Sharing vehicles is becoming increasingly important in the vehicle fleet, as it offers the opportunity to utilize the fleet more efficiently and thus reduce costs. Even though the classic personal company car is still popular, more and more companies are flirting with the concept of pool vehicles. In this article, we take a closer look at pool vehicle management, explain what the differences are to company cars and how car sharing software simplifies the organization and booking of pool vehicles.
Contents
- What is a pool car?
- Pool vehicle vs. company car: The differences
- The advantages of pool vehicles in the fleet
- This is what pool vehicle management is all about
- Software-based pool vehicle management: The advantages of car sharing software
- Issues for efficient pool vehicle management
- Taxation of pool vehicles
- Agreement for pool vehicles: Car Policy in the car sharing fleet
- This is what you have to bear in mind when it comes to owner’s liability in the car sharing fleet
- Vehicle access: digital key management
What is a pool car?
A pool vehicle is a vehicle that is shared by several people within a company. A fleet can consist either entirely or only partially of pool vehicles. Who may use and have access to the carsharing vehicles should be clearly regulated in a pool vehicle agreement. This is because there may also be exceptions to the rights of use.
In direct comparison with a conventional company car, which is only used by one driver, pool vehicles are used more frequently for business trips and are therefore more heavily utilized. This is good and also intentional, because it means that there is significantly less downtime due to pool vehicles. Thanks to car sharing, you can utilize the fleetmore efficiently and economically. For a pool vehicle to pay off, just a few vehicles are enough. Because the higher the utilization of company vehicles, the higher the efficiency of the fleet.
Pool vehicle vs. company car: differences and similarities
Pool vehicles differ from company cars primarily in terms of the right to use them and their availability. Whereas a company car is assigned to a fixed employee and may generally only be used by that employee, a pool vehicle is available to several employees. This also means that employees have to reserve a pool vehicle in advance, whereas this is not necessary for a company car.
The following applies to both vehicles: The fleet manager must comply with the statutory owner liability obligations and regularly check the drivers’ licenses. There is also no distinction between pool vehicles and company cars when it comes to driver training in accordance with UVV. It is mandatory for all who use company vehicles. If private use is permitted, the employee must pay tax on the non-cash benefit using the 1% rule or a logbook.
However, fleet managers do not have to decide between the classic company car model and a car-sharing concept. Both mobility solutions can be combined with each other, to meet the individual requirements of the company and its employees.
Company car
- Assigned permanently to a person
- No prior booking required
- Incentive for one person
- Often long service life
Pool car
- Shared use by several employees
- Prior booking required
- Flexible mobility for all employees with access rights
- Higher utilization due to shared use
The advantages of pool vehicles in the fleet
There are many reasons for using pool vehicles in the fleet: reducing expenses, more sustainability, but also more inclusion so that as many employees as possible have access to pool vehicles.
Reduce costs in the fleet
One of the main advantages of pool vehicles is the reduction of costs. Sharing the vehicles in the fleet increases their utilization. Instead of assigning each driver an individual vehicle, several employees share a pool vehicle. This allows you to minimize the number of vehicles required and reduce the costs of purchase, maintenance and repairs.
On average, pool vehicles can reduce fleet costs by up to 30 percent. Because the following applies: fewer vehicles with high capacity utilization make more economic sense than many vehicles with low capacity utilization.
Optimal utilization of vehicle capacity increases efficiency
In many fleets, company cars often sit around unused. However, by having several employees use the same vehicle, you can reduce idle and standing times. This results in higher efficiency in the fleet. If you use a car sharing software, you can optimize vehicle utilization even further.
Pool vehicles contribute to greater sustainability
Pool vehicles make sense not only economically, but also from an ecological perspective. The production of new vehicles is very resource-intensive. Sharing vehicles reduces the number of vehicles required and makes better use of existing resources. In addition, electric cars are particularly well suited for a car-sharing concept. Those who integrate zero-emission vehicles can reduce CO2 emissions even further.
Positive corporate image and higher employer attractiveness
Sustainability and environmentally conscious actions are playing an increasingly important role among employees, customers and business partners. Companies that show that they are future-oriented through more sustainable mobility concepts such as car sharing enhance their corporate image in a positive way. This also increases the attractiveness as an employer, because the company car loses its appeal as an incentive. Instead, more and more employees prefer holistic mobility offerings that offer greater flexibility.
