countries – almost all the EU + Switzerland, Russia and Turkey. The book has been published in early June, individual country chapters are available via the e-Shop of Fleet Europe (just scan the QR-code below or visit www.fleeteurope.com).

2011 has been a very turbulent year with lots of pressure on governments looking for extra money to bring their country’s affairs back into balance.

VAT rate increase Many countries have increased VAT rates by 1%, or at most 2%.

For those countries that limit the VAT deduction on car purchase cost… this adds immediately to the TCO of fleets. Greece (+2% to 23%, no VAT recovery), Ireland (+2% to 23%, no (or partial) VAT recovery), Italy (+2% to 23%, in principle 40% VAT deduction), Spain (+2% to 18%, in principle 50% VAT deduction), UK (+2.5% to 20% temporarily, in principle 50% VAT deduction) are just some examples. There is not a lot you can do to lower this extra burden besides lowering your consumption, so car budgets, or making sure that all expenses that could be kept out of the taxable basis for VAT, are indeed excluded.

Examples are insurance premiums, deductibles, registration and an-

nual road taxes, fines…. Needless to say, country specific conditions need to be fulfilled.

CO2-emissions The number of countries that link car taxes to CO2-emissions has not increased above 19. Most countries, having based their car taxation to

New taxes Some countries have introduced (some) new mechanisms for taxing cars. Greece has introduced in 2011 some car taxes based on CO2-emissions; Belgium for example will introduce a benefit in kind taxation based on catalogue price varying with the CO2-emission of company cars and an increase of the non-tax deductible cost with the employers.

If we look at today’s company car taxation, it is clear that we need to downsize in cost and CO2-emissions and that sustainability will be part of any fleet strategy

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the CO2-emissions of the car, are increasing the taxes by lowering the CO2-emission bands. Due to the changing buying behaviour and the increased production of low CO2emission cars, governments saw tax incomes decreasing. France with increased TVS company car tax), Ireland, UK (VED), the Netherlands, …. are some examples where existing taxes increase.

Luxury taxes Luxury cars represent a segment which is no stranger to increased taxes. Italy introduced a new tax for cars with an engine power above 185 kilowatts of 20 EUR for each kilowatt in excess of 185 kilowatts, impacting quite significantly the luxury and sports car segments.

Few incentives Following a period of scrappage incentives to sustain B2C car sales, we are now seeing that governments are quite choosy when it comes to (new) incentives. In an

important year for the first electric vehicles on the market, no additional incentives are being introduced. The 15 member states that had some kind of incentives for EV’s have kept these but no (significant) new ones where introduced.

Impact Increased taxes on cars, whivhever mechanism used, leads to an increased TCO for fleets. Although in many countries these are limited to a few extra percentage points, adding them up with increased fuel prices, upward pressure on insurance costs and other cost increases (e.g. tyres), can push fleet costs up by above 10%. Understanding the dynamics of these taxes is vital for your local company car policy and your international fleet strategy. More than ever a fleet’s TCO approach should include all these direct and indirect taxes. Taking this TCO Plus approach will enable fleet managers to compare cars and select best-fit, cost effective vehicles, to set proper objectives based on a correct base line, will provide insights into the real cost but also the real benefit of strategic decisions and will even enable staff to be incentivised using some of these tax effects. ■

Conclusion We could state that the changes in taxes relating to (company) cars were never as important as in 2012.

It is quite certain that taking into account the current economic environment, only few companies will allow increased spending on the car fleet. It is clear that we will all need to downsize in cost and/or CO2-emissions and that sustainability will be part of any fleet strategy; sustainability in terms of environment but also in terms of proper use of the company cars in order to make sure that no unnecessary costs are to be borne… drivers need to assume their responsibilities.

Gaining an insight into the dynamics of these car taxes will allow an effective strategy to be set and to test this strategy for its impact including the taxation impact. It is clear that further changing buying behaviour and introducing best in class vehicles when it comes to CO2-emissions can limit the extra cost.

Bart Vanham Car taxation specialist Representative of PwC

Difference in CO2, big difference in TCO The difference in TCO in general for a car emitting 130 gr CO2/km and a car with CO2-emissions of 110gr/km, in the same category, all other elements being equal, including direct and indirect taxes and fuel, approximates to 2,173 € in The Netherlands, 1,181 € in Ireland, 880 € in Belgium, 584 € in France, 484 € in the UK and 343 € in Germany. All amounts in these countries above 343 € do represent savings in indirect or direct taxes linked to CO2-emissions. If you want to get an overview of the European Car Taxation, you can order the new Fleet Europe Taxation Guide by scanning the QR-code.

