Thousands of businesses in the United Kingdom operate commercial fleets of vehicles. They are used for the transportation of goods, services and personnel. Without commercial fleets, many companies would simply be unable to operate at all.
This is one of the reasons why the current truck driver shortage in the country could prove to have a devastating impact. Companies also make use of their commercial vehicles as moving billboards. They help to generate a recognizable brand identity. Any person that regularly uses the roads in this country will likely have developed some of their understanding of national businesses by being exposed to their commercial vehicles.
Most operators of commercial fleets do not have their own refueling facilities. Their drivers need to use publicly available petrol stations just like everybody else. Instead of paying for fuel using cash or a company card, commercial drivers typically use something known as a fuel card. This enables them to purchase fuel without immediately exchanging money. Instead, fuel is charged to the card at a later date. Here are some of the advantages of this system.
Security
While the roads and petrol stations of the United Kingdom are not exactly lawless places, companies typically do anything in their power to avoid distributing cash and credit cards outside of their immediate control. Cash can be stolen, while credit cards can be copied and used to extract money from company accounts. Fuel cards can only be used for fuel, which makes them far less tempting targets for would-be thieves. Fuel cards eliminate the possibility of widespread damaging fraud.
Efficiency
Fleet drivers are often operating to tight deadlines. In the logistics industry, time is money. Handling cash or company cards and noting their use accurately takes time. Although the amount of time spent using these payment methods is small, it all adds up. Using something like a Shell fuel card, however, takes almost no time at all. Once a petrol station employee acknowledges that the driver is using one of these cards, they do not need to take payment at the point of purchase at all.
Savings
All petrol stations in the United Kingdom charge different prices for their fuel dependent on their location. The competition between petrol stations in an area plays a large part in determining price. Fuel will generally be cheaper in areas with lots of stations. This can end up being a very expensive affair for companies that have drivers all over the country. Some fuel cards, however, offer businesses a flat rate per litre of fuel. This can make a huge difference.
Administrative Streamlining
Fleet operators that enable their drivers to pay with cash or a credit card have to deal with a great deal of complex administration. Money is spent and deducted from accounts at all sorts of hours – leading to a constant stream of admin work. Fuel cards usually charge clients on a monthly basis. This means that fuel expenditure can be calculated in a far more predictable fashion.
