Lex Autolease has allocated nearly half of its £1m EV fund following a surge in electric vehicle orders from fleet operators.

The EV10o0 fund provides £1,000 towards the cost of the first 1,000 pure electric vehicles leased through Lex

Announced at last September’s Zero Emission Vehicle Summit in Birmingham, the EV1000 fund went live in January and provides £1,000 towards the cost of the first 1,000 pure electric vehicles leased through Lex.

The first four months of the year saw 467 qualifying orders placed; these vehicles will increase the size of Lex Autolease’s EV fleet by more than 67% and, once all the funds have been allocated, the firm predicts there will be an overall increase of at least 8% in the number of pure EVs on the UK’s roads.

But the fund is also helping to generate wider interest in EVs for business and private leasing customers; above and beyond the orders that qualify for cashback, a further 530 orders have been placed in three months, taking the total to 997. Of this figure, 80% of orders are for cars and 20% for LCVs. Business contracts account for 80% of orders, and personal contracts stand at 20%.

Richard Jones, managing director of motor finance and leasing at Lloyds Banking Group, commented: “As an industry, we should be educating, encouraging and incentivising customers to get out of their older vehicles in favour of newer, cleaner engines. This is where our EV1000 campaign really comes into its element.

“Businesses and individuals are behind the country’s Road to Zero journey, and are keen to benefit from the associated grants, incentives and in-life cost savings. With both advances in technology and the growth in the range of electric vehicles gathering pace, it’s becoming easier to find the right vehicle for the right job.”

Facilities management and professional services company, Mitie, is leading the way on EV take-up from Lex, with over 200 cars and LCVs ordered so far and more planned for the coming months.

Simon King, fleet and procurement director at Mitie, commented: “Our fleet is responsible for 93% of our carbon foot print so it’s absolutely the right place to start in the fight against climate change. We’re already reducing our emissions with the expert support from Lex Autolease.

“Determined to drive change in our industry, we’ve committed to switching 20% of our fleet to electric vehicles by the end of 2020. Making the move to electric is the right thing for the planet and our people are queuing up to be the first to try out our new vehicles.”

For more details on the fund, which is open to business and private leasing customers and will close once the full £1m has been allocated, visit www.lexautolease.co.uk.