Paul Hollick outlines challenges facing fleets at ICFM Conference

PAUL Hollick, Chairman of the ICFM, outlined the complex challenges facing fleets at the ICFM Conference.

Entitled ‘Fuel for the Future, the Emissions Dilemma’, the conference – held at The British Motor Museum, Warwickshire, on March 20 – celebrated 25 years of ICFM.

Hollick told the record 250 delegates that the traditional vehicle ownership model would change.

it was inevitable, he said. Against a background of world population growth, globalisation, connectivity, pollution, a scarcity of natural resources, global instability, the changing behaviour of generations Y and Z and congestion that legislation would be driven by such global challenges.

On a more local level, the list of key issues confronting the fleet industry over the next 24 months was unprecedented, said Mr Hollick:

• the continuing ‘demonisation’ of diesel amid air quality concerns and rises in CO2;
• the May 25 introduction of GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation);
• future company car benefit-in-kind tax increases;
• for fleets that contract hire the lease accounting standard changes effective from January 01, 2019 must be taken into account;
• the introduction to fleets of ultra-low emission and plug-in electric vehicles;
• the continuing fall-out from the April 2017 introduction of Optional Remuneration Arrangements (OpRA) around cash for car and salary sacrifice;
• continuing concerns around occupational road risk;
• the introduction of autonomous vehicles and related concerns around terrorism and cyber security;
• and the ever-present topic of ‘big data’.

“The future is approaching faster than we think. The time to act is now. The challenges faced by fleet managers are of a level the like of which we have not seen before. These are troubling, but also exciting times.”

Referring to the company car benefit-in-kind tax increases due in the next three financial years he speculated:

“Is the government on a mission to tax the company car out of existence. I hope not, but at the moment I don’t know.”