Contract hire is where a company hires a car from a car leasing company for a determined period of time and for an agreed monthly cost, and the car leasing company deals with the fleet administration.
Contract hire leasing schemes are often thought to remove the responsibility of running the fleet from an employer as the chosen car leasing company takes over the day-to-day running and administration. But employers still have responsibility for communicating health and safety policy to drivers and taking responsibility for duty of care issues as ultimately they could be held liable in the event of an employee injury in a car that is not fit for purpose. It is therefore advisable for employers to draw up a health and safety policy and communicate this to staff as part of their duties around fleet management.
Employers should also work closely with their car hire leasing company so that the vehicles that are selected are appropriate for the tasks that the drivers are to undertake.
