Research conducted by EVBox reveals that Dutch employers hardly encourage their employees to drive electrical or hybrid-powered vehicles.
This becomes apparent from the annual EVBox Sustainable Mobility Monitor that asked over 1,000 Dutch corporate drivers about their habits and expectations.
When selecting a new vehicle, a small minority (18%) of employees are asked to take note of the car’s required fuel type. Instead, employees are more frequently asked to look at the monthly lease price (39.6%), catalogue price (25.8%) or vehicle brand (26.9%).
EVBox CEO Kristof Vereenooghe said: “The corporate market is an important cornerstone for the occasion vehicle market. According to the Association of Dutch Vehicle Lease Companies, more than half of newly purchased passenger vehicles and delivery vans are leased. The vehicles finally again appear in the private market.
“Globally, vehicles emit almost a quarter of the CO2. It is therefore important that the corporate market sets a good example to make our mobility even more sustainable and to relieve the pressure on the climate.”
The need for sustainable corporate drivers
The majority (57.7%) of Dutch corporate drivers drive at least 20,000km annually. A quarter of corporate drivers add more than 40,000km to the clock every year.
The Dutch business people who use hybrid or electrically powered vehicles are often sceptic about the supply of charging solutions by their employers.
Dutch corporate drivers mainly use diesel in their vehicles (49.9%), while petrol is the fuel for 38.1% of corporate drivers. 7.3% are powered by a hybrid engine and 3.2% have an electric engine. The rest are powered by LPG, which some respondents were not aware of.
Vereenooghe said: “The process of making the corporate vehicle fleet more sustainable will continue over the next few years. The time has come to push diesel from the throne. I hope that leasing companies and employers want to contribute to this.”
The Netherlands: a country of cyclists
Regarding sustainable mobility, the authorities focus strongly on the use of bicycles as the Netherlands is traditionally a cycling country.
The Dutch Government is committed to getting 200,000 more commuters travelling by bicycle or public transport in the coming years to reduce traffic congestion.
Employers have a role to play in this. More than one in ten (11.9%) employers have a bicycle plan where employees get tax benefits when purchasing a bike for work.
Meanwhile, 6.3% of employers offer their employees a lease bicycle and 3.9% of respondents indicate that their employer makes a company bicycle freely available.
