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Good Business: Vertical Group's electric car scheme

The Vertical Group is encouraging staff to ditch petrol and diesel company cars for eco-friendly alternatives. Chief executive Peter Healey (below) explains why to Andrew Doherty.

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Peter Healey headshot 2.jpg
Peter Healey headshot 2.jpg
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The Vertical Group is encouraging staff to ditch petrol and diesel company cars for eco-friendly alternatives

The travel industry may not be the most environmentally friendly; with airlines, cruise ships and hotels producing hefty carbon footprints. However, The Vertical Group is making steps towards creating a greener industry. An electric car incentive is already saving staff money while also helping the environment. With four electric or hybrid cars currently in use, the initiative is gaining traction, and chief executive Peter Healey is encouraging his staff to see both the financial and moral gains of going green.

 

Healey views himself as forward thinking, always the first to try new things. “I’m an early adopter. I’ve had hybrids before; Lexus 450s for a few years,” he says. Inspiration for the scheme partly stems from Healey’s recent purchase of a BMW i3 electric SUV. “It’s an amazing experience because it costs about three pence a mile and I’m doing 20-30 miles a day; it’s costing me a couple of pounds a day.” With regards to his company, a policy shift with a focus on environmental impact has pushed the scheme into fruition. “This is our responsibility,” Healey says. 

 

Employees of The Vertical Group can choose to purchase an electric company car as part of a salary sacrifice scheme; monthly earnings are deducted to pay for the vehicle. So far three company employees, excluding Healey, have switched to electric; Nyki Dilworth, operation director at Vertical Systems, Rob Barker, business and development director at Vertical Systems and Craig Hollaman, senior developer at Vertical Systems. “What they get is a vehicle, which is fully insured and fully maintained. To buy the cars it costs them about £300 a month but they pay no tax on that.” Healey explains that electric car technology has reached a milestone, making it more practical for a greater number of people. “It’s really nice to see this as we were all driving diesel cars, SUVs and the like. The transition to electric is quite a big change in their lives.”

 

The success of the scheme is beginning to make waves in the company. Healey reveals they have two more Nissan Leaf electric cars being delivered. He says that little steps are what are needed in order to make a big difference in the travel industry: “This isn’t an ecologically friendly business although much work has gone into making it more so in the last few years. Personally and as a business, we’re just trying to take a more interested and slightly more responsible approach to the future.”  

 

Staff feedback

Rob Barker, business and development director at Vertical Systems, reveals how daily use of his electric car is saving money. “I pay for the car before I pay tax; there are some good savings there for me. I get about 30 miles out of the battery from a full charge.”

 

Convenience goes hand-in-hand with low running costs too, with apps available such as PlugShare and Open Charge Map to help locate charging points. Barker admits it’s harder to find them outside the city, but they are more widespread in London, and Healey has installed charging points outside the Vertical headquarters in Laindon, Essex. “When you do find them, the public charging points are usually the best parking spaces. It’s like having a mother and baby or a disabled badge in the windscreen.” 

 

Barker admits that he hasn’t always been green: “One of my later cars was a three-litre V6, probably the least green car you could drive.” The Mitsubishi Outlander (pictured above), now his main mode of transport, is similar in appearance to an ordinary car. There is only one crucial exception, it doesn’t make any noise. The influence of Barker’s children played a big part in his transition to electric. “As they grow older they 

educate you and make you more aware. If everyone makes a small change now, such as driving an electric car, we will see bigger positives for the environment in the future.” 

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