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SCOPE I European Markets

From Fuel and CO2 through Taxation and VAT to Mobility Looking at the answers from the different magazines in Europe, we clearly see that CO2 issues and taxation are keeping the fleet managers in the different markets awake. Next to that mobility management incentives seem to be receiving more and more attention in some local markets. This is no wonder as at a wider international level these subjects are at the forefront of today’s fleet management. And more than often there is a direct link between the local and international scope.

Belgium and the fiscal situation “For the fleet world in Belgium the new fiscal regime, which has been in existence since the first quarter, is the hottest topic of conversation”, says Tony De Mesel, chief editor of Fleet & Business. “A different tax is now applicable in the different regions when registering a new car. Flanders has a new tax of its own, whereas the Brussels Region and Wallonia, along

with the leasing companies, will continue to follow the old regulations. On top of this, there is a basic adaptation of the concept of ‘benefit in kind’ whereby cars with high purchase values and higher CO2 emissions will be targeted. It is to be expected that downsizing will more than ever be the order of the day and that option choices will be in line with taxation bands.” www.fleet-business.com

Germany & Fuel “Fuel costs is the hot topic amongst German fleet managers right now”, says Hanno Boblenz, chief editor of Firmenauto. “As all companies try hard to cut costs it’s the fleet managers’ job to get rid of gas guzzlers.

On top of this most German companies enforce a strict CO2 policy that affects their fleets. It could even clear

the path for zero emission vehicles. But so far the German government has failed to implement a deduction of taxes for e-cars. Neither does the buyer get any financial support.” www.firmenauto.de

The Netherlands & Mobility Management “Apart from the economic crisis, environmental issues and fiscal measures that are clearly causing a shift towards smaller, cheaper and fuel saving cars, I think the most important trend in the Dutch fleet market is the change from fleet management to mobility management”, says Jelle Heidstra, chief editor of Fleetmotive. “Although at this moment parties may not be acting yet, it is definitely a hot topic in both the boardrooms of leasing organizations and major Dutch

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companies. A growing number of leasing companies have started providing customers with alternative mobility solutions, such as personal budgets for the use of electric bikes and scooters, public transportation, taxis, etc. For the fleet manager this means the job is getting more complex and indeed, another trend in this sector is that the DMU regarding fleet management is moving up to a higher level (CFO, HRM, Facility Management).” www.fleetmotive.nl

Fleet Europe has been covering the international fleet market for 15 years and brings pan-European and international fleet management information.

But Fleet Europe also follows up what is happening in the different European countries by maintaining good relationships with some of the most important national fleet magazines. Thanks to the support of different chief editors you can read what is currently going on in some of the most interesting European fleet markets.

Italy & Company Car Drive “In Italy the attention paid to the fleet market is witnessed by the success of Company Car Drive, an event addressed to the Italian company car market” says Ermano Molinari, chief editor of Auto Aziendali. For two days in April the biggest motor manufacturers gave fleet managers and buyers the chance to test vehicles on different routes. “The high interest for electric cars”, said Giovanni Tortorici, president of Aiaga (the Italian

Poland & VAT “Although the fleet market in Poland is already more than 10 years old, we can still describe it as a relatively immature market”, says Tomasz Siwinski, chief editor of Fleet Magazine. “The paradox of this situation is that new cars are selling very poorly. The situation for fleet sales looks better, but here the main ‘brake’ is unclear taxation. In Poland, you can deduct only 60% of the VAT of a new car, but no more than six thousand zlotych (~ 1,435 EUR). In addition, you can’t deduct the VAT included in the

fleet managers association), “is demonstrated by the fact that many fleet managers were interested in testing these cars at Company Car Drive”. In addition to car tests, those who came to the Company Car Drive had the chance to gain information on services and goods offered to car fleets by leasing and rental companies, fuel suppliers, maintenance and repairs, insurance products and services management. www.autoaziendalimagazine.it

price of fuel. Nevertheless, companies from the car fleet management sector are recording a year on year an increase in the number of operated fleets by several percentage points. It is expected that this will continue in the years to come.” www.fleet.com.pl

