Andrew Hurst (above), CEO of the Global Vehicle Group, talks to Broker News Editor, Ralph Morton, about why the group purchased Fleet Alliance, the benefits to the group, further expansion potential, and managing senior broker executives
BACK in early June Global Vans – now part of the Global Vehicle Group – carried out another of its stealth acquisitions.
Just like it had with XLCR and the lcv group, without a whisper it had acquired Glasgow-based leasing broker and fleet management company Fleet Alliance.
“Well, there’s no point publicising these things,” Andrew laughs. “We don’t want to give anyone else the chance to scupper our plans.”
The acquisition makes the Global Vehicle Group a formidable B2B competitor in the broker market: it turns over some 18,000 vehicles annually with an aggregate fleet size of over 70,000 vehicles.
Some business: in FN50 terms that would put the Group, which is backed by H2 Equity Partners, above Zenith in sixth place.
Andrew says that Fleet Alliance was one of the last pieces “in our strategic outlook” to broaden the channels in which the Group operated.
“Effectively we can now deal with small and medium customers, which is sort of what we’ve been used to in our main business, but also we’re able to go for the very big ones that Fleet Alliance manages and can attract.
“There are other facets, too, that drew us, such as their e-Fleet product. We can now cross-fertilise to our customer base. So we can deliver more for our customers and make them more involved in our business, which ultimately builds customer relationships. It builds stickiness and hopefully improves the longevity of those customers. And that’s the point really: we want to serve the customers as well as we can. E-Fleet is like the secret source of that.”
Andrew says salary sacrifice was another draw that made Fleet Alliance appealing, particularly its new salary sacrifice light product – essentially a cut down version of the company’s existing salary sacrifice scheme where customers can self-serve – which is perfect for smaller fleet customers believes Andrew.
“There’s still a lot of runway in salsac. And because the Fleet Alliance product is brokered it still steps out of the market. It’s not like an Octopus or Tusker where you go direct with a single offering. The idea of being a broker is that you give the customer choice and if you just offer a single size fits-all type policy that’s run by one of the funders it’s not the same is it?”
A great place to work
Fleet Alliance has been rated as one of the Best Places to Work in the UK in the Financial Services and Insurance industry for the second year in a row. Click to read more.
Funder reaction to the takeover
Often when these big mergers happen, funders can be nervous about the implications.
Are they too exposed by such a deal?
Does it create imbalances in their portfolio?
But Andrew says the funders showed little reaction. “But, you know, they see what’s happened and kind of get it. If they thought it was a concern they’d be up in arms, but they saw no conflict of interest.”
Andrew also says that it has helped balance out the portfolio of funders within the Group, so no one funder makes up more than 15 or 20% of the business, which he describes as “fantastic”.
Bringing Fleet Alliance back to life
But the purchase is by no means a one way street. Andrew says Fleet Alliance has been a solid and well respected business, but perhaps too conservative in the past.
“It’s interesting. Fleet Alliance hasn’t been quite as dynamic as the businesses that we’ve been involved with before. So it will be interesting to see how they develop going forward because, hopefully, we can give them some enthusiasm to push forward.”
It’s not only some rocket fuel being provided, Andrew continues, but access to better buying power and improved terms on commercial vehicles where Fleet Alliance has “been a bit weak”. With such a large customer base to take vans Andrew reckons there’s additional synergy there that the Group can utilise.
What are the prospects of merging all brands?
Andrew says that’s unlikely as the brands all hold value and identity. “We’ve taken best practices from each one of the brokers in our Group because each one hits the market in a slightly different way. Obviously we share in some of the benefits of buying power and so far it is pretty good. We’re really happy with the results.
“What we would like to do is operate more as a single business at the back end, and that’s what we’re aiming to do. So we have a big fleet department, an LCV section, a car section, a salary sacrifice section and such like. And all to be operating on one system, which is where we would like to get to, so we’re investing in the tech stuff that can help bring efficiencies and better customer benefits. Think of it as one big back end with several different front doors opening onto the market place.
“Some clients want immediate action while others can take months onboarding. But behind it all there will be one system serving all those different front doors.”
Is further expansion on the cards?
With financial backing, and healthy profitability, is it possible that Fleet Alliance won’t be the last acquisition?
“I don’t know, is the answer,” Andrew rather coyly replies. “There is talk of it, and how it could form part of our strategy. It’s slightly dependent on how we go to market and whether we open up the channels of marketing more.
“If we do decide to do that, having a consumer brand as part of the portfolio would be advantageous because it’s a bucket that can be filled with that type of business. However, consumers are more reactive to the economy, whereas business is more resilient. So as you can see, we’re still weighing it up!”
“It does get a little uncomfortable leading the Group, because some of the guys I now work with, and who effectively report to me, are obviously very brilliant guys.”
Being the best B2B leasing broker
The trouble with Groups is that they can be rather amorphous, with little sense of identity or purpose – unlike their constituent parts. But Andrew says that’s not the case with the Global Vehicle Group. He believes the Group is about being the best B2B leasing broker.
“I’d like to think we are there already. But it’s something that never stops – we’re certainly not resting on our laurels and there’s plenty of growth left in the Group’s business. We’re quite excited by the fact that we can do things together and you know what they say: ‘several heads are better than one’.”
Talking of which, what is Andrew’s role in a Group that has a lot of experienced leaders in it?
“It’s been an interesting journey,” says Andrew. “I’ve gone from founding a business and growing it to becoming more strategic as we’ve acquired brokerages, although I find it hard to let all the details go if I’m honest!
“But it does get a little uncomfortable leading the Group, because some of the guys I now work with, and who effectively report to me, are obviously very brilliant guys. They’ve all been on a similar journey to me. So it’s quite hard to go and say, ‘oh I’m their boss’. That bit is quite challenging because I’ve got to really listen now – my view can be challenged quite well!”
Broker News Newsletter 6 May 2026
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Ralph Morton is the leading journalist in the leasing broker sector and editor of Broker News, the website which provides information and news for BVRLA-registered leasing brokers. He also writes extensively on the fleet and leasing market in both the UK and Europe.
