With Net Zero targets on the horizon, now is as good a time as any to start making meaningful changes to your business to help improve sustainability and environmental credentials.
This is not only good for your public image, but green initiatives often bring operational savings for business owners. While you might have to invest upfront in these changes, the long-term operational costs will be lower, meaning your business will be able to reduce its overheads.
Leasing a van for your business is one of the best sustainability moves you can consider in 2024. In this guide, we’re looking at the importance of sustainability for business and how you can make better choices for your accounts and for the planet.
What is sustainability?
Sustainability has become a bit of a buzzword that could be applied to a wide range of business activities. For something to be sustainable, it needs to strike a balance between meeting the needs of a business while not causing undue pressure on the environment.
For something to be sustainable, it needs to be able to continue without depleting resources. An example of this would be an office building going paperless and removing printing facilities. This will help to eliminate the need to continue using paper and depleting forests.
Another example of sustainability would be switching from disposable cutlery in your office kitchen to reusable cutlery that can be washed. This will eliminate the need to order single-use plastics.
Why should businesses care?
There are a number of reasons businesses should care about going green. There is a business argument, a public image argument, and an environmental argument. These are just some of the reasons you should care:
- Sustainable practices can bring down your overheads and operational costs by cutting out spending on non-sustainable items.
- It can give your employees a boost to know that they are working for a company with environmental concerns high on their list of priorities. This can make recruitment easier.
- You can use your sustainability credentials as a marketing point to help convince customers that are aligned with your goals to choose your company.
- You can reduce your impact on the environment and stop depleting valuable resources for economic gain. If every company in the world took this approach, Net Zero targets would be well within reach.
How can leasing a van support your goals?
The vehicles you use for your business will have a big impact on sustainability. For many companies, this will be their biggest source of corporate pollution. Leasing a vehicle could help you to stick to your sustainability targets through a number of methods, including:
Spread the cost
Perhaps the most obvious way that leasing a van will support your business goals is that it will enable you to spread the cost. Rather than paying a large sum upfront for your refrigerated van, you can spread the cost into predictable monthly payments.
A huge part of sustainability is all about making sure that it works for your business. If the change is going to cost too much, this ultimately isn’t sustainable for your business, even if it is a positive change for the planet. By leading instead of buying, you can balance the needs for your business with the needs of the planet.
Choose electric
By choosing to lease instead of buy, you could choose an all electric vehicle, which is one of the most sustainable choices you could make for your business. Electric vehicles will soon be commonplace on the roads and will quickly outpace combustion engines. With an electric vehicle, you can reduce your running costs and maintenance costs. Not to mention, you’ll also be doing your bit to clear up the air in your local area.
Access a newer vehicle
By choosing to lease a vehicle instead of buying a used vehicle, you can access a newer model that will be kinder to the environment. Newer vehicles will be more efficient and less polluting, which will not only help the planet but will also drive down operational costs. Newer vehicles are also less likely to break down, so you’re less at risk of letting down customers.
Avoid polluting vehicles
The most cost-effective choice after leasing would likely be to purchase a second hand vehicle. However, this is more likely to be an older vehicle with poor environmental credentials. A quick look at the used van market will reveal plenty of older diesel vehicles for sale, but with no new diesel vehicles being available after 2035, you could be setting yourself up for higher maintenance costs in the future.
Make the most of government grants
The government really wants to encourage more business owners to choose electric, which is why they are offering grants and incentives to make the switch. These grants won’t be around forever, as these grants are there to encourage early adopters and trailblazers. When leasing electric vehicles becomes the norm, you can expect these grants to slowly dry up.
Make it part of your brand story
Your customers will love hearing about your environmental credentials. This can become a part of your brand story and you can place sustainability at the heart of everything you do. This will help customers to connect with your brand story and it could help to set you apart from your competitors. Many consumers will look to a company’s sustainable credentials to make a purchasing decision.
Final thoughts on leasing for sustainability
There are so many credible reasons to consider leasing over purchasing a used vehicle. If sustainability is part of your business objectives for 2024 and beyond, there is a strong business case for choosing an electric vehicle lease.
Not only will you be doing your part for the environment, but you’ll also be able to drive down your running costs, enjoy the positive impact on your public image and even help to increase employee happiness by prioritising the things that are important to them.
There has never been a stronger case for switching to leasing a refrigerated van in 2024 and beyond.
