09/02/2016
You may not realise all the benefits you’re entitled to when you choose to save money with fuelGenie; or the hidden costs that may be waiting for you elsewhere. To help you make an informed choice, we’ve gone through the biggest factors that should affect your decision.
Hidden fees
Cost is a key factor in choosing a fuel card: and confusing fuel prices are the main hidden fees associated with card accounts. Some fuel card providers offer ‘discounted’ pump prices. In reality, you may not be paying the discounted price each time your drivers fill up, but the price plus a hidden surcharge. allstar, for example, charges £2 per month for drivers who fill up using their card. In addition, each allstar pool card holder is charged £40 per year (or £3.33 per month).*
Some fuel card providers balance apparent savings at the pump with a per-transaction fee known as a ‘network fee’. If you’re saving 10p for every 50 litres your drivers pump, are you losing that money and potentially more somewhere else? fuelGenie doesn’t charge for cards, and levies no monthly or annual fees. You only pay the price you see on the pump.
Invoice assistance and tax returns
Some fuel cards offer built-in invoicing assistance and help with tax returns. Check to see if your fuel card provider generates HMRC-approved invoices, which streamline the tax returns process and remove the need for keeping and chasing fuel receipts. Fleet managers using fuelGenie cards don’t have to worry about their tax codes, or keeping tabs on their driver’s receipts. The automatic (and free) invoice generating service does everything required by HMRC.
Switching costs
Some fuel card providers will charge you to switch to their services, levying a fee for every fuel card you migrate. If you have multiple pool cards, or a lot of driver cards, these costs can soon mount up. For a medium-sized fleet, switching costs can represent thousands of pounds worth of extra expenditure, before any fuel is even purchased.
Find out how much you could save switching to fuelGenie, in comparison to allstar.
Network coverage
Savings are attractive–but without a good network coverage, your fuel card is worthless. Make sure you balance the overall fuel costs and charges of each card with the number of petrol stations you can fill up at. If the cheapest card doesn’t offer any coverage in your area of operations, it won’t be of any use to you.
Account management
Who’s managing your fuel card account? A dedicated person, or a call centre operative who knows nothing about your company? Find out how your chosen fuel card company intends to look after you when they’ve secured your business. Do you have access to your account details when you need it? fuelGenie gives you direct 24/7 access to your own account, letting you run everything just the way you want it.
Are you saving money with fuelGenie? Let us know what factors influenced your decision, on Twitter and LinkedIn.
*All prices correct as of 08/02/2016. allstar prices taken from allstar Standard Fee Tariff (February 2016) this information can be found on the allstar website here -https://www.allstarcard.co.uk/allstar-standard-fee-tariff/
