Fuel Card Article

Fuel Cards make life so much easier
You could be a self-employed lorry driver, trade as a white van man or manage a fleet of vehicles and you could travel locally or nationwide but one thing is key to all of these businesses, fuel costs; no matter how far you drive fuel is going to be one of your main expenses and any way to manage or reduce that cost is vital to the smooth running of any business. The right fuel card can provide fuel discounts, remove the need for cash and receipts and also allow the petrol and diesel consumption of company vehicles to be continually and efficiently examined.

There are a host of fuel cards available from fuel card companies in the UK which will suit the needs of particular businesses. For example, if you run a large fleet of trucks operating in a national or even an intercontinental network, it is worth looking at particular types of fuel cards like Keyfuels or UK Fuels cards both of which offer an extensive nationwide coverage of hundreds of petrol stations and you can also fix your fuel prices at a highly competitive rate each week.

There are many other benefits of fuel cards such as; they often offer credit subject to status, they provide detailed VAT invoices for all of your staffs fuel purchases  and they limit the use of the card to fuel only so you can make sure that other driver expenses are kept separate. As there are so many fuels cards available it is worth shopping round or going to a specialised fuel card company that has a wide range of cards available and that can assess your business and advise you on the best option for your business. Working closely with a business such as Cambrian Fuelcard Services will provide you with the tools to create an integrated fuel policy, with full management information to hand to review spending and cost savings every month.   Utilising fuel cards enables a fleet manager to manage what vehicles employees drive and controls their fuel usage monitoring how much they buy and how efficiently they drive their vehicles. This allows managers to effect an on-going training policy to increase driver efficiency.
So if you are sick and tired of the time, effort and cost of having to sort through piles of receipts and expense claims each and every month then fuel cards are for you. Claiming back VAT also becomes much easier, the European Sixth VAT Directive says that VAT can only be reclaimed if the transaction is effected between two organisations that are registered for VAT.  This can only be achieved if you are using a purchasing method that allows for billing in your company name and can’t be done using fuel receipts.

Also you are able to assess the management information trends and this will show you which makes and models of vehicle are the most fuel-efficient and also other useful information such as the drivers who always fill up at motorway service stations rather than cheaper local sites.

There are so many benefits; the greater control, the convenience, the saving on administrative work, the potential cost savings on fuel and the increased monitoring, that it would be foolish to dismiss fuel cards. Take a look at the benefits to your business and contact an advisor who will show you the best card for your business and how to use them effectively to reduce costs and time for your company.