Leasing

By Lauren Fletcher

Need a Laugh? These “Strange, but True” stories were sent to Automotive Fleet by fleet managers, drivers, and fleet management companies. Have a strange, but true story? Something so incredible it couldn’t have been made up? Share your stories with Automotive Fleet. E-mail: Lauren.Fletcher@bobit.com.

Tags: Border Crossing, INS, Leased Vehicles, strange but true

By Mike Antich & Grace Lauron

OTD was affected by plant closures due to Chapter 11 reorganizations by GM and Chrysler, an economic downturn that decreased fleet and retail sales, and shipping delays caused by less-than-full loads for railcars and transporters.

Tags: ARI, Donlen, Emkay, GE Capital Solutions Fleet Services , LeasePlan USA, Order-to-Delivery, OTD, PHH Arval, Wheels, Inc.

By Staff

NAFA's annual resource-laden conference brought commercial and public sector fleet managers from across the U.S. to New Orleans for four days of education, training, and best practice sharing.

Tags: I&E, Institute & Expo, NAFA

By Staff

Fleet managers are wise to read the entire lease agreement and familiarize themselves with the terms and conditions under which they will be doing business. For it is the business side that impacts the fleet manager most.

Tags: Lease Agreement, lessee, lessor, open-end lease, open-end TRAC lease, strategies

By Cindy Brauer & Thi Dao

From acquisition to remarketing, a compilation of best ideas in managing successful, cost-effective, and efficient fleets is presented.

Tags: Accident Management, best practices, bright ideas, Depreciation Management, Driver Productivity, fleet policy, fuel, maintenance management, Process Management, remarketing, Risk Management, sustainability , vehicle acqusition

By Grace Lauron

More than 60 energy company representatives met to discuss the latest in fuel trends and green fleet initiatives. Breakout groups provided an intimate setting for information-sharing and best practices.

Tags: Energy Conference, PHH Arval

By Staff

Featuring the first-ever Fleet Hall of Fame ceremony, strategic presentations by industry experts, and a display of green concept cars, AFLA’s annual conference drew nearly 300 attendees, one of the group’s largest audiences.

Tags: AFLA, Automotive Fleet and Leasing Association, Car of Tomorrow, conference, Fleet Hall of Fame

By Mike Antich

This was an interesting order-to-delivery year. A protracted UAW strike and flooding in the Midwest delayed some models, while others posted improved OTD due to reduced retail sales, which expedited fleet production.

Tags: ARI, Donlen, GE Capital Solutions Fleet Services , LeasePlan USA, order to delivery, OTD, PHH Arval, Wheels, Inc.

By Cindy Brauer

LeasePlan USA’s new CEO Mike Pitcher plans to build on a legacy of innovation, out-of-the-box solutions, and flexibility with clients. His key message to employees emphasizes the company’s stability and growth.

Tags: David Dahm, LeasePlan USA, Mike Pitcher, Tom Toups

By Staff

PHH Arval conducts an annual environmental survey of public and private sector managers. Eighty percent of the surveyed fleet managers reported a growing interest in fleets’ environmental impact at their companies.

Tags: emissions, Environmental, Green, PHH Arval, survey

By Staff

A slate of high-powered speakers and panel presentations will offer strategic perspectives on what lies ahead for fleet management in fuel, corporate green fleet initiatives, automotive technology, leadership development, and OEM initiatives.

Tags: AFLA, AFLA 2008, conference, Leasing

By Ed Bobit & Cindy Brauer

With anonymity guaranteed, fleet managers voiced their honest thoughts and concerns on senior management’s regard and respect for the fleet management function and the fleet manager position itself.

Tags: Anonymous, Fleet Manager, True Thoughts

By Mike Antich

On Jan. 1, PHH Corp. terminated the $1.8 billion merger agreement because it was not consummated by the stipulated Dec. 31, 2007 deadline. The key problem was Blackstone’s inability to fund its acquisition of PHH Mortgage.

Tags: GE Capital Solutions, merger, PHH Arval

By Mike Antich

Reimbursement doesn’t work from an HR or safety & liability perspective, is counter-productive to corporate ‘green’ initiatives, can negatively impact the company image, and FAVR reimbursement programs may not be SOX-compliant.

Tags: Company Image, FAVR, green initiatives, HR, liability, reimbursement, Safety, SOX, tax consequences

By Staff

The RFP process can get bogged down with unneeded detail when procuring fleet programs and services. Reviewing and analyzing responses become cumbersome. Here are some ideas to simplify the process.

Tags: RFPs, vendors

By Editor

The cornerstone of a successful fleet operation lies in a carefully structured agreement. Negotiating a fleet management agreement is as much art as science, but if done right, problems can be avoided.

Tags: merchants leasing article

By Christine Erice

For many fleet managers, the closed-end lease means everything is “fixed.” However, this isn’t always the case. By offering customers more options and mid-term lease recalculation, LeasePlan USA, a vehicle leasing and fleet management company, has made the closed-end lease a more flexible option.

Tags: LeasePlan USA, Leasing

By Cindy Brauer

The new package, aimed at small business owners in the vocational segment, offers a one-stop source for acquisition, financing, fleet management, maintenance support, and vehicle disposal.

Tags: DCX, Leasing

By Staff

He worked as the country’s first fleet dealer, developed an innovative replacement program, influenced the start of PHH, and helped found NAFA. Small wonder that when we think fleet and leasing, Sam Lee comes to mind.

By Bryan Calloway

Not only will the market share for the closed-end lease grow, but so will its impact on fleet. A desire for predictable budgeted payments and fewer surprises at resale has prompted a renewed interest in the closed-end lease.

Tags: closed-end, Leasing

By Editor

Deciding whether to lease or own company-provided vehicles can seem a daunting task. Knowing the basic concepts helps.

Tags: Leasing, ownership

By Bill Bosco

The FASB and IASB have put a new leasing project on their agendas. The outcome will be the creation of one leasing standard applied worldwide. Is this the beginning of the end of off-balance sheet accounting for fleet leases?

By Chad Simon

More than 90 members and guests attended the gala black-tie 50th anniversary celebration at the Hotel Monaco in Washington, D.C. Highlighting the evening was a congratulatory letter from President George W. Bush.

Tags: 50th Anniversary, AALA

By Mike Antich

Corporate procurement departments are becoming the engines of change in fleet management at Fortune 500 companies. The emergence of strategic sourcing in the 1990s is rapidly altering corporate purchasing and increasingly forcing change in fleet purchasing and the supplier selection process.

By David Fern

Implementing proactive fleet policies can often produce significant cost savings in the long run. Examine every aspect of fleet operations to uncover expense-cutting opportunities.

By Mike Antich

The aggressive fleet incentives that manufacturers are currently offering commercial fleets present the opportunity to give serious consideration to substituting a compact SUV on a selector in lieu of a traditional intermediate-size fleet sedan, so long as it is capable of fulfilling the fleet application. When you compare lifecycle costs during a 36-month service life, a compact SUV actually has a lower monthly total cost. Interestingly, they are also less expensive at a shorter 24-month cycle.

By Editor

With the extensive menu of leasing and fleet management services available, fleet management agreements can be confusing. It is important to understand what to look for and what negotiable issues are.