Mark Jowsey, commercial director at KeeResources, said: “With September peak new car registrations just around the corner, and company budgets being squeezed ever tighter, whole life costs should be the prime consideration before signing contracts.

“Vehicle manufacturers are launching new ranges of lower CO₂ efficient vehicles every month and this presents fleet managers and companies with significant opportunities for reducing costs for those with access to the latest automotive market data and the right forecasting tools.

“Two elements of whole life costs set to rise next year are employee Benefit-in-Kind (BIK) tax and employer NI contributions.  In April 2012, the BIK low rate ten per cent tax band will drop from the current 120g/km to 99g/km with BIK increasing by one per cent for each five g/km rise in a car’s CO₂ emissions.”

Whole life cost calculations involve complex forecasting, affected by numerous factors including company car policy, specification levels, residual values, SMR, disposal arrangements, fuel policy, fleet insurance and supply terms plus the impact of employers’ NI and BIK tax liabilities for drivers.

A relevant white paper on Vehicle Whole Life Costs: Best Practice for Fleet Managers is available for free download at http://kwikcarcost.com/downloads/?action=signup

Kwikcarcost provides a whole life cost model that includes information on every vehicle make and model, enabling users to quickly identify the most cost-effective vehicles complying with fleet policy.  Importantly, the cheapest vehicle solution provided is independent of the procurement method chosen.

Managing director, Denis Keenan said: “As vehicle valuation experts, it is essential we keep in tune with all pioneering automotive developments.  The Nissan Leaf won the 2011 European Car of The Year Award – the first full electric car to do so – and I personally wanted to enjoy the ownership experience of this car for myself.  From all the road test reports, the Nissan Leaf has the performance and handling to match its petrol or diesel-powered equivalents with a top speed of 90mph and a range of 100 miles.

“We have installed an EV charging point at Automotive House and I will be using the car on my regular journeys between our three offices in Blackthorn, Oxfordshire, High Wycombe and Basingstoke.

“As part of our corporate and social responsibility policy, we encourage all our employees to keep their business mileage to a minimum and in the past few years I have limited my own to 2,000 to 3,000 miles per annum.  I hope that my experiences with the Nissan Leaf will encourage others within KeeResources to consider a full electric or hybrid vehicle for their next car.  Certainly, it will be available to any employee who wishes to evaluate the car for themselves on their typical journeys.”

The Nissan Leaf is one of nine electric and hybrid vehicles eligible for the Government’s £43m plug-in car grant in the UK, which came into effect on 1 January 2011, entitling owners up to £5,000 when buying any qualifying low carbon car with CO₂ exhaust emissions below 75g/km.

Mark Jowsey, commercial director at KeeResources, said: “With September peak new car registrations this month, and company budgets being squeezed ever tighter, whole life costs should be the prime consideration before signing contracts.

“Vehicle manufacturers are launching new ranges of lower CO₂ efficient vehicles every month and this presents fleet managers and companies with significant opportunities for reducing costs for those with access to the latest automotive market data and the right forecasting tools.

“Two elements of whole life costs set to rise next year are employee Benefit-in-Kind (BIK) tax and employer NI contributions.  In April 2012, the BIK low rate ten per cent tax band will drop from the current 120g/km to 99g/km with BIK increasing by one per cent for each five g/km rise in a car’s CO₂ emissions.”

Whole life cost calculations involve complex forecasting, affected by numerous factors including company car policy, specification levels, residual values, SMR, disposal arrangements, fuel policy, fleet insurance and supply terms plus the impact of employers’ NI and BIK tax liabilities for drivers.

A relevant white paper on Vehicle Whole Life Costs: Best Practice for Fleet Managers is available for free download at http://kwikcarcost.com/downloads/?action=signup

KWIKcarcost provides a whole life cost model that includes information on every vehicle make and model, enabling users to quickly identify the most cost-effective vehicles complying with fleet policy.  Importantly, the cheapest vehicle solution provided is independent of the procurement method chosen.

Managing director, Denis Keenan said: “Following the rapid growth of our business over the past few years, the purchase of Automotive House will allow us to accommodate our significant expansion plans for our vehicle data operations, programming facilities, and our IT support infrastructure.

The move has seen us almost quadruple our office space and the new headquarters includes our data centre with dedicated IT resources.  We have created a large conference facility seating up to 40 guests, with other meeting offices and workshops encompassing state of the art computing and audio/visual facilities.

Before moving in, our new headquarters was completely refurbished and the building programme included the installation of no less than six kilometres of cabling, and even 2 EV charging bays!”

The full of address of the new headquarters is: KeeResources Limited, Automotive House, 65-69 London Road, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire HP11 1BN.  Tel: 0333 444 4411.

KeeResources also has offices in Blackthorn, Oxfordshire and Basingstoke, Hampshire.

Automotive House

Author Mark Jowsey, commercial director at KeeResources, said: “The white paper investigates key tactics to pursue to consistently lower costs.  It advises on how to avoid decisions that will increase future costs, as well as to how to factor in broader HR and duty of care considerations.  The white paper is aimed at fleet managers seeking an introduction to whole life costs as well as experienced users looking for new tactics.

“Whole Life Costs are a forecast, and optimally fleet managers need to use a tool that allows adjustments to be easily made to reflect changing individual circumstances governed by key factors such as disposals’ performance, SMR arrangements, fuel policy and supply terms.”

The white paper looks at the impact of Employers’ NI, tax liabilities for drivers, fleet insurance, company car and fuel policy.  It advocates reviewing car policy often as reviews will avoid getting caught out by escalating end of life vehicle running costs and take account of new models and specification changes.  Establishing minimum standards of specification to help meet duty of care responsibilities are recommended as well careful consideration of SMR and disposal route arrangements.  Leveraging whole life costs as a negotiation tool with suppliers and amortising optional extra costs over the operating life of vehicles are other recommended tactics to consider.

Free copies of the complete white paper are available to download by clicking here.



Managing director of KeeResources, Denis Keenan said: “Having been major supporters of FleetNet for many years, we are delighted to win this contract with FleetNet, which we feel to be an endorsement of the very high quality standards of the data that we provide to the industry as a whole.  From a short list of three, our tender response was selected as offering FleetNet the most advantageous and robust supply of data and we are committed to constant development of the code to maintain the highest standards within the vehicle rental and leasing industry.”

Secretary of FleetNet, Colin Mallen, said: “The sub-committee unanimously recommended KeeResources as the new provider, along with acceptance of all documentation, and its recommendation was accepted and endorsed by the steering committee.  In every area, KeeResources’ data production meets all FleetNet output standards and conventions.”

In its assessment of the three short-listed providers, the sub-committee used a balanced scorecard approach which concentrated on the understanding of the code and its goals; the tendering providers’ ability to deliver consistently high quality output to the user group; its technical capability; the ability to deliver future gains to the users; combined with value for money.

Core professional services provided include:

• Due diligence and revaluations
• Outsourced management of Residual Values, SMR and data
• Leasing and quotation systems consultancy

If you are interested in any of these services please complete the enquiry form and we will contact you to discuss your requirements.

Over the past 10 years the business has grown to provide a range of complementary services through our four brands.