From route planning to receipt processing, managing a fleet of HGVs can be an admin-heavy and costly task.
The good news is that in the face of unpredictable fuel prices, the way you pay for your fuel can offer consistent business benefits that go far beyond saving money.
In this blog, the experts at Certas Energy will take you through all the benefits of Fuel Cards compared to traditional payment methods, to help you make the right choice for your fleet.
So, first of all:
What is a Fuel Card?
A Fuel Card is a payment tool. When drivers stop to fill up their fuel tanks, they can use the Fuel Card to pay instead of cash or credit cards.
Fuel Cards are designed to streamline the refuelling process for businesses with fleets of vehicles, such as HGV operators.
What are the alternatives?
Drivers can pay using cash or personal credit cards, and then claim back their expenses – but the most popular alternative payment method for fuel is a business credit card.
So how do these options compare?
We’ve considered the 4 ‘C’s: cost efficiency, control, clarity and convenience, to help you find the right payment method for your business’s fuel.
Cost efficiency
Business credit cards are just like personal credit cards in terms of cost efficiency: in that on the surface, they’re very effective at saving you cash.
Attractive perks like cashback, reward points, discounts and partnerships are designed to draw you in. However, while things like flexible payment terms may be useful for cash flow initially, interest can build up and the cost of borrowing can hit businesses hard in the longer term.
So does a Fuel Card save you money?
Choosing a Fuel Card to save money is one of the most popular reasons businesses take the plunge.
As the UK’s largest independent fuel supplier, Certas Energy’s Fuel Cards offer competitive pricing and volume discounts to suit your specific needs. If you have a large fleet and high mileage, these benefits can really add up.
But the prices at the pump aren’t the only ways to save with HGV Fuel Cards…
Control
Business credit cards are an excellent way to track your expenses across a wide range of goods and services. For fuel, you can see who buys it, how much they spend with each transaction, and where these transactions take place.
However, you need to sift through an entire credit card bill to find these figures. Fuel is one of the biggest costs for businesses with HGV fleets, so if you want to make specific savings on fuel, a dedicated Fuel Card could give you more control.
As well as delivering comprehensive reports and detailed tracking for all fuel-related transactions, Certas Energy Fuel Cards enable custom transaction and frequency limits.
This makes it much easier to prevent fraud, analyse fuel usage trends, and identify places where efficiency savings can be made.
Clarity
One clear area where Fuel Cards outshine credit cards is simplifying admin.
- With credit cards, fuel receipts need to be found, filed, tracked and reconciled.
- Whereas the best HGV fuel cards offer automated invoicing, transaction logs, and integration with fleet management systems.
- The result? Much less paperwork, and a more efficient business.
Convenience
Have you ever had that feeling where the fuel gauge is creeping ever lower, and you’re not sure where to stop to fill up?
You don’t want to go too far out of your way – but you don’t want to pay premium prices at the motorway pump either.
Well, unlike cash and credit cards, HGV fuel cards take that uncertainty out of the driver experience. With Certas Energy Fuel Cards, drivers get access to a network of 4,000 refuelling locations, strategically positioned along major routes across the UK. Helping you plan your route more efficiently, and avoid wasting time (and mileage) searching for fuel stations.
Plus, for even more flexibility, fleets can opt for FuelTapp – the UK’s first digital fuel card. With no pin codes to remember and no physical cards to be lost or stolen, it’s safe, speedy and secure.
Conclusion
While paying for fuel with credit cards might offer attractive cost-related benefits initially, it’s clear that when it comes to long-term costs, security, and operational efficiency, fuel cards are often the better choice for HGV businesses.
A lot of this comes down to the specialist features that come with fuel cards, which make it easier for operators to manage large or complex fleets.
If you’d like to learn more about how Certas Energy can support your fleet management, talk to our expert team today to find the best HGV fuel card for your business.
