An article in the Australian Financial Review outlines the new types of responsibilities Australian fleet managers are taking on as novated leasing grows. A novated lease is an agreement where an employer leases a vehicle, typically from a leasing company, on behalf of an employee, and the employer deducts pre-tax income from the employee’s salary to make the lease payments for the vehicle.

Quoted in the article is Tim Roberts, acting executive director for the Australasian Fleet Management Association, who notes that companies switching their vehicles to “grey fleets” requires employers to monitor employees in their vehicles more closely because the vehicles are effectively workplaces. The article goes on to discuss the need for fleet managers to be more involved in compliance and risk when managing outsourced fleets, and how many companies are focusing on reducing fleet-related costs and improving productivity.

You can read the complete article here.