Pool vehicles for interim mobility
According to the DAT Barometer 2024, 86% of fleet managers surveyed use pool vehicles to cover their fleet’s mobility needs in the short term. If, for example, vehicles are in the workshop or the delivery of a new vehicle is delayed, pool vehicles offer a flexible alternative.
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This is what pool vehicle management is all about
Sharing vehicles in the fleet is associated with a number of economic advantages. The right measures are required to make pool vehicles in the fleet as efficient and cost-effective as possible. The following points should be borne in mind when managing pool vehicles:
Efficient booking and management systems
One of the most important tools for optimal management of a vehicle pool in the fleet is an efficient booking and management system. This system should be easy to use to ensure that employees can book the vehicle quickly and easily on their own. The system should also provide an overview of the vehicle’s status, including availability, mileage and maintenance requirements.
Automated notifications
Automated notifications are another important feature of efficient pool vehicle management. These inform employees and managers when a pool vehicle has been booked for journeys and when it has been returned. They also provide information about delays and cancellations of journeys. This ensures transparency and prevents double bookings.
Regular maintenance and servicing
Regular maintenance and servicing of the vehicles is also important to ensure that all pool vehicles remain in perfect condition. You should ensure that all important maintenance work is carried out on the pool vehicle, such as oil changes, brake tests and tire pressure checks. Cleaning and replenishment of fuel and coolant should also be done regularly. A well-organized maintenance system can ensure that problems are detected and rectified at an early stage. This ultimately minimizes costs and downtime.
Reliable reach management
Securing ready-to-run e-vehicles is a particularly critical issue. After all, every company wants to ensure that the available electric vehicles in its fleet are sufficiently charged and can be used by drivers. Efficient range management is difficult to achieve without an intelligent software solution.
Some companies try to offer their vehicles to employees only for a specific time window. In this way, you want to ensure that the vehicles can be charged for the next journeys outside the time window. This is a possible option, but it limits the potential of corporate car sharing in the long run.
Handing over the keys
Another important aspect concerns the handover of keys to the driver. This involves determining how employees can access the vehicle keys for the pool vehicle and at what time they are allowed to remove the keys. Manual key handovers are often accompanied by time-consuming appointment coordination. Tools such as the key box, which is placed in the vehicle and receives the opening signal via Bluetooth, help with digital key management. Drivers then only need a smartphone to open the car.
Regular review and optimization
It is important to regularly check and optimize the management of pool vehicles. For example, you should check whether it makes sense to add more vehicles or replace older models. Also check the utilization of the vehicles regularly to ensure that you are using them efficiently for journeys.
Software-based pool vehicle management: The advantages of car sharing software
With pool vehicle software, you can manage your pool vehicles transparently and have the certainty that you are utilizing your pool vehicles efficiently and in a resource-saving manner. Thanks to a clear booking calendar, employees can see at a glance which vehicles are available and can book them quickly and easily.
If a vehicle is delayed, rebooked or canceled, the software informs employees by e-mail and the system automatically initiates a reebooking to another available vehicle. In addition, software generates evaluations that help to further optimize vehicle utilization and make strategic decisions.
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Questions for efficient pool vehicle management
Thanks to careful planning and well thought-out implementation, pool vehicles can provide a cost-effective, flexible and sustainable mobility solution for the company. Fleet managers should therefore ask themselves the following questions:
- Which vehicles in the fleet are suitable as pool vehicles?
- How many pool vehicles are needed?
- How should the booking and organization of the vehicles be done?
- How is key management or vehicle access organized?
- How are the pool vehicles maintained and cleaned?
- What measures are necessary to prevent damage, theft or vandalism or to react appropriately?
- How is the private use of pool vehicles regulated?
- How do you measure employee acceptance and satisfaction with the car sharing concept? How is the feedback collected and evaluated in order to optimize the concept and better meet the needs of the employees?
- How can pool vehicles be integrated into the company’s holistic mobility strategy and combined with other mobility solutions such as local public transport, company cars or e-bikes?
Taxation of pool vehicles
If private use of car sharing vehicles is permitted, drivers must pay tax on the resulting non-cash benefit. There are no differences here compared to a conventional company car. Employees can use two accounting methods for taxation: The 1% rule or a logbook.
