Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 55 total)
  • Quite within my rights or just taking the p!ss?
  • prahran
    Free Member

    I have a company van for work which I also use for personal use, including fuel. I pay the relevant tax on it. I’m driving to the Alps next month and I don’t know if I’m supposed to pay for my own fuel or put it through the company.

    The wife reckons it’s all part of my benefits package, I pay the tax on it so therefore it’s my god given right to go where I want and the firm to foot the bill. I don’t want to take the p!ss though. Anyone else in a similar situation?

    CharlieMungus
    Free Member

    Driving to the Alps??? Pay your own fuel! If unsure just ask in the office

    meehaja
    Free Member

    my dad used to have to pay overseas, but would always fill up in dover and come back empty.
    I don’t think his card worked abroad, though that was the 80’s/90’s.

    Why not ask your boss/HR, you might not be insured either…

    Burls72
    Free Member

    Don’t have a company van and not in your situation but from an outsiders point of view your taking the p**s.

    Cougar
    Full Member

    Personal fuel is personal fuel. Fill your boots.

    ourmaninthenorth
    Full Member

    1. Ask them. The policy will be quite clear.

    2. Yes, you’re taking the p*ss to expect work to fund you driving to the Alps. Would you also expect them to stump up for a plane ticket?

    Junkyard
    Free Member

    taking the piss as well but ask them if you are in any doubt.
    that is a fiar drive for personal use – is it actually insured for abroad and breakdown cover?

    ocrider
    Full Member

    I’d be more worried about the insurance than anything else.
    I agree with the others about paying your own way too. Not what you wanted to hear, but you asked.

    lunge
    Full Member

    Taking the proverbial. But, I would ask to be sure of that and I might well fill up in Dover and return to the UK with an empty tank.

    uplink
    Free Member

    When I had company fuel it was always restricted to the UK so [as above] tank it at Dover and only put enough in to just get back there

    uplink
    Free Member

    One point, you have mentioned [to whoever does your fleet] that you’re taking the van outside the UK haven’t you?

    nedrapier
    Full Member

    I reckon it’d be taking the piss to go assuming it’d be fine.

    If it’s allowed, you’re fine whether you ask or not.

    If it’s not allowed, better to find out what the issues are (fuel card, insurance, breakdown) before you go rather than potentially find out on the way, and get bollocked when you get back.

    ianpinder
    Free Member

    Personal fuel is personal fuel, it’s one of the benefits. However my friends fuel card does not work abroad, so fill up in dover and return home empty.

    You’ll need to speak to fleet to get relevant paper work, you get a temporary v5 and insurance papers, I had to pay £11 for mine, I drovero the alps 3 times in the last 6 months and they can not say anything. My company also provided European breakdown, and I still get a hire car out there if anything goes wrong.

    mastiles_fanylion
    Free Member

    Ask your employers, not your wife.

    Your wife doesn’t sound very nice on this evidence.

    project
    Free Member

    If you worked for me, unemployment would go up tomorrow by one.

    Basicly youre not asking your boss to pay for your holiday fuel, but just stealing it,also it would be very interesting if your boss found out and phoned the plod and said you didnt have permission to take it abroad, and then we have insurance and breakdown cover.

    Driving with no insurance or invalid insurnce is a large fine and a ban sometimes, and also the sack.

    molgrips
    Free Member

    Your wife doesn’t sound very nice on this evidence.

    Easy now.

    mastiles_fanylion
    Free Member

    I did qualify what I said Mol 😉

    BigJohn
    Full Member

    email the person in charge of company vehicles and ask (with no explanation why) “what exceptions are there to the free fuel and can you show me where it says so?”

    avdave2
    Full Member

    Fill your boots.

    Well as it’s probably diesel I wouldn’t recommend this as it’ll leave them even more unpleasant than if they’d been wee’d in.

    ianpinder
    Free Member

    Project that’s harsh. He has a fuel card and van for personal use, personal use is just that. Driving to the alps on holiday is personal use.

    They will provide the legal documents for you to take it abroad.

    bigyinn
    Free Member

    Bit harsh there m_f .
    Don’t think its likely to be a black and white as your wife may think.
    I’d deffo speak to HR in advance and get the bottom line before planning any more.

    GlitterGary
    Free Member

    God gave you the right, what could possibly go wrong?

    project
    Free Member

    Reasonable personal use, not asa tour bus.

    mastiles_fanylion
    Free Member

    Bit harsh there m_f .

