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Rising fuel costs, the overall economic forecast and general efforts to reduce operating costs mean businesses are looking more closely at fleet and transport costs to see which measures they can introduce to help improve efficiency. One way a company can achieve this is to encourage using a grey fleet instead of a traditional vehicle fleet.

One of the critical factors is that implementing a grey fleet will lead to a business’s cost reduction, but because there are risks associated with a grey fleet, it might not always be the answer. Any business’s boards, management and health and safety teams should ensure they understand these risks before undertaking a grey fleet strategy.

What is a Grey Fleet, and what are the benefits and the risks?

So, you may be asking, what exactly is a grey fleet, and how can it help? A grey fleet is a fleet of drivers who use their vehicles for business purposes.

When employees use their vehicles, the business benefits from a reduction in costs, including maintenance and servicing, because the drivers are more likely to take care of their vehicles.

Other benefits of a grey fleet include:

  • The ability to expand your fleet without the upfront costs of acquiring vehicles.
  • The ability to only need to use grey fleet drivers when required, thus negating the need for potentially costly “pool” vehicles.
  • Incentives for grey fleet drivers to purchase more fuel-efficient and environmentally-friendly vehicles that benefit both the driver and the company.

However, there are costs such as the reimbursement of mileage for grey fleet drivers and a need to ensure that adequate policies are in place to cover liabilities in the event of an accident or road traffic incident.

Factors to consider are:

  • The reimbursement costs for a driver’s mileage. Currently, the HMRC Approved Mileage Allowance Payments scheme allows employers to pay grey fleet drivers up to 45p per mile for the first 10,000 miles and 25p after that.
  • Ensuring drivers have the correct insurance with sufficient liability cover.
  • Recording and managing regular (preferably daily) vehicle checks to ensure a grey fleet vehicle is safe to operate.
  • Regular DVLA licence checks are critical to ensure drivers are legally allowed to drive and their insurance is valid.
  • The liability implications should a grey fleet driver be involved in a crash; the company could be held liable if the proper safety policies are not recorded and stored.

Keeping Your Grey Fleet Safe With AssetGo

You can ensure your grey fleet drivers stay safe by utilising AssetGo daily checks.

As a fleet manager, you can ask your grey fleet drivers to complete a daily walkaround check of their vehicle, including a safety inspection of critical aspects such as tyre wear and tear, fluid levels and body condition.

Checklists can be modified to include additional information, including mileage. You can also implement an end-of-day check that contains the final mileage for an ongoing record of overall mileage for tracking reimbursements.

This information is stored in your AssetGo management dashboard, where you can analyse and monitor your grey and standard fleet management data.

You can also record other pertinent grey fleet vehicle data such as MOT, service, warranty and maintenance dates.

To learn more about how AssetGo can help manage your grey fleet and your company-owned fleet management, please get in touch with our team today for a demo and to start a free trial.