Related links
Grey Fleet
What is grey fleet?
Perhaps the activity most frequently associated with collaborative procurement is contracting and contract implementation. While there is no doubt that new ways of buying can deliver real benefit across the public sector through better specifications and improved demand leverage, one of the most successful projects for the fleet category in 2008/2009 was not based on contracts or buying at all.
The "grey fleet" project is all about working with public sector organisations to raise the profile of the "grey fleet" as well as help them run initiatives aimed at reducing the number of business miles driven by employees in their own vehicles. There are at least 3 good reasons for organisations to reduce this kind of travel;
CARE:The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 which came in to force in April 2008 created a new offence where death is caused by a gross breach of duty of care by senior management. This means that where it can be proved that senior management are responsible for a gross breach of duty of care relating to an employee driving for work and that death has resulted from this breach, penalties can be applied including unlimited fines and publicity orders.
In addition to this the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 imposes on employers a statutory duty to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable the health, safety and welfare at work of their employees. This is relevant in relation to "Grey Fleet" as this statutory duty would apply when employees are undertaking driving for work
While it is possible to manage "grey fleets" effectively, many organisations in both the public and private sectors struggle to do so, on grounds of resource, expertise and the greater difficulty in monitoring vehicles not directly owned or managed by the organisation.
CARBON: There is increasing focus on how sustainable organisations run their operations and the need to reduce the impact these operations have on the environment. Further more government has set targets to reduce CO2 emissions by at least 26% by 2020 relative to 1990 levels[1]. Grey fleet vehicles are generally older than company passenger fleet cars and are known to contribute the bulk of the road transport CO2 emissions in some organisations. Tackling grey fleet will help reducing your organisations carbon footprint and contribute to towards achieving CO2 reduction targets.
COST: Although not usually a prime motivator for a "grey fleet" project - there is also a cash benefit. Grey fleet mileage re-imbursement rates are normally considerably higher than alternative modes of travel and a focus on grey fleet helps employees make consious decisions about the journeys they make. This typically results in a reduction in unnecessary business journeys and reduces the strain on travel budgets.
Grey fleet projects managed under the collaborative fleet procurement project saved over £8m for public sector organisations in 2008/2009 - with more set to follow in 2009 and beyond.
The OGC helps organisations meet this challenge through our popular "grey fleet toolkit". The toolkit helps organisations establish effective projects, supported by help and advice from our category team. To request a copy of the toolkit please click here to send an email to the fleet team, upon receipt the latest version of the toolkit will be emailled to you.
There is also an online community hosted on the I&DeA's community of practice website, where registered members can access the latest documents, case studies and network with other practitioners right across the public sector. You can register to join the community by clicking here.
Grey Fleet Flyer
For a printable version about grey fleet, please click here
Are you safe from prosecution?
To find out more about how the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 could affect your organisation, please click here
[1] Climate change Act 2008
© Crown Copyright 2010
Page last updated: 2009-10-23
