How to run a cost-efficient electrified commercial fleet

As well as cutting tailpipe emissions to zero, EVs could also significantly cut the total lifetime cost of your fleet.

In fact, many fleet managers – and their finance directors – are finding that lower TCOs are making EVs a more attractive option than ever.

That TCO is made up of a number of elements. These include:

• The price of the lease for the vehicle
• Maintenance cost
• Fuel costs
• National Insurance contributions
• Vehicle Excise Duty
• Insurance premiums
• And any applicable corporate tax deductions.

Even when EVs can initially look like the more expensive options, considering all the lifetime costs in this way shows that they can be cheaper in the long run.

That’s without adding in the significant Benefit in Kind (BiK) tax savings your fleet drivers could make when they choose an EV, plus the significant fuel savings.

Mile-for-mile, it’s much cheaper to fully charge an EV than to fill the tank of a similar size petrol or diesel vehicle. It only costs around 2p per mile to run an EV – and there’s no Fuel Duty on electricity.

There’s also a wide range of grants available that make EVs an even more attractive choice.

Plug-in grant

The plug-in car grant was dropped in June 2022 as government funding was shifted to focus on charging and other vehicles. The following vehicle grants remain active:

Plug-in small van grant

35% of the purchase price, up to £2,500 (only available for a total of 1000 plug-in van and trucks for your business or organisation each year. This limit resets every year on 1 April).

Plug-in large van grant

35% of the purchase price, up to £5,000 (only available for a total of 1000 plug-in van and trucks for your business or organisation each year. This limit resets every year on 1 April).

Grants are also available for the following vehicle types:

• Wheelchair accessible vehicles
• Motorcycles
• Mopeds
• Taxis
• Small trucks
• Large trucks - Making the switch to EVs will require your organisation to install new infrastructure. You can also get government support for this:

Workplace Charging Scheme

Up to £350 per socket (40 sockets max) at 75% of the total cost of installation. Maximum possible grant of £14,000 (Find out more).

Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme

Up to £350 (including VAT) off the cost of installing a charger at each of your fleet drivers’ homes (Find out more).

We can also provide our customers with comprehensive telematics data, so you can identify operational efficiencies to further cut costs.

We’re already helping fleet managers to cut their lifetime costs and emissions with EVs. We’d be delighted to help you too. Please get in touch to find out more.