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Automotive Fleet Magazine

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Oct 20-22, 2026 | MD

Driving Notes

Knowing about a vehicle is one thing; driving it is quite another. Getting behind the wheel gives yo...

Multiple Authors

3 contributors

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FleetTakes

FleetTakes is exactly that — a take on what fleets need to know when it comes to the latest in autom...

Chris Brown

Associate Publisher

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Insight Lane

Insight Lane delivers Colin Sutherland’s perspective from the intersection of leadership and innovat...

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Market Trends

Automotive Fleet's former editor, Mike Antich, shared his opinions and ideas on the overall commerci...

Mike Antich

Former Editor and Associate Publisher

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Remarketing Streams

Remarketing Streams reports on the flow of used vehicles moving through the consignor-auction-dealer...

Martin Romjue

Managing Editor

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Market Trends•by Mike Antich•August 15, 2006

What Manager Accepts a 20% Defect Rate? Fleet Managers Do

The accident rate for fleets averages around 20 percent, with some industries, such as pharmaceuticals, even higher. In other words, 20 percent or more of your vehicles will be involved in an accident annually. In terms of your fleet safety program, any vehicle-related accident should be viewed as a defect.

Market Trends•by Mike Antich•August 1, 2006

The False Economies of Driver Reimbursement

There are a number of reasons why driver reimbursement continues to be the wrong choice for commercial fleets, ranging from HR issues, safety concerns, liability exposure, corporate image, and tax consequences to employees.

Market Trends•by Mike Antich•July 25, 2006

IRS Auditing More Fleets for Inadequate Personal Use Recordkeeping

If personal use of a company vehicle is allowed, then you are responsible to ensure company compliance with IRS regs and to avoid tax problems associated with unreported personal miles. The reason for this admonition is that more companies are being audited for inadequate recordkeeping of business use.

Market Trends•by Mike Antich•July 18, 2006

High Fuel Costs Add Pressure to Increase Personal Use Charges

The dramatic spike in the price of fuel has increased the cost of allowing personal use of company-provided vehicles. A growing number of companies now question whether they charge employees enough for personal use to offset the increased cost of fuel.

Market Trends•by Mike Antich•July 11, 2006

The Impact of Sarbanes-Oxley on Fleet Operations

Examined are the implications of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act on fleet incentive monies that are not capitalized into the cost of a vehicle, the sale of out-of-service vehicles to employees, and process controls for decentralized fleets.

Market Trends•by Mike Antich•July 5, 2006

Forecast of Commercial Fleet Buying Intentions for 2007-MY

The forecast is for commercial fleets to purchase a comparable number of vehicles in 2007 as they did in the preceding model-year. The high price of fuel is impacting selectors, as are concerns about rising fleet fixed costs.

Market Trends•by Mike Antich•June 27, 2006

High Cost of Fuel and Weak Retail Sales Softens Resale Demand

Resale values in the wholesale used-vehicle market have softened as retail sales of both new and used vehicles have weakened, said Howard Graus, assistant manager, vehicle remarketing for Automotive Resources International (ARI), a fleet management company headquartered in Mt. Laurel, N.J.

Market Trends•by Mike Antich•June 19, 2006

How to Minimize Vehicle Abuse

A major headache for fleet managers is dealing with drivers who willfully abuse their company-provided vehicles. Although they represent a very small minority of drivers, their actions (or lack of action, in the case of neglect) have a direct bearing on the company’s bottom line and fleet budget.

Market Trends•by Mike Antich•June 13, 2006

Looking Over the Horizon:Five Predictions and Two Wild Cards

Each year, Automotive Fleet tabulates fleet-related data for its annual Fact Book to provide insight into the fleet industry for the current and preceding model years. With this foundation, I thought it would be interesting to extrapolate this data to identify trends that may influence fleet management decisions in the upcoming model-years.

Market Trends•by Mike Antich•May 23, 2006

Factors Influencing Development of 2007-Model-Year Fleet Selectors

Each month we are in contact with hundreds of fleet managers who manage fleets ranging from fewer than a hundred vehicles to mega fleets of tens of thousands of units. This link provides us a strong pulse of what’s happening in the marketplace. Emerging trends can be discerned after hearing similar comments repeated by a variety of fleet managers in different industry segments. Here is some of the buzz currently circulating through the industry.

Market Trends•by Mike Antich•May 2, 2006

15 Ways to Increase Your Fleet's Fuel Economy

Although gas prices have hit a record high, you can take actions to maximize the fuel efficiency of your fleet. Here are 15 suggestions for drivers to follow to maximize fuel economy, most of which won't cost you a cent.

Market Trends•by Mike Antich•April 25, 2006

Fuel Becomes Fleet's No. 1 Expense at $3.25 Per Gallon Depreciation Moves to No. 2 Position

If the price of gasoline reaches $3.25 per gallon, it will exceed depreciation as fleet's No. 1 expense, based on today's incentives and residual values. With the $3-per-gallon threshold already shattered, this scenario is not implausible.

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