Dubbed SwopCar, the service will initially be piloted in the Netherlands and Luxembourg and will be deployed globally within the coming months. The new service draws on LeasePlan’s experience in corporate car sharing and allows companies to share vehicles among employees on demand whilst addressing the issues of finding out which car is available when, for how long and who will be or has been the user.

The technology behind the service gives eligible employees access to an online reservation platform and smartphone app, so they can check vehicle availability and plan their trip accordingly. The cleaning, refuelling and maintenance are taken care of by LeasePlan’s network of service providers. The service provides valuable insights into how and when employees need and utilise a SwopCar. In addition, the usage reporting system can be directly used to calculate and pass on costs to the department or employee concerned.

Nick Salkeld, chief commercial officer at LeasePlan, said: “We developed the SwopCar service in order to meet the growing demand for driver mobility solutions beyond the traditional lease product. As a result of trends such as urbanisation, sharing, eco-awareness, mobile devices and connectivity, we foresee a shift from vehicle-oriented services to individual driver-oriented services.

“To stay ahead of these changes, LeasePlan has developed a mobility strategy which has resulted in, amongst other solutions, the SwopCar service. By allowing a company’s employees to take and share a SwopCar when needed, this service maximises vehicle utilisation, reduces carbon emissions and considerably diminishes the need for parking spaces. The SwopCar service is a forward-looking, flexible solution which acknowledges the increased demand for smart mobility and multi-transport use.”