Reducing grey fleet risks & managing challenges

What is a grey fleet?

A ‘grey fleet’ refers to personal vehicles used by employees for business purposes.

As someone responsible for managing a fleet, it's crucial to understand the implications private vehicle use has on your fleet management responsibilities. In this blog, we'll explore the challenges associated with grey fleets and the role you can play in managing risks relating to the safety, efficiency, and compliance of these vehicles when used for business travel.

Challenges of managing a grey fleet

Navigating the challenges of managing a grey fleet can be a daunting task for those overseeing personal vehicles used for business purposes.

If employees only occasionally need a vehicle for work, then it’s likely to be substantially cheaper to allow them to use their own vehicle (and either offer them a cash allowance or reimburse them for fuel and maintenance expenses) than to source, lease/purchase and maintain a company vehicle.

However, this also presents unique obstacles.

Tracking and supervising grey fleet vehicles can prove difficult, making it hard to ensure their efficient and safe use when covering business miles. Moreover, those managing a fleet often face the challenge of ensuring compliance with safety, insurance, and maintenance requirements for personal vehicles, over which they have limited control. Last year, a study found that 6.7% of grey fleet cars did not have the correct insurance cover.

Liability concerns are also a significant issue, as your business could be held responsible for accidents or damages that occur when personal vehicles are used for work. This increases the risk of legal, financial and reputational consequences.

Additionally, since grey fleet vehicles tend to be older than managed fleet vehicles, they may be less efficient and more polluting, making emissions and sustainability goals harder to reach.

Finally, while grey fleets may appear cost-effective at first, hidden expenses can accumulate. This can include the admin time involved in managing duty of care and additional costs should something go wrong while an employee is travelling on business. It is therefore crucial to evaluate the overall cost-effectiveness of this approach.