to a level playing field
This May Nigel Stead, managing director of Lloyds TSB autolease
(LTSBa) was appointed chairman of the British Vehicle Rental and
Leasing Association (BVRLA). He assumes the role at a bullish time
for the association. Many of its recent campaign issues (during
2006 the association made some 42 formal representations to 18
different government departments or agencies) have proved to be
significant wins. These include: gaining fair treatment for drivers
and operators of leased (or rented) vehicles in London;
successfully lobbying the government to re-assess new digital
tachographs legislation as it affects mini-buses; and working at
finding ways of easing problems caused by the introduction of the
digital tachographs and the lack of smart cards to operate
them.
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Stead was a BVRLA leasing committee member for many years. “I saw
it as a way of putting something back into the industry,” he says,
“and at the same time keep at the forefront of the challenges the
industry is facing.” He is not, however, a protagonist of people
sitting for inordinately long times on committees. “Although
continuity is a great concept,” he stresses, “you do need change
and churn to refresh activities and viewpoints.”
Sound financials
Stead’s two-year appointment as chairman comes at a time the
association is significantly increasing its impact on events –
despite industry consolidation inevitably leading to difficulties
in membership growth. Notwithstanding this, he inherits an
association with a sound financial base. Stead explains that
through judicious control of its cost base and by providing new
commercial services (coupled with only moderate increases in
subscription rates) the association has been able to generate
sufficient surpluses to achieve that position.
Furthermore, Stead pays tribute to director general John Lewis
whose “aggressive and pro-active” stance has heightened the profile
of the BVRLA in recent years. “The days of trade associations
acting as ‘clubs’ are long gone. We live in a fast-changing working
environment where members need ever-growing amounts of industry and
legislative information to run their businesses successfully.”
Welcoming leasing brokers
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By GlobalDataOne major implementation at the BVRLA, for which Stead was in full
support, has been the recruitment drive for leasing broker members.
Although the falling number of regular members (through sector
consolidation) was no doubt an added incentive to admit brokers,
Stead points to the growing importance of broker-introduced
business to lessors in general – especially in gaining access to
the SME fleet market.
“I believed that the time was right to welcome leasing brokers,” he
explains. “Some were not working in the best interests of the
industry, and allowing membership and access to our code of conduct
to those who are properly constituted gives quality assurance and
credibility to the leasing broker sector.”
He adds: “We have now passed the 50 leasing broker member mark and
recently had our first Leasing Broker Committee meeting – our new
chairman is Graham Prince, managing director of Neva
Consultants.”
Canvassing the members
A recent survey of BVRLA members revealed that “information,
information, and more information” represented their biggest need.
“Members are always examining how to improve the way they conduct
their business and to avoid the pitfalls, and we need to keep
abreast of this and innovate accordingly” Stead notes.
One response has been the implementation of a Customer Information
Portal within the association’s website. A lessee customer of
LTSBa, for example, can access the portal and gain LTSBa-branded
information on a free-to-use basis.
Another innovation is the soon-to-be-launched Legal Helpline where
members can obtain speedy legal information, via the website, on a
range of issues – totally free. In fact Stead is very proud of the
association’s re-vamped website. “It has some 250 pages of
information plus 330 documents,” he says. “Over the last 12 months
it has experienced around 1.5m hits.”
Still got the day job
Stead’s day job is managing (and seeking to grow successfully)
LTSBa’s fleet of around 130,000 vehicles. His career background
includes contract hire experience with dealer groups Appleyard and
JCT600, where he formed JCT600 Vehicle Contracts, and more recently
with VELO and LTSBa. The latter in its current form came about as a
result of Stead successfully managing the merger of ACL autolease
and Black Horse Vehicle Management and later integrating the
acquisition of First National’s fleet business from Abbey. These
mergers and integrations undoubtedly constituted some of the
biggest challenges faced by a UK motor lessor in recent times.
“This is not to say that there is not an equal place for smaller
lessors at the BVRLA,” he says. “My personal background has been
with smaller companies in the past and I am totally aware of the
need for all motor lessors to be represented at committee level.
This year Peter Cakebread, managing director of Marshall Leasing –
a most well-established family run leasing business – was appointed
chairman of the Leasing Committee and it will thrive under his
direction.”
Facing the challenges
A trade association chairman’s principal task lies invariably in
persuading members to partake in committee work although Stead
believes that he will be leaning on an open door in this respect.
“A great strength of the BVRLA is that members are active,
enthusiastic and support lobbying. We already have a huge
commitment from our members and encourage an open forum for all
discussion – including criticism.”
With the European Car and Truck Rental Association (ECATRA) being
subsumed within Leaseurope last year, and consequently emasculated,
a significant gap has been left for effective lobbying within the
European Union. “Since ECATRA has effectively collapsed,” Stead
argues, “it is up to the UK association to fill the gap. We will
seek to raise our industry’s profile throughout continental Europe.
At present we have especial concerns about the rental sector in
Europe.”
In addition to running LTSBa and chairing the BVRLA, Stead is
Lloyds TSB’s representative on the Motability board and is chairman
of Fleet Synergy International, the pan-European leasing alliance.
He has a ‘hectic’ social life, and includes the theatre as well as
the countryside and fell walking as favourite pastimes. “Although,”
he admits with a sigh, “looking to the future I don’t see myself
getting ‘on the tops’ as much as I would like to.”
