EV SPECIALIST broker DriveElectric shares 10 easy steps for businesses to convert to electric vehicles. And take advantage of those green number plates due this autumn.
1. Look at whole life costs
Electric vehicles can be more expensive to lease than ICE vehicles, so look at whole life cost comparisons
- Employee BIK. An employee taxed at 40%, driving 20,000 miles a year, would save £1,916 annually by swapping to an electric car such as a Tesla Model 3 Standard Range Plus compared with a BMW 330e M Sport plug-in hybrid.
- Company savings. On the same car comparison, an employer would save £662 Class 1A NIC and £1,992 in fuel costs against HMRC Approved Fuel Rates. Total employee/employer savings are £4,570 in just one year.
- Maintenance costs. EVs are also typically 30% less costly to maintain than ICE cars because they have fewer moving parts.
- There’s no road tax to pay on EVs.
- The benefits get even better in London. Fully electric vehicles are exempt from the capital’s Congestion and Ultra Low Emission Zone charges.
2. Carry out a fleet review
Understanding the needs of a business is essential before recommending where electric cars or vans can work best. A review of an organisation’s current fleet can be done in a practical way that doesn’t have to be over-engineered.
3. How are vehicles used?
What are the vehicles used for, what distances do they cover, what routes are they driven on? Electric vehicles typically now offer driving ranges of between 150-350 miles. So whether a fleet’s cars travel fewer than 100 miles per week or 200 miles every day, there’s something to suit all needs.
4. Review the latest EVs that are available
What electric vehicle options are available? A wide range of new electric cars and vans are coming to market during 2020, with options to suit all kinds of needs, tastes and budgets.
5. Ensure replacement vehicles are fit for purpose
Can the proposed replacement vehicles do the job? Whether the requirement is for urban deliveries or long motorway journeys, the available list of suitable EVs is expanding.
6. Test drive/trial the EVs
Proposed EVs need to be driven, and ideally a trial of at least a few days should be arranged. DriveElectric offers the ‘try before you buy’ FlexiHire option for businesses, allowing an electric car or van to be tried out over a period such as three months.
7. Implement charging solutions
EVs don’t need to visit fuel filling stations, but they do need to be charged. DriveElectric’s experience shows that charging and range are the biggest concerns for fleet managers, but there’s an increasing range of home, workplace and public charging solutions.
- The Workplace Charging Scheme allows a company to claim £350 per charging point installed at a workplace, up to a maximum of 40, which could mean a saving of up to £14,000.
- In terms of public charging, there were 18,583 EV charge points with 32,247 connectors at 11,599 locations in the UK (30 June 2020). Many of these are equipped with rapid chargers that can boost an EV’s battery from empty to 80% in just 30 minutes.
8. Energy – make it renewable
There are energy tariffs for EV drivers which use renewable energy and cost less than 5p per kWh. Multiplying the cost of the energy going into the car by its battery size will give the cost of a full charge, meaning that fully charging a Nissan LEAF could cost as little as 5p x 40kWh = £2, giving a real-world driving range of around 150 miles.
9. Tie in with corporate social responsibility
The adoption of EVs should be part of a company’s corporate social responsibility/environmental/sustainability policies, which can also enhance a company’s image.
10. Involve the employees
Employees want to be part of the move to greener policies – engage with them and harness their enthusiasm. Apart from delivering improved air quality, employees prefer the driving experience of EVs.
Mike Potter, managing director of DriveElectric, commented:
More and more businesses want to switch to electric vehicles, but may need help on their journey. These 10 steps can help that transition process.
Automotive and fleet writer for Broker News