1 percent rule
Under the 1% method, 1% of the gross list price of the vehicle is recognized as a non-cash benefit each month. In contrast to the personal company car, the share of the imputed income is divided among all vehicle users. In addition, there is a flat-rate travel allowance for journeys between home and work amounting to 0.03% of the gross list price per kilometer (one-way). The amount determined in this way is added to the taxable income as a non-cash benefit. The 1% rule is particularly profitable for employees who make many private journeys with the car-sharing vehicle.
Logbook
Alternatively, drivers can also determine and pay tax on the non-cash benefit using a logbook. All business and private journeys are documented in a driver’s logbook. The tax burden is then based on the privately driven kilometers and the resulting costs. For those who drive only a few private kilometers with a car sharing vehicle, taxation with a driver’s logbook is more worthwhile.
Agreement for pool vehicles: Car Policy in the car sharing fleet
Companies that provide pool vehicles to their employees should be sure to draft a written pool vehicle agreement. In it, you define all obligations and rights relating to the use of the car sharing vehicles, as is usually defined for personal company cars in a car policy.
These are some important points that should be included in such an agreement:
- Definition of pool vehicle and authorized users: Define which cars are considered pool vehicles and which employees are authorized to use them. It should also be clearly regulated under which conditions use is permitted (e.g. customer appointments, business trips).
- Private use: The agreement should also specify whether the cars may also be used for private purposes by the employees. If this is not the case and the vehicle may only be used for business trips, this must be explicitly mentioned.
- Rights and obligations during use: How is the use of the vehicles regulated? This includes, for example, cleaning the cars after the end of the trip.
- Liability and insurance: Determine who is liable for damage to the pool vehicle and how insurance coverage is regulated. Responsibilities in the event of accidents should also be clearly defined.
- Tank regulation: How should the tank filling be handled? Do the vehicles have to be returned with a full tank? And are the expenses for the fuel charged?
- Violations and sanctions: If violations of the agreement occur, such as unauthorized use or improper vehicle handling, the agreement should include appropriate sanctions. This includes, for example, a warning or claims for damages.
This is what you have to bear in mind when it comes to owner's liability in the car sharing fleet
Whether it’s a company car or a pool vehicle, anyone who provides vehicles to their employees must also ensure their safety. Therefore, regular checks of driver’s licenses and UVV driver training are required by law. They are part of the keeper liability obligations that every fleet manager must meet. This is intended to minimize the risk of accidents for employees and increase safety in the fleet.
Anyone who fulfills the obligations inadequately or not at all must expect severe penalties. Digital solutions not only facilitate the implementation, but also document all results seamlessly and traceably.
Driver’s license check
You should check the validity of drivers’ licenses every six months. The check can also be carried out conveniently by the drivers themselves as an electronic driving license check using a smartphone app.
UVV driver training
All drivers must be trained at least once a year in the safe use of company vehicles and in what to do in the event of an accident. As an e-learning course, drivers can complete the driver training at any time and from any location.
Vehicle access: digital key management
Vehicle access is also an important aspect of pool vehicle management. Manual key transfers in the office are usually associated with time-consuming appointment organization and are not always practical for many companies, especially in times of home office and remote work. With the help of practical tools, the key management can be organized electronically. These include the key cabinet and the key box:
Key cabinet
After booking the vehicle, the driver can open the key cabinet using a PIN or an RFID chip (e.g. on the company ID card) and remove the appropriate key. This is marked by a light signal and is therefore easily recognizable. The other keys remain locked and cannot be removed.
Key box
The key box is portable and is placed in the vehicle. It receives the signal to open and close the vehicle via Bluetooth, and the driver only needs a smartphone app to operate it. The box is manufacturer-independent and ready for immediate use, as it is not necessary to convert the car. One supplier of key boxes, for example, is the company flinkey.
FAQ - Pool vehicle management
Companies with employees who use the pool vehicles only irregularly or have only a few customer appointments can benefit particularly from car sharing. Fleets in which drivers make many short journeys are also suitable for a car sharing concept.
Which employees of a company have access to the pool vehicles and are allowed to use them should be defined in a car policy.
Whether private use of the car sharing vehicles is permitted depends on the respective company. Both scenarios should be clearly regulated in a corresponding pool vehicle agreement in order to prevent misunderstandings and conflicts.
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