Software Company Finds Toyota A Perfect Fit
An IT company recently described as one of the fastest-growing in the north-west has switched its fleet to Toyota, with the purchase through Toyota Financial Services of 24 Avensis T2 2.0 litre diesel hatchbacks for its Customer Services team.
Cheshire Datasystems Limited of Stockport supplies the insurance industry with broker software, CDL Classic, a complete quotation and back-office administration package including web-integration. Founded over 25 years ago, CDL now has some 200 staff, an annual turnover of more than £10 million and an enviable customer list including HSBC General Insurance Services, Marsh, Willis and many other leading national and international brokers.
Its Customer Services team consists of both Customer Relationship Management staff and Technology Engineers and, in the interests of both fairness and management simplicity, its policy is to provide the same make and model of vehicle on the company car scheme.
The fleet previously consisted of Ford Mondeo cars, but when CDL reviewed its requirements only one vehicle met its updated criteria – the Toyota Avensis.
“We wanted something with a proven safety record; a family hatchback, both for the convenience of the staff and also because of their resale value; diesels for economy, and specifically the new European D-4D engine, which is not only a superb diesel unit, but also affords a tax benefit to the company car driver in not attracting the usual three per cent diesel surcharge,” says Gary Johnson, who heads Customer Services.
“The Toyota Avensis had everything we required, and it’s a brand new model with good potential resale value. We also had a major positive reaction from all the staff when we presented the proposal to them,” says Mr Johnson.
Annual mileages vary from 15,000 to 50,000 as the Stockport-based field staff attend customers nationwide, but CDL intends to conduct periodic reviews and switch vehicles around to ensure that they age reasonably consistently. The three-year hire-purchase arrangement through Toyota Financial Services will allow the company to decide after that period whether to renew vehicles or keep them for a further year.
“We’re an independent company with a firm policy of re-investment,” says Gary Johnson. “Rather than be tied into a leasing agreement we prefer to leave our options open and have the flexibility to react should business or tax laws change.
“We approached Toyota for financing on the basis that a manufacturer is there primarily to make money from its products so would offer a better interest rate than a bank, as I believe we have concluded with TFS. Having financial services attached to the manufacturer complemented the whole arrangement.”
Maintenance will be through local Toyota dealership Culvers Toyota of Denton, part of the Smith Knight and Fay Group. Mr Johnson added that Toyota Fleet had been easy to contact and helpful in dealing with any issues that had arisen.
“CDL has a very clear idea of what it requires and a refreshing approach to fleet management,” says Jon Pollock, General Manager of Toyota Fleet. “We’re very pleased that the Toyota Avensis is positioned to meet its needs so exactly, and that Toyota Financial Services has been able to offer the sort of deal the company required.”
ENDS
