New analysis from Enterprise Rent-A-Car shows a significant increase in the use of car rental among U.K. public sector organizations, including local authorities, health trusts and central government. This includes daily rental services as well as hourly car sharing. The growth demonstrates the success of the partnership with Government Procurement Services, according to Enterprise.. And growth in the number of rental days indicates public sector employees are responding positively to the call for a switch from mileage reimbursement to the use of a rental car.

Customer feedback indicates that car rental achieves several aims. Some examples include helping to reduce the cost and administrative burden of self-regulated mileage reclaim programs resulting from “grey fleet” usage, as well as cutting down on carbon footprint by encouraging employees to use smaller, more environmentally friendly vehicles in car-sharing programs.

Oz Choudri, head of public sector at Enterprise Rent-A-Car, said: “… Public sector bodies are using cars in a variety of ways – by the hour, by the day or for longer periods of a month or more – to provide flexibility and convenience for employees while increasing compliance and cost efficiencies for organizations. It’s helping to change some entrenched behaviors, such as mileage reimbursement, by offering a viable and easy-to-use alternative.”

Geoff Derham, head of waste and fleet services at City of York Council, said: “Car sharing schemes are now providing a much wider range of solutions, and these give our employees much greater choice around how they travel for work. ... We’ve found that rental is much safer and more convenient than relying on employees to use their own vehicles – or indeed running our own pool cars, which involved a lot of administration. Car hire has become a default option for a significant portion of travel at City of York Council.”