Fleet industry reaches ‘tipping point’ as EV enquiries reach record levels
A record number of fleets are turning electric as enquiries and orders for electric vehicles rocket at Reflex Vehicle Hire.
At one recent event, 80% of van fleet enquiries received by Reflex included requests for information about plug-in cars and vans, while more than half of all non-rate card requests since May have been for pure electric vehicles.
This has created a ‘tipping point’ as fleets and drivers move from interest in EVs to actively procuring them, according to Lisa Spong, Reflex Vehicle Hire sales director.
She said: “While diesel continues to be the mainstay of many of the van fleets that we provide vehicles to, interest in electric vehicles has reached a tipping point, with soaring demand driven by government policy, and rising fuel costs.
“We are working closely with fleet customers to ensure a smooth transition strategy without impacting their core business operations. In particular, we make sure companies maintain the fundamentals of a safe and efficient fleet as they switch, so they extract the maximum potential benefits from the introduction of electric vehicles.”
Reflex’s latest deliveries consist of a batch of Mercedes-Benz eVito zero-emission vans, along with a fleet of Kia e-Niros to customers throughout the UK.
To ensure there are no hidden shocks for customers, Reflex is deploying EV:IE (Electric Vehicle Information Exchange), a fleet evaluation service that provides detailed wholelife cost comparisons between fossil fuel fleets and their EV equivalents.
Total cost of ownership analysis includes recharging costs and compares EV range to current mileage patterns, based on fleet and telematics data. It has revealed that some companies could already transition their entire fleet to EVs, based on current usage and range of available models
