Wise choice of company car could drive down costs by £270m a year
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filed under:
ENVIRONMENT
06 Apr 2008
SCOTTISH companies and other organisations providing company cars could save £270m a year by switching their fleets to those with lower carbon emissions, according to a new study.
Government tax breaks coming into effect today would mean substantial savings for employees as well as employers.
The research – carried out by independent environmental organisation the Energy Saving Trust – involved 400 board level executives across the UK, a quarter of them based in Scotland.
It found that Scottish organisations are the most likely to insist employees choose their vehicle from a restricted list.
New Government tax concessions come into force today and if UK companies choose vehicles with carbon dioxide emissions of 120g per kilometre or fewer it would save employers across Britain £250m through reduced National Insurance contributions and employees £645m through reduced benefits-in-kind income tax contributions.
There would be a £780m saving in fuel consumption and a saving of £1.2bn on the fuel bill of company cars driven privately.
Transport emissions from UK company cars used on company business would fall by about 1.9 million tonnes per year and in those cars driven privately of around three million tonnes per year.
The findings form part of the Energy Saving Trust's new report – Behind the Wheel II – which is launched today.
At present, just 3% of organisations offer financial rewards to employees who choose a smaller, cheaper or lower carbon vehicle, though 85% of companies believe that taking steps to reduce their carbon emissions saves their organisation money.
Mike Thornton, director of the Energy Saving Trust in Scotland, is calling on Scottish organisations to act now and 'green' their company car fleets.
He said: "The reasons are there for all to see: running vehicles costs a lot of money and with fuel prices over £1 a litre it's not going to get cheaper any time soon. In addition, companies in Scotland won't get far when tendering for big contracts unless they can prove their environmental credentials.
"From today there will be tax breaks for driving cars that produce 120g/km of CO2 or fewer and if someone driving an average company car opts for a car in this category, they could see their tax burden cut in half.
More information.
The research – carried out by independent environmental organisation the Energy Saving Trust – involved 400 board level executives across the UK, a quarter of them based in Scotland.
It found that Scottish organisations are the most likely to insist employees choose their vehicle from a restricted list.
New Government tax concessions come into force today and if UK companies choose vehicles with carbon dioxide emissions of 120g per kilometre or fewer it would save employers across Britain £250m through reduced National Insurance contributions and employees £645m through reduced benefits-in-kind income tax contributions.
There would be a £780m saving in fuel consumption and a saving of £1.2bn on the fuel bill of company cars driven privately.
Transport emissions from UK company cars used on company business would fall by about 1.9 million tonnes per year and in those cars driven privately of around three million tonnes per year.
The findings form part of the Energy Saving Trust's new report – Behind the Wheel II – which is launched today.
At present, just 3% of organisations offer financial rewards to employees who choose a smaller, cheaper or lower carbon vehicle, though 85% of companies believe that taking steps to reduce their carbon emissions saves their organisation money.
Mike Thornton, director of the Energy Saving Trust in Scotland, is calling on Scottish organisations to act now and 'green' their company car fleets.
He said: "The reasons are there for all to see: running vehicles costs a lot of money and with fuel prices over £1 a litre it's not going to get cheaper any time soon. In addition, companies in Scotland won't get far when tendering for big contracts unless they can prove their environmental credentials.
"From today there will be tax breaks for driving cars that produce 120g/km of CO2 or fewer and if someone driving an average company car opts for a car in this category, they could see their tax burden cut in half.
More information.
