The majority of employees are missing out cash-saving workplace benefits such as salary sacrifice schemes, despite high demand for such schemes.

Salsac could directly save staff upwards of £1,200 each year, according to Octopus

New YouGov research shows less than one in five (18%) UK firms offer salary sacrifice for electric vehicles – an employee benefit that could directly save staff upwards of £1,200 each year, according to Octopus Electric Vehicles.

That’s despite employees overwhelmingly choosing cash saving as the most important factor when choosing workplace benefits. A total of 73% selected the ability to save money as their top priority; considerably ahead of benefits focused on mental and physical wellbeing (42% and 39%).

Salary sacrifice can help staff save 30-40% on the monthly cost of a brand-new electric car by paying through their gross salary, using a similar mechanism to the cycle-to-work scheme.

It’s a popular benefit too. Once employees fully understood the advantages of salary sacrifice (fully maintained EV, insurance, charger and thousands of free miles) three-quarters (74%) said they would like the scheme on offer at their workplace.

Yet many employees are reluctant to ask for new benefits. The study found only half of the employees surveyed felt comfortable to ask their boss for additional benefits. And only a third of respondents (36%) believe they are aware of all the benefits available at their workplace – 54% say they have never been asked for feedback on their benefits package or don’t recall it.

Fiona Howarth, CEO of Octopus Electric Vehicles

Fiona Howarth, CEO of Octopus Electric Vehicles, said of the research: “It’s a really difficult time for many households, so it’s no surprise that people are prioritising financial support from their employer. An EV salary sacrifice scheme can save employees thousands of pounds on their car costs, making an electric car a possibility for many that couldn’t afford to buy one.”

Octopus Electric Vehicles, which entered the salary sacrifice sector over three years ago and has more than 2,400 companies signed up to its scheme, is running a campaign to help staff initiate conversations with their employers about their workplace benefits.

Its all-in-one service caters for everything a driver needs to take to the road – the leased electric car, installed charger, specialist EV tariff and access to more than 330,000 public charge points across Europe via the Electric Universe.

The specialist team can also advise employees on EVs, helping drivers to make the switch as cost effectively as possible, while helping employers boost benefits packages and staff retention, and doing their bit to cut their own emissions.

Howarth added: “For many people, the idea of speaking to their boss or HR team about employee benefits can be pretty daunting, so we’ve created an info pack and are on hand to make it as easy as possible. It’s super easy and zero cost to set up EV salary sacrifice to help your team save cash – it’s a win-win. It can even save the business money.

“Ultimately, most companies want to create a great place to work – and armed with info on these benefits, we find employees are having great conversations.”