COMPANY car fleets were predicted to grow in 2013.
That was the result of a survey by business car leasing company and mobility solutions provider Alphabet.
And how.
Their bullish outlook in the Alphabet Fleet Management Report foreshadowed the strengthening recovery of Britain’s economy.
The CBI recently raised its growth forecasts for 2013 and 2014 forecasting GDP growth of 1.2% in 2013, up from 1.0% in its May forecast, and 2.3% GDP growth in 2014, up from 2.0%.
Meanwhile, the Finance & Leasing Association confirmed the growing SME optimism: new business deals (of up to £20m) grew by 6% during July; sales finance grew by 17%, with funding for commercial vehicles up by 16%, and car finance by 5%.
Our winners in the Small Fleet Leasing Awards were already taking advantage of this, with our overall winner, Fleet Alliance, reporting a growing forecast for business car leasing in 2014.
Paul Hollick, chief commercial officer of Alphabet added that SME small fleet and the large fleet attitudes may once again act as a bellwether for the economy. “Fleets take decisions with the next three to five years in mind,” he said. “They reflect the confidence of the organisations they serve.”
Alphabet said that its overall business car leasing fleet had increased in size from 109,000 in 2012 to 120,000 at the end of September 2013.