Ford’s fleet director, Kevin Griffin: has seen positive reaction to extension of Blue Tag pricing structure across the Ford passenger car range
Business Car Manager: Editor’s Blog
ANY SMALL business owner – or company car driver – should rejoice at the news of Ford’s latest round of Blue Tag pricing. Originally limited to its larger cars – such as the Mondeo – Blue Tag pricing has now been extended to include the Ford Focus, Ford Kuga and Ford Fiesta.
But a little explanation first, starting with Blue Tag. The term Blue Tag has been coined by Ford to explain its new pricing structure. For the past 30 years Ford has dominated company car sales – mainly the big fleet stuff – by offering large discounts to bulk buyers. While this might have been welcome to the big companies, it affected their company car drivers, because the company car benefit-in-kind tax is based on the list or P11D price; NOT the discounted amount paid. It also disadvantaged the smaller business that only wanted five Fords not five hundred.
Blue Tag has swept all that history under the corporate fleet carpet. It reduces the list price of a Ford to what was the transactional price paid. It stops distorting the market, and makes Ford cars more affordable for small businesses and for company car drivers in terms of tax.
I managed to catch up briefly with Kevin Griffin, Ford’s fleet director, who has been, somewhat understandably, a busy man.
“Most of my time has been spent in communication with the dealer base,” Kevin explained. “We had three or four discussions with the dealers on the appropriate levels for pricing. There needs to be a trading margin for them, because they are businessmen who need to make judgements on sales. So it took a while to get it right.
“I have to say they were very receptive. They realised the way we were going to market wasn’t appropriate. And they’ve been very positive.
“Prior to this we needed to have a base of summer offers – Blue Tag starts August – that were equal or better than the current prices. The dealer base – as well as us here in Ford HQ – didn’t want the customer to feel short-changed.”
I asked Kevin how his fleet customers had taken the news. “The only real comment I had was – ‘why hadn’t we done it earlier!’ So reaction has been very positive. The amount of capital businesses have to pay for our cars has been reduced; and company car drivers pay less in company car tax. So it’s been very good.”
Having explained Blue Tag pricing, the action doesn’t stop for Ford. Which is excellent news for small businesses and business car managers. Next up for Ford, said Kevin, was the C-MAX compact (five-seater) and Grand C-MAX (seven-seater); followed by the facelifted Mondeo; and then in the new year, the all-new Ford Focus.
Plenty of reasons to keep an eye on new Ford product – and not just for Blue Tag pricing.
Note: to read the story on Blue Tag price reductions to the Focus and small car Ford range, click on Ford lower-price Blue Tag pricing for Focus and Fiesta.
To read the story on Blue Tag prices reductions to the Mondeo and large car Ford range, click on Cheaper Ford prices for company car drivers.p>
