Fleet management and leasing provider, Ogilvie Fleet, says its order bank demonstrates how swiftly fleets are switching to electric cars. The company reports that 45% of all forward orders are for pure electric cars. If you add in orders for plug-in hybrid models, Ogilvie Fleet says the percentage rises to 78%.

Meanwhile, electric commercial vehicles are at 6% - ahead of the U.K. average of 5%, according to Ogilvie.

“We were an early adopter of EVs and have been a tireless advocate of EV motoring for our customers, and the increase shows that our approach has been effective,” commented Nick Hardy, sales and marketing director, Ogilvie Fleet.

The company says that to help all motorists gain knowledge of electric motoring (not just fleets or Ogilvie customers), it launched the MiNextEV website with up to date information on every single EV currently on sale or due for launch in the U.K.

“In providing our customers with independent, brand-agnostic advice on EV motoring, we have ensured that rather than being a daunting prospect, the switch to an EV can be beneficial not just for the environment, but for drivers too,” added Hardy.

“With average EV ranges and public charging infrastructure improving every year, we know that EVs are often more than suitable for most drivers, even if they don’t have access to home-charging.”

Along with the environmental advantages of choosing an EV, fleet drivers benefit from very low benefit in kind taxation levels, designed to encourage the take up of electric cars prior to the U.K. government’s 2030 ban on the sale of petrol and diesel vehicles.

The yearly taxation on a Hyundai Ioniq 5 starts from as little as £157 a year, and on a Tesla Model 3 from as little as £194 a year.

Businesses also benefit from lower whole life costs, even though purchase price and lease rentals are higher than equivalent ICE cars.