Dec 2004
Having collected and monitored statistics relating to the leasing and fleet management market over the last few years, members of the Southern African Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (SAVRALA) are experiencing several important trends in their industry.
For the past five years, under the guidance of SAVRALA’s Leasing and Fleet Management Statistical Sub-Committee, the nine key players operating in this sector have been submitting their total vehicle/contract count figures.
Participating companies are Avis Fleet Services, Contract Lease Management, debis Fleet Management, FleetAfrica, Fleet Support Services (incorporating Imperial Fleet Services, Absa Fleet Services and McCarthy Fleet Services), LeasePlan Fleet Management, NedFleet, Standard Bank and Viamax Fleet.
Broken down into several defined categories, submissions have been made on a quarterly basis with the process of collecting, collating and reporting on these figures managed by Smart Practice, an impartial and independent company with the specialised skills and experience needed in managing such a project.
With consistent quality returns having been received over an extended period, it is now appropriate to publish some of the more interesting and useful results.
Figures currently represent the total parc of passenger and light commercial vehicles managed between the contributors in both the corporate and government sectors. As at 30 September 2004, they reveal that the association’s leasing and fleet management members are a major purchasing bloc within the motor sector, with almost a quarter of a million vehicles under their control.
The figures further reveal that there has been a minor decline in the overall funded contract count in the past year to around 68 000 vehicles. This really reflects the ‘status’ of the company car in corporate South Africa, a perk that has been under pressure over many years from the trend towards car allowances. With the impending announcement of changes to the fringe benefits tax legislation due in Trevor Manuel’s forthcoming Budget speech, however, this trend looks set to change. Another trend is that funded contracts managed for Government have declined from 2003 with only a negligible increase showing in Maintenance/Non-Funded contracts for this market.
Major growth has been experienced recently in managed contracts which show a growth of about 17,5% over the past year to around 190 000 contracts. The major portion of the growth has been in manufacturer maintenance plans reflecting the role that member companies play in what is essentially the retail rather than corporate arena.