• Incentivise not Penalise

Incentivise not Penalise

HR departments should establish incentive schemes to encourage company car drivers to opt for greener vehicles rather than relying upon the threat of punitive legislative measures, argues international fleet management company Masterlease. 

Governments around the world are driving the green message through the business community in a bid to reduce C02 emissions, but this is currently based upon ‘too much stick and not enough carrot’ according to Emmanuel Roche, head of international sales for Masterlease.

The problem for businesses is with greater choice in company car schemes, drivers don’t always want greener vehicles or to be told how they can drive. So, asks Roche, how do they implement a more environmentally-friendly car policy across Europe? 

Masterlease, which manages international fleet deals in 17 countries world-wide, has recently signed 12 new full service leasing agreements involving 15,000 vehicles for major brands across Europe. The deals, which will be implemented over the next two years, were secured because of Masterlease’s understanding of its global marketplace and its micro-management of local cultural sensitivities. 

Roche, who heads up the dedicated international team at Masterlease, argues that not enough businesses currently reward drivers for good behaviour. In many cases companies only penalise drivers, or do nothing at all because they do not know how to deal with ‘deviant’ behaviour.

“All of the environmental legislation seems to be focused on penalising drivers but to effect change it is much easier to encourage drivers to make the decisions you want them to. 

If you want someone to choose a more environmentally friendly vehicle, why not give them cash back for doing it, or offer them a much higher spec vehicle with for example, leather seats, so they get a really good car but with lower emissions?” says Roche.

“By so doing, everyone is much happier. The driver is getting something back and the business is able to reduce its carbon footprint and save money without causing unnecessary bad feeling with its valuable workforce.” 

He said that reward is the key to changing behaviour. For example, if there is a group of drivers doing the same kind of mileage with identical cars, but one’s fuel consumption is much higher, a way of dealing with this would be to actually reward the driver who has the best fuel consumption.  This could be a cash incentive or something like a bottle of champagne for the ‘most efficient fuel consumption of the month.’ 

“By doing this, you’re not penalising those that use a lot of fuel, but you are sending a clear message that you’re keeping a close eye on them. There is also a good chance that the overall fuel consumption of your fleet will stabilize, and even decrease. According to your cost saving target, you will decide gradually to implement additional measures.”

Roche added that the same incentives could be used to reward drivers who have never had an accident, an important message to send because of the growing focus upon health and safety across Europe.

“Basically, the company decides how it wants its drivers to behave and then incentivises them to do it.  Most want carbon-conscious and safe drivers to reduce environmental damage and business risk, and this can be achieved by rewarding rather than imposing regulation and penalising. It’s all part of employee engagement – if you relate a change to a benefit, you will meet less resistance and you should even be greeted with acceptance and enthusiasm.” 

For further information, contact John Wilson on +44 121 456 3199 or email john.wilson@iassmarts.com