    I don’t think so – the OP is clearly unsure of whether or not he should take such a liberty with his employer. His wife seems to be of the opinion he should just take what he can because I pay the tax on it so therefore it’s my god given right to go where I want and the firm to foot the bill. Now that might just come down to the language the OP has used (and not a fair reflection of what she actually said) but it sounds on this evidence pretty selfish.

    uplink
    Free Member

    Reasonable personal use

    Now IIRC, mine used to say that, but qualified it with a 12k example of reasonable
    Using it as a tour bus doesn’t make it unreasonable per se, if he’s a low user the rest of the year as opposed to another employee who uses it more day in, day out

    geoffj
    Full Member

    If your paying all the relevant tax for personal use of the van, including the provision of fuel for private use, then it comes down to the agreement you have with your employer.

    As uplink has said above, you need to consider this as part of your annual use, not in isolation.

    Cougar
    Full Member

    Driving to the alps and back is the equivalent of, what, five miles a day over the course of a year? Would you think you were taking the piss if you moved house three miles further away from work? Personal fuel is part of your salary package (and you get taxed to death on it).

    As others have said, if it’s a company van then there may be other issues in taking it overseas; last time I looked at this for myself (at a previous company) the policy was simply that I’d to tell work so that they could notify the insurance company.

    midlifecrashes
    Full Member

    Yes you’re getting a bit of a bonus here, but that’s the deal with personal mileage deals and vans. Aside from the tax, there’s usually a quid pro quo where the van driver will often set off early on jobs, without having to pick up a van from a depot before starting work, often antisocial hours etc. Is it because it is abroad? If an Aberdeen fella took the van to Cornwall, the distance would probably greater. (Are you in Aberdeen, prahan?)

    project
    Free Member

    So imagine youre a bos of a company, and your worker has use of a comapny van, he then takes the van out of the country, racking up many more miles than should have been done weekly, all at high speed and witha load inside.

    So you have extra maintance costs , added fuel costs, and added insuirance costs idf somebnody makes a claim against the driver.

    What would you do.Just say No.

    supertramp
    Free Member

    sounds like taking the p*ss to me, but ask first. If you are insured then all is ok. Are there any other company van Drivers? you could ask them what they do. I’m all for a bit of p*ss taking 😀

    ciderinsport
    Free Member

    Don’t forget, you will also need the right to drive, on hire form thing.

    If you don’t have it WITH YOU when driving abroad, the French police will arrest you till YOU can prove you are legally allowed to drive the vehicle 😯

    Personally, I used to do the Dover trick too 😉 (fuel card restricted to the uk)

    EDIT VE103 vehicle on hire cirtificate!

    Cougar
    Full Member

    imagine youre a bos of a company, … What would you do

    suck it up, or not offer it as a benefit in the first place.

    Stuey01
    Free Member

    suck it up, or not offer it as a benefit in the first place.

    +1

    Diddums for the poor bosses. My heart bleeds.

    Cougar
    Full Member

    Boss: Here’s free fuel as part of your benefits package.
    OP: Great! Can I use it for personal mileage?
    Boss: … no?
    OP: Oh, right, that’s a shame.
    Boss: Bwahahah loser.

    andyl
    Free Member

    We always used to go abroad in company cars but:

    1. It was the only car we had so Dad was allowed to use it for any personal mileage including abroad. Dad had to go abroad with work anyway so sometimes flew, sometimes took the car over to mainland Europe, Ireland or Jersey so was covered for abroad anyway.

    2. The fuel card only worked in the UK so as above he filled up at Dover and then was very frugal when we were away and we limped back to port.

    3. Might be different rules with a van as it’s not a car that you could expect to use instead of buying a personal car. Also these days a lot of things have been clamped down on and companies are keeping better hold of their money.

    I think you had better ask and obviously be prepared to pay your own fuel bills abroad.

    coffeeking
    Free Member

    Isn’t this preetty much black and white? If you’re allowed to use the van for personal use (including fuel) then you’re allowed to use the van for this trip. If not it’ll say in your contract/terms of use.

    nasher
    Free Member

    Ask your boss!!!

    As for insurance your vehicle is automatically insured third party wherever you are in the EU, no need for green card etc…

    prahran
    Free Member

    OK, quick update for you all. I’ve had a word and the answer is yes, I can use the vehicle for personal use and for personal fuel use, even if it is abroad.

    Oh and mastiles_fanylion –

    Your wife doesn’t sound very nice on this evidence.

    My wife is extremely nice, and as you can see, she was indeed correct on this question. I would ask that you make no further indirect comments about my wife in the future, or you’ll leave me with no choice but to provide you with a knuckle sandwich. x

    5thElefant
    Free Member

    Yeah, ask your boss. It depends on whether they view personal fuel as an unwanted expense or a great way of keeping staff happy.

    EDIT: too late. Obviously the latter.

    allthepies
    Free Member

    Ask the boss man +1

Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 55 total)

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