The type of business you have can certainly impact the best choice of fleet card for your organization. Considering that every fleet has different needs makes it imperative to do some research on what would be the best fleet card for your business. A good fleet card provider will be able to conduct a  FleetMatch™ to select the best possible card for your organization.

Some fleets are very small and don’t offer much difficulty in the day-to-day operations of running the fleet. Therefore it might be best to get a card that offers a great discount on fuel, but doesn’t have a big reporting package. On the other hand, a large fleet means a lot more vehicles to keep track of and could thus be better equipped with a detailed reporting package. Since scheduling and tracking can be a bit of a nightmare for a large fleet, the fleet operator would probably benefit greatly from knowing the exact fuel economy of each vehicle and of getting a reporting package that details when each vehicle is due for a maintenance inspection.

Fleet cards also take into consideration the territory your business operates out of and in. Since each fleet card usually deals with a specific retail fueling station, it’s important to choose a fleet card that has gas stations where you conduct your business. If you have a small business in a localized area, it’s probably not a big deal if there aren’t a lot of options when it comes to fueling. Your fleet drivers will know where each station is, and the best, most efficient route to get there. On the other hand, a large fleet that covers a lot of geography probably wants a fleet card that has a lot of availability when it comes to fueling. While fleet cards can help you pinpoint to each driver the best place to fuel up, a fuel emergency could happen if driver’s had to cross several States to refill their gas tank.

Selecting the right fleet card for your organization entirely depends on the type of business you have, and the expectations you have of your fleet card. Contacting the right fleet card provider will help put your business on the right path to operating economically and efficiently.

Diesel fuel used to cost much less than regular gasoline. But now, it is the opposite. Diesel is much more expensive: A gas station in West Los Angeles, Calif. advertises diesel at 70 cents per gallon higher than regular unleaded gasoline.

Photo: Jonathan Passantino / FOXNews.com

Diesel fuel prices have increased over the past few months because of the increase in higher crude oil prices.

Although oil has dropped from its March 13 closing high of $109.17, it is still trading above $100 per barrel and keeping gasoline and diesel prices at or near record levels.

Are Fleet Cards a solution to rising gas prices?

With the cost of fuel rising to astronomical heights, most companies are looking for ways to reconcile their bottom line.

In particular, the fleet industry has been hit the hardest because the very foundation of their business is without a doubt linked with the price of oil. Finding a way to manage fuel costs for fleet organizations is one of FleetCards USA’s primary concerns.

A company that regularly makes many fuel purchases needs to do something to combat the unpredictable price of fuel. Taking advantage of a fleet card program means that fleet organizations can often get a discount on their fuel purchases, which can lead to reductions in their overall fuel expenses.

Fleet cards also help companies monitor each vehicle in their fleet’s fuel economy.

If you manage a large fleet, it can sometimes be hard to monitor the exact economy of each vehicle.

A fleet card makes it easy to monitor, which can help save money over the long term. Fleet card reporting will make the process of scheduling maintenance and repairs much simpler, and will help make the decision to get rid of a vehicle that’s too expensive so much easier.

FleetCards USA supports keeping Gas Prices low. For all the drivers out there stay safe and the dirty side down.

The best advantage to having a fleet card is the overall savings associated with it.  While fleet cards can help you manage your business more efficiently they can also reduce your overall fuel expenses by 10%.  So, just by signing up for a fleet card you have taken the first step in saving money.

When using a fleet card, it’s often possible to get a discounted rate on gas. For example, certain fleet cards allow you to purchase your fuel from a network of gas retailers. Because of this agreement, most fuel companies will allow you to purchase your fuel at a much lower cost. With a lot of vehicles in your fleet, this can really add up over time, and can save you as much as 10% off of your overall fuel purchases. With gas prices on the rise, getting a fuel card can only have a positive impact on your company’s bottom line.

In addition, fleet cards can help you save money on other items, other than just fuel prices. Everyone knows that maintaining a fleet of vehicles can be very expensive. If any of your vehicles are operating at a less than optimal rate, you’re basically throwing money away. With accurate and up-to-date reporting, a fleet card lets you know how much fuel each vehicle is using. This reporting will let you know if you’re wasting money on unnecessary fuel purchases, and whether or not you should replace the vehicle if the waste becomes too excessive.

Maintaining each fleet vehicle is of prime importance when conducting fleet operations. Instead of wondering and not being sure of each vehicle’s last maintenance check, fleet card reporting will let you know. This can save your organization from getting a vehicle serviced too much or not enough. When a vehicle is serviced too much, you can be throwing money away on an unnecessary maintenance check. Conversely, when a vehicle is not serviced enough, often little problems can become big issues, which would have you spending money on costly repairs for items that could have been fixed cheaply if noticed on time.

Although an issue that can be quite touchy at times, employee fraud is a reality in some organizations. By using a fleet card, you will be cutting down on the opportunity for fleet driver’s to commit fraudulent activity. Fleet cards can set purchase controls on each transaction so you can limit the items and amount for which they are used. On top of that, fleet card reporting sends accurate receipts to the fleet card operator so organizations are no longer reliant on obtaining receipts from their employees. There no longer is any opportunity for a lost or misplaced receipt.

Fleet cards have a myriad of controls that are adaptable to the needs of each and every organization. They can help each fleet operation save money, and in turn, better serve their customers.

The main objective of any business is to be lucrative in its endeavors. And, while you may be quite successful at bringing in revenue, your business is still not profitable because of your high cost-of-doing-business. Can you change this? Can you start seeing profits and reducing your overall fuel expenses? Can you move your company from red into black?

As we know, high operating costs can be the downfall of any company. However, if fleet management is part of your business, there is a way to decrease costs and to create a budget that will account for and manage your variable expenses. If you sign up for a fleet card program, you’ll be able to control issues like security, accountability and reporting, which will only have positive effects on your bottom line.

Security

Fleet cards allow fleet owners and operators to place purchasing controls on the cards so they can limit and track fuel purchases of them. This can help protect against fraudulent practices, as it prevents drivers from making unauthorized purchases on their fleet card which had, without a fleet card program, previously ballooned operating expenses. It can also be used as a method of controlling purchases, and can be used to set limits on when, where and how much drivers can spend on their fleet card.

Balance Sheet

Accountability

When you have a fleet card program in place, you can say goodbye to the days of employees handing you crumpled up receipts with coffee stains on them, or sometimes, not even handing in any receipts at all. The users of your company fleet card are now completely accountable, because you can pull fuel and maintenance transaction reports real time and therefore reducing misplaced receipt or suspicious claims. Creating your complete balance sheet will be a much easier task, and eventually you’ll be able to determine a pattern and produce a reasonable estimate of each month’s operating expenses.

Reporting

When preparing a balance sheet and finalizing a budget, proper documentation is always needed. It’s not just about reconciling receipts, it’s about looking for trends in expenses, and managing costs efficiently in order to maximize profits. A fleet card program offers a wide variety of reporting options which can help with these fuel purchase expenses. For example, it’s possible to track the fuel efficiency for each of your fleet vehicles,  by pulling fuel and maintenance transaction information, exception reports, employee management reports, vehicle management reports and some fleet management programs even offer customizable reports to fit your specific reporting needs. You can also use a fleet card to keep track of maintenance costs, and also use it to help determine the best time to do maintenance inspections.

A fleet card program can be very beneficial to managing your business’ operating expenses, and it could be the difference between seeing a profit or seeing a loss.