Looking at offering your employees a fuel card for their fuel expenses? There are countless great benefits to having a company fuel card. From great fuel discounts to saving you plenty of administrative time, in this article we will be explaining the 4 major benefits of a company fuel card. We’ll also be looking at how much money you can really save when using a company fuel card.
1. Cheaper Fuel
One of the biggest benefits and drawing cards (mind the pun) of a company fuel card is the great fuel savings. Most fuel card providers have excellent promo offers – where you can save significant amounts on the pump price (for example Shell offers 6c/l off for the first 6 months). Often, however, these discounts do become less after the initial promo period, and some fuel card providers don’t offer any fuel discount. That’s why it’s important to do your research to know what your ongoing fuel discounts are after the promotional period ends.
Because fuel prices are constantly fluctuating, and you can’t always ask your drivers to fill up when it’s cheapest, choosing a fuel card provider that offers attractive ongoing discounts would be a good business move that will save you large amounts of money in the long run. However, it’s also important to note that depending on which fuel card provider you choose, you may not be able to fill up everywhere. Some fuel card providers are limited to one or a few brands, so check with the provider where your employees will be able to use the fuel card before you sign up.
2. Save Time with No Need for Fuel Receipts
Another way you can save with company fuel cards is saving time with no need to keep fuel receipts or scan and consolidate them all come tax time. With company fuel cards, each fuel payment will be logged on the card, and consolidated into one invoice come tax time. This will save you countless hours in administrative time, which will ultimately be better for your bottom line as well. Some fuel card providers are also integrated with financial services like Xero, which makes it even easier to keep track of business fuel expenses at any given time.
3. Anti-Fraud Protection
Unlike a business debit or credit card, a company fuel card has excellent anti-fuel-fraud protection. With most fuel cards, you can assign a card to an individual driver, a registration number, a car make and model. You can even protect fuel card usage based on an odometer reading. Furthermore, you can set transaction limits, or daily limits. You can also choose whether the card can be used for fuel only, or for fuel and in-store purchases. This level of protection and security makes it much easier to keep tabs on what each company car is costing the business to run.
4. Great Rewards & Extras
Depending on which fuel card provider you choose, you may also receive some great rewards and extras. Various fuel card providers in Australia offer rewards and extras when you sign up for a fuel card account. Some rewards will be good for your business, while others won’t be that useful. Take the time to consider all the rewards and benefits on offer so you can choose the fuel card with the best rewards and extras for you (such as Woolworths’ Everyday Rewards or extra discounts at vehicle service brands like Bob Jane or Beaurepaires etc.).
So… How Much Can You Really Save with a Company Fuel Card?
All businesses want to save more… save more time and save more money. It’s just good business practice. So, how much can you really save with a company fuel card (apart from the obvious pump price discount)? Let’s take a look.
No Loss of Receipts/Admin Errors
One of the main benefits of a company fuel card is it reduces the chance of employees losing fuel receipts to literally zero, as they are connected directly to your chosen accounting system. You can also update and check fuel expenses at any point, giving you real-time access to your fuel spending. This greatly reduces the risk of any admin errors and also the time needed by your accountant to spend on consolidating fuel expenses.
Reduced Admin Time/Fees
Fuel cards save your accounting team endless hours. No longer will they have to follow up employees for lost receipts, or manually log all fuel invoices into the system. Instead, the fuel card company you choose will send out invoices each month that will provide all the information you need regarding your fleet’s monthly fuel costs. This results in greater savings in less time paid to employees.
Monitor Overspending
Another great savings benefit of a company fuel card is it allows you to monitor overspending. Most fuel card providers will allow you to generate reports or download fuel sage data, which will help you analyse your fuel expenses and give you a good overview on how much you’re spending on fuel. By analysing this date, you can effectively and quickly begin to reduce business fuel expenses.
How to Find the Right Company Fuel Card
The right company fuel card provider will be different for every business – it really comes down to your individual circumstance and needs. In saying that, check out our free Card Explorer tool to find the right fit for your business.
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