Switzerland – CO2 laws and rising fuel costs the cost of sanctions on to buyers. The system is lacking “Fleet operators are above all occupied in transparency for customers, because the average deby the new CO2 legislation”, says Flocrease will be obtained by applying individual targets to rian Tremp, chief editor at aboutFLEET. each importer. Fleet operators may well be faced with “From July 2012 Switzerland will be aphigher leasing and other costs because of this. Swiss plying emissions regulations for new fleet operators will need to turn even more to economic cars. This will oblige car importers to reduce the averengines or smaller cars in order to face up to the new age CO2 emissions of newly registered vehicles to 130 legislation and rising fuel costs. grams per kilometre. Sanctions will be applied if this is www.aboutfleet.ch not done. According to Swiss car importers association Auto-Schweiz, it is expected that its members will pass Steven Schoefs

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SCOPE I Market

Italy feels the heat Italy, is known for its love of beautiful and fast cars. But the crisis in the Eurozone has influenced the sales of new cars negatively… including in fleet. According to Pietro Teofilatto, Director of the Italian National Association of short and long term renting vehicles (ANIASA), the impact of the Italian car market crisis produced a sales decrease of 9% in 2010 and 11% in 2011. And this trend has even worsened in 2012.

F

or Andrea Solari, Deputy General Manager of Arval, the registrations decrease of 21% in the first quarter of 2012 will most probably lead to another 400,000 fewer sales compared to 2011. The final predicted volume will almost the same as1983 (!) adds Gilda Sanfelici, Operations Manager of HPI Fleet & Mobility. Despite the fact that the corporate fleet market and the renting and operational leasing market also show a respective decrease of 10.70% and 11.21% in registrations compared to the first quarter 2011, Pietro Teofilatto points out that within this dramatic context, the car rental sector, and especially the long term activity, has played an anti-cyclical and support role, making the situation less dramatic for manufacturers. the world.

Increased taxation impact According to Pietro Teofilatto, the effects of the economic crisis have led to drastic reductions of all costs as well as major restructuring of the organizations and reductions of staff. For Andrea Solari, the uninterrupted registrations decrease is mainly due to a mix of several factors: economic crisis, fuel price increases, higher insurance premiums and difficulties for compa-

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Evolution private, commercial & true fleet registrations in Italy 8 000 000 7 000 000 6 000 000 5 000 000 4 000 000 3 000 000 2 000 000 1 000 000 0

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

Since 2009 there is a serious decline in new car registrations in Italy, but the fleet market seems to keep up. nies in obtaining credit. Gilda Sanfelici adds that the considerable decrease in residual values on the Long Term Rent contracts is one other important negative factor on the fleet market. Pietro Teofilatto ends by stating that during recent months, long-term rental market has been further hit by punitive taxation and measures taken by Mario Monti’s government in light of the crisis: an increase of the purchase and sales tax on vehicles and a reduction in the deductibility of rental costs currently being considered by the government. From a tax perspective, concludes Saladino, Italy is now one of the worst places for fleet in Europe.

Action towards Mobility Cost-cutting, as recently published by the Arval Corporate Fleet Barometer, will remain the principal initiative for 87% of small-medium and 79% of large companies during 2012. According to Pietro Teofilatto, cost cutting also implies ‘downgrading’ and ‘downsizing’, selecting vehicles with lower cost and size, constantly pushing for new alternative engines (i.e.: hybrid, electric).

More and more small and medium enterprises even start outsourcing

fleet management activities as rental and leasing providers propose precise forecasting, benchmarking, ordering, monitoring and reporting web tools.

For Dr Robert Satiri, Responsible General Services of Colacem s.p.a., the financial crisis since 2009 also implies thinking and acting beyond classic cuts. This covers actions such as paying close attention to all 0% rate offers proposed by the automakers and renegotiation all long term rent contracts. Gilda Sanfelici adds the extension of contract periods (from 3 to 4 or 5 years), looking for different portfolio of services and the right mileage in the leasing contract. But a new trend is slowly emerging, confirmed

by Dr. Robert Satiri: “We need to start streamlining fleet management, mobility and paths of employees, as well as internally encouraging car-sharing, audio and video conferencing and all potential IT integration opportunities”.

