Arval: ‘Five most ordered company cars are electrified’

Arval, one of the more prominent multi-brand leasing companies in Belgium, has published data about the most ordered company cars for the first half of this year. According to the Arval Mobility Observatory, the five most ordered company cars are electrified.

In Belgium, Arval manages some 100 000 lease contracts for individuals, independents, and companies. In the top ten for H1 2023, they detected four BEVs, three plug-in hybrids, and three gasoline cars. For the first time, the top five are entirely electrified.

Tendencies confirmed

The Arval Mobility Observatory already noted the same tendencies last year; the first half of 2023 confirmed the data. Only one car out of ten is still a diesel, whereas diesel cars were the absolute rulers in the leasing sector not long ago. Even gasoline cars only represent one out of five new orders, while the so-called self-charging hybrids (representing one-fourth of the total new car market) only account for 4%.

So the bulk of the newly ordered company cars are electrified, nicely divided as one-third of the total for BEVs and one-third for plug-in hybrids. This ratio will probably shift quickly toward an even more significant part for BEVs, as the tax reduction schemes for PHEVs have been altered since the first of July.

On the first of January, PHEVs could only deduct their fuel costs by 50% anymore, and on the first of July, the tax reduction of newly ordered PHEVs will gradually become lower. Measures influencing the total cost of ownership (TCO) for a lease car.

As a result of these tax measures, there was still a rush on PHEVs in June, the last month that PHEVs could benefit from the more interesting former tax scheme and the only month in 2023 with a more significant market share for PHEVs than for BEVs.

Four BMWs, three Audis

The top 10 at Arval confirms the dominance of BMW in the Belgian fleet sector. For the first six months of this year, the BMW X1 plug-in hybrid was the most popular lease car for Arval clients. Second came the first fully electric car, the VW ID.4. The Tesla Model Y occupied third place, followed by the Volvo XC40 Recharge, and fifth is (again) the BMW X1, but now in its iX1 full electric form.

This BMW X1 is the absolute king of the charts, appearing for a third time in its gasoline versions in tenth place. Number six is again a BMW, the 1 Series hatchback, while places 7 to 9 are occupied by Audi, with the A3 PHEV, the Q3 PHEV, and the A3 on gasoline, respectively.

Also noticeable: all cars in the top 5 are SUVs. “Worldwide, SUVs are the most popular models now,” says Yves Ceurstemont from the Arval Mobility Observatory, “so manufacturers are treating them with priority when implementing new technologies.”

“Smaller cars are still lagging, but in the following years, we expect an increased offer of BEVs also in this segment, so the top ten could be electrified quite soon.”

Germany on top

German brands dominate the entire top 10; you have four BMW models, three Audis, and a Volkswagen. Only one Swedish car (Volvo) and an American (Tesla) can interfere. Ceurstemont again: “Many Belgian companies have a car policy, which only allows choosing from so-called established names. Add to this that Belgium is a ‘user-chooser’ country where the end-user gets a lot to say in the choice of the car he will be driving.”

The brands are currently promoting their BEVs now with shorter delivery periods, an interesting equipment level, and an increasingly advantageous TCO. Especially the Chinese newcomers are becoming increasingly aggressive here, which is logical because BEVs will still gain market share in the second half of the year,” Ceurstemont concludes.

Looking at the most ordered fully electric cars in H1 2023 at Arval, we see that ID.4 is number one, followed by the Tesla Model Y, the Volvo XC40, the BMW iX1, and the BMW i4. Number six is the Mercedes EQB, followed by the BMW iX3, the Skoda Enyaq, the Mercedes EQA, and the Audi Q4 e-tron.

The first Chinese BEVs, the Polestar 2 and the MG4, appeared in fourteenth and fifteenth place. The Peugeot e-2008, the Tesla Model 3, and the Audi Q8 e-tron are just in front. Both Audis and the Volvo XC40 are also manufactured in Belgium.