This article covers all the steps a company and employee need to take to lease a car through salary sacrifice through the Electric Car Scheme. We will be there to provide support at each step of the way!
Step 1: The company signs up to the Electric Car Scheme
You can sign up to the scheme yourself online here or you can speak to one of our dedicated Business Development Managers (BDM). The scheme coordinator in your company will be given access to the online employer portal, where you will be able to manage all aspects of the scheme and access all invoices.
If other HR or Finance team members need access to the online employer portal, please let your contact at The Electric Car Scheme know or email us at support@electriccarscheme.com.
Step 2: The company signs the Service Agreement
The company will then need to sign the service agreement. This is contract covers the services ECS will be providing to your company and outlines the terms and conditions.
Step 3: Set up direct debit payment
Your company will need to provide details for two payments
- the Electric Car Scheme ‘Administration Fee’
- the lease or subscription car provider
Payment of our Administration Fee
We will provide details to set up a direct debit (with GoCardless) for the payment of our monthly Administration Fee under the scheme. In general we include an invoice for our fees in our ‘Scheme Reports’ at the start of each month (see Section 6 below) and we collect payment at the end of each month. More detail are provided in the Administration Services Agreement.
Payment of monthly car cost to lessors and subscription providers
The company always pays each lessor or subscription provider directly every month. They will request that your company shares its payment details when a car order is made under the scheme. Typically, a lessor or subscription provider will only request this information once, when the first car order is made with them.
Step 4: Apply for credit
To lease any vehicles, firstly the company needs to have credit approved by the lease providers. ECS will make this easy for you and complete the application on your company's behalf. Once approved, you can officially launch the scheme!
Step 5: Launch the scheme internally to your employees
Once the scheme is live at the company, ECS will support with launching the scheme and engaging your employees. This includes marketing materials, email templates and webinars for employees that may want to lease a car and HR and payroll.
Step 6: Employees get car quotes
Once the scheme has launched, our dedicated team of Electric Vehicle Specialists will support employees in selecting the car that best meets their needs. They will have access to the whole market at the best rates!
They can get an initial quote on our website here or book a call.
Step 7: Employee orders their car
Once the employee has selected a car, both the company and the employee will need to sign a Salary Sacrifice Agreement. This is an agreement between your company and the employee that their salary will be reduced in return for an electric car. It is also an opportunity for your company to make sure that any employees who lease a car are eligible under your company policy.
Step 8: The car is delivered
Once the Salary Sacrifice Agreement has been signed, ECS will begin processing the order of the vehicle on behalf of the company.
Our team will complete the car order, arrange for delivery (and arrange home charger installation, if requested) and keep the employee updated as they prepare to start their EV journey. ECS track the progress of the car delivery and keep the employee updated regularly and throughout. Just to make sure your employee is happy with their new car, we make a courtesy call on the day of delivery too!
Step 9: Salary sacrifice begins
Only once the car has been delivered will your company begin receiving invoices in relation to the salary sacrifice scheme.
The Electric Car Scheme reports
We charge an administration fee to the company, which is taken by direct debit at the end of each month. At the start of each month, we upload invoices, cashflow and payroll information to the online employer portal to help you manage your scheme.
Invoices from lessors and subscription providers for car costs
The company will be invoiced and charged monthly for the monthly hire cost of each car that has been delivered under the scheme. Each lessor and subscription provider may share their monthly invoices with the company over email or by post, or they may make them accessible for the company to view on a portal.
Salary sacrifice payment for employees
The employee will begin their salary sacrifice on the 2nd month of the lease or subscription. This is because it is not possible for companies to set up payroll in time for the first month. The first salary sacrifice amount includes any additional costs or one-off fees, such as a home charger or delivery fees.
Step 10: End of car hire and reconciliation
Once an employee reaches the end of the car hire, ECS will organise for the car to be returned. We undertake a review of the costs and charges associated with that car, which the employee will be responsible for paying. Some of these amounts may only be provided at the end of the hire, and therefore this is a useful time to review the salary sacrifice arrangement and payments made by that employee and capture any relevant payments in our Scheme Reports (and payroll information for that employee).