A new trend shared by Gilda Sanfelici for whom it becomes crucial to clearly explain internally how employees can contribute to TCO reduction, namely by favoring connectivity tools versus transportation tools. ■ Filip Van Mullem

Fleet trends in the US today The fleet management concept has not been established in the USA as long as it has been in Europe, but it clearly is now. So what trends can be identified? We look at what some of the experts at the recent NAFA exhibition in St. Louis had to say about eight specific trends.

Fuel

In fuel terms, the next real breakout technologies may not yet be known, but it is important to keep on developing and examining them all.

Fuel efficiency will be one of the most important elements as fuel costs rise from their traditionally low levels in the USA, but alongside the cost element, there is now a growing awareness about the need to be environmentally friendly within the fleet industry.

There is a question surrounding how much government subsidy will be required to drive alternative fuels – but the government is still greatly in debt‌ The biggest factor in any move towards CNG as an alternative fuel is likely to be the political desire to see CNG as part of the solution to the energy question. Education of fleets about this is another essential point. Fleets need to be in possession of the facts when making purchase decisions. Price is likely to be a tool used to persuade fleets to buy more fuel efficient vehicles.

This year the NAFA Conference was organised in St. Louis. One of the key lessons is that American fleet managers and their fleets are beginning to go green.

>>

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Vehicles

Many companies are opting for smaller vehicles, as a way of reducing fuel costs and decreasing the company’s environmental footprint. Reducing vehicle weight will be vital, and work is being done on carbon fibre, although it is still much too expensive. Hybrids have seen a good degree of success in the USA, and this trend is also set to continue. The number of electric vehicles on display at the NAFA exhibition also demonstrated that they will have a role to play.

Mobility

Could car-sharing services help solve some problems? It may be that the size of the USA prevents this in some types of fleets, but this technology exists and does hold great promise in certain market sectors. Car-sharing is a technology which can lead to cost savings, and certain fleets have substantially reduced in size by adopting this concept. A number of public car-sharing schemes are already operational in North America.

Leasing

Technology

Technology is not going to go away and if fleets don’t embrace the technologies which will help drive down costs, they will be left behind. But fleet managers will need to ensure that the technology they select has a positive impact, whether this is on the vital subject of driver safety, or on fuel costs or resale values…

Vehicles are likely to become more expensive because of the new requirements for new technologies. Another point involves the increasing cost of maintaining these vehicles.

To show how much technology has impacted on the vehicle world, it has even been estimated that today’s Cadillac Escalade has more computing power in it than the entire room in Houston when they put a man on the moon in 1969…

It has been estimated that today’s Cadillac Escalade has more computing power in it than the entire room in Houston when they put a man on the moon in 1969

Regulations One main question to be considered is to what extent leased vehicles will now be placed on the balance sheet. It may be that both open and closed end leases will be on the balance sheet for a period of time, but this has not yet been confirmed. There is already adoption by some companies because it works for their business model, and it will be important for companies to ensure that there is a good fit between new leasing rules and their own strategies and objectives.

Resale

Some manufacturers’ predictions say that 2012 will see over 13 million new vehicles sold, and while this is good news for the economy, it probably won’t impact the used market for another two years or so. When resale prices do decrease, it is likely that the change will be gradual, so the advice is to stay in touch with developments and keep an eye on trends. Fuel economy considerations are also likely to impact on the used vehicle market.

Driver

Management The rapidly evolving telematics and technology products available have to be effectively integrated, with strategic policies dictating their use. Advisors such as fleet management companies can help, but individual fleets will have individual requirements. Above all, employers and employees will need to cooperate, and drivers have to be made part of the solution, not simply seen as the problem.

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Car-sharing can make a breakthrough when conditions are right.

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Fleet

Management There will be a move from fleet operation to fleet management. This is a trend which is seeing far more professional and allembracing fleet management systems – moving on from simply ‘car management’ and administration to genuine strategic management. There is going to be significant development in fleet managers’ responsibilities.

Using IT and other elements which weren’t around a few years ago. The next opportunity is for more visibility on clients’ experiences. Fleet managers will be able to impact on the productivity of both their own companies and their clients. Fleet managers will be able to contribute to their companies’ objectives.

They will be held accountable for three things: financial performance, technology, and the safety of drivers. Fleet managers will be expected to be the experts in these fields, and therefore they will need help from fleet management companies to do this. And it is now time to get involved in the global fleet discussion. ■ Caroline Thonnon Tim Harrup

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