As the tax year has recently come to an end, businesses across the UK will be busy reviewing their finances. With recent changes meaning that diesel car tax rules and capital allowances are altering, SME’s should be taking care of their fleet and looking at ways to cut down on costs.

In light of the new tax year, business fuel card provider, fuelGenie has put together a checklist to ensure fleet managers are budgeting effectively.

1. Spend where it matters – If you spent a great deal of time at the end of the financial year looking for ways to spend any remaining budget, this can easily be diverted into much more wise investments. Consider investing this remaining allowance into programmes that offer long term benefits, i.e fleet management software or extra safety training for employees.
2. Consider changes in company car tax – Company car tax has now increased from 3%-4% for diesel cars registered on or after 1 January, 1998. While this may only seem like a small change, fleet operators can use this as a way to encourage employees to select cars with lower CO₂ emissions.
3. Introducing CO₂ thresholds – With recent adjustments to capital allowances, businesses could consider introducing set 110g/km CO₂ thresholds in line with the new government changes. Since April this year, cars operating under a business have to emit less than 110g/km in order for them to deduct the full cost of the lease against taxable corporate profit. Setting thresholds would avoid any cost increases.
4. Review and improve – No matter how much planning goes into a company’s annual budget, external factors will always impact on the overall expenditure. Business owners should compare the previous year’s fuel spend budget with the actual amount spent throughout that year. This will help managers plan accurately for the next year, helping them determine costs the fleet may incur during the next financial year.
5. Use a fuel card – A fuelGenie fuel card means SME’s don’t need to keep track of paper receipts. Users can use their online fuel consumption data to manage their 2018-2019 fleet budget more effectively.

Ever supportive of SME’s throughout the UK, Managing Director for fuelGenie, Robert Pieczka, commented: “The financial year end can be a stressful time for small business owners and fleet managers. Reviewing last year’s expenditure and seeing where changes can be made for the next tax year can really benefit the business in the long run, no matter how small the alteration.”