From 2023, the tax benefit for non-electric company cars will partially disappear and in 2026 there will be no tax benefit at all. It is therefore high time for companies to include electric cars in their offer. In practice, however, many employees hesitate to switch to electric cars. Discover in this article how you, as an employer, can encourage your employees to make the switch.
1. Encourage green cars via the Total Cost of Ownership
If the leasing price is used as a criterion for choosing a company car, traditional cars will still be the best choice. In that case, however, the company will be confronted with hidden extra costs, such as rejected expenses for corporation tax and the CO2 contribution, both of which are based on CO2 emissions. It is therefore recommended to definitively switch to a TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) concept for the choice of a car. This accounts for the total cost of the car, including the rejected expenses in corporate tax. Employees with a fixed budget will therefore have more incentive to choose an electric car.
The TCO can be determined freely. As an employer, you could therefore opt to provide additional incentives for electric cars, for example by adding a 'discount' when choosing an electric car, so that it becomes even more interesting for employees to opt for an electric car.
2. Electric charging without worries
One of the biggest barriers to electric cars is electric charging. A traditional car usually comes with an unlimited fuel card. With electric cars, this issue is much more complex. It goes without saying that here, too, the employee wishes to charge his or her car without limitation and at any location, using a simple system at the employer's expense - at home, at work, and on the road. Technology has evolved greatly in this area: with a simple charging card, an employee can charge anywhere. The invoice goes directly to the employer.
3. The charging station: at home and at work?
A charging station is also essential for charging the car comfortably. More and more employers offer the option of installing a charging station at home. This is sometimes mandatory (included in the car budget) but can also be an optional choice. Some employers include the option in the cafeteria plan so that employees can make a voluntary choice for an electric charging station in an optimal tax way. It is important to note that not everyone can install a charging station: in a rented house or a flat in the city, this is not always possible. Charging stations at work are of course also very useful, but again, not all employers can do this, and certainly not for all electric company cars.
4. And what about the holidays?
A major concern for employees is the annual trip abroad. With the current ranges of electric cars, it is not easy to travel abroad in a stress-free manner. The solution here is a short-term car: employers can offer the possibility to choose another, more traditional, car for a short period. This can be a free incentive (included in the lease budget), but it can also be an option in the cafeteria plan. If the employee returns the keys of the current company car, the employee is only taxed on the replacement car.
5. Communication is key
As with every aspect of remuneration, communication is essential. There are many misunderstandings about electric cars. As an employer, try to clearly inform your employees about the advantages (and disadvantages). You can also start with a pilot project of electric cars and later use these 'ambassadors' to promote the benefits. An important point is also that employees will pay much less tax on an electric car: the benefit in kind is much lower, which can quickly amount to more than EUR 100 net per month.