July 4, 2025
Sara Davies
Wessex Fleet Updates
As we head into Q3 it’s time to look back and see if Q2 played out as anticipated. Our Director Simon Naylor gives us his expert opinion on the past few months as well as the next quarter ahead.
Fragility in the market
We painted a picture last quarter of low business confidence, and flat growth predicted for a while. Since Employer NI and the budget, we’re seeing the fragility in market confidence that we anticipated. Corporates are being cautious. Persistent inflation and the geo political situation is causing uncertainty as well. Customers are still looking to cost cut, which does also provide opportunities, but it’s far from an easy market at the moment.
AA Lease orders gain pace
The AA contract we won at the end of last year continues to flourish. We’re still rolling out strategies to meet increased targets which grow month-on-month, as well as recruiting nine new staff members just this quarter; five in June alone. We’ve had impressive levels of enquiries and order take. A couple of challenges remain with the administration and supply chain. As we’ve increased volumes, some of our suppliers are struggling to churn units quickly and efficiently to keep up, but we’re in constant communication to work out new ways of adapting the process, and we’re achieving numbers that are far greater than the AA ever managed through their previous supplier. Nevertheless, targets are ambitious and we’re working harder than ever to get every cog in our business fine-tuned to achieving them.
Court of Appeal decision imminent
The forthcoming decision from the Court of Appeal on vehicle financing is meant to be any day now. Early July is the chatter. This will be a very interesting time. Banks and different lenders will all interpret decisions differently. How will the regulators react? We look forward to an outcome here, once the decision is formalised. Certainty is the key, so that everyone can plan and establish processes moving forward.
AI for fleet support
In terms of new technology to support not only the AA contract but the rest of our clients, we’ve implemented a new email management system that’s working well for our fleet support and maintenance teams. It allows significant AI integration, quicker and easier management of email traffic and better reporting. The teams have picked it up quickly and we look forward to developing it further.
Supplying fleets to universities
Over the years, we have become specialists assisting fleet managers in the public sector and We’ve been a university supplier for around 15 years now. We’re proud to be an Approved Provider to: Crescent Purchasing Consortium and NWUPC via Framework VEH 3085 Lot 3 and also an Approved Supplier to Southern Universities Procurement Consortium (SUPC), LUPC (London Universities Purchasing Consortium), NEUPC, APUC and Higher Education Purchasing Consortium Wales (HEPCW).
Our National Account Manager Sharon Arnott and Rental Manager Kayleigh Potter represented us at the North Western Universities Purchasing Consortium (NWUPC) Conference at the University of Liverpool on 4th June.
They caught up with universities we already supply, and discussed the leasing, and rental of minibuses to potential new ones, picking up a few good leads.
The conference was one of numerous events attended by Wessex Fleet in June, which included Company Car in Action (show giving fleet professionals the chance to see and drive new models), Transport Talks 2025 Roadshow and the WSH Supplier Connect Summit (an international catering and hospitality group we supply; only 300 of their 5,000 suppliers were invited, which we were pleased to be one of).
Maximising fleet utilisation in 2025
Aside from the continual move to electrification, I think the rest of the year will continue to be about delivering maximum value to clients and assisting with cost cutting efforts. The surest way to succeed in the current climate is to focus on efficient use of resource and maximising utilisation of a fleet.
Enjoyed this article? Read more of our latest blogs below:
- Going Places! Company Car in Action
- Changes to Ways to Pay Roadside Fines
- How to Create an Environmentally Friendly Fleet
- Our Charity Walk for Terminally Ill Children
For all our latest news and blogs click HERE.
Or are you looking to understand the company car, fleet management or any other aspect of fleet vehicles? If so, then check out our Guide Pages.