Fuel Card Article

Confessions of a Fuel Card User

Having been providing fuels cards and petrol cards for many years, we at Cambrian Fuel cards we keen to find out what the experiences of a new fuel card user were; so we asked a number of a our new customers to let us know what their experience were, including any initial hopes or fears they had over changing they way they purchased fuel. This response in particular, which we've titled 'confessions of a fuel card user' is worthy of inclusion in our 'news and articles' section. So here it is:

Ever since I was given a company petrol card I've had complete peace of mind knowing that I needn't worry about paying for petrol out of my own pocket as I drive to and from meetings all over the country. Before the introduction of the petrol card it was my responsibility to keep a tally of the fuel I'd purchased and provide receipts in order to get the money I'd spent reimbursed.

Although the old method of buying fuel for my company car seemed straight forward enough, it did have its pitfalls. For example, keeping hold of all the receipts was a pain and in the unlikely event that I lost a receipt, I'd be out of pocket. Some of my colleagues were dubious when the company fuel card was introduced, but their concerns were along the lines of merely fearing the change rather than having an issue with the petrol card itself.

The worst case scenario is if I lose or forget my fuel card, in which case I could be out of pocket if I needed to fill up with my own funds instead of using the companies fuel account. However being the same size as a cash or credit card, it's easy to keep in your purse or wallet, or even locked in the glove compartment.

My fuel card can only be used at a certain petrol retailer and initially, I thought this would make buying my fuel a lot harder, as I no longer had the luxury of pulling into the first petrol station I found. However with around 2000 sites across the UK means there is at least one petrol station I can use in almost every town and city. It's just a simple case of filling up when the opportunity arises rather than waiting until I'm running on red.

Aside from my own happy experiences using the new petrol cards, feed back has also been positive at our head office. Our accountant is no longer having to juggle a multitude of fuel receipts from numerous members of staff and my immediate manager can check the fuel account for each of us from any computer using secure login details. This account details how much fuel was pumped, how much the fuel cost, the date and time of purchase and the location of the petrol stations used for refuelling. Such information can be invaluable for one whose main role is managing, organising and streamlining a mobile workforce.

For more information on the fuel cards which are available, contact Cambrian Fuel Cards today on 01633 677677.