Fuel cards

[RichardDee]

Can anyone recommend a good fuel card provider for small businesses please?

Thanks,

Richard

 

[MorrisChesterfield]

Hi,

UKFuels are ok, fuel is £111.51 + vat this week coming.

Only issue is if you want to buy a pasty or drink you have to pay separately. Not the end of the world i know but ..... I am cant be bothered half the time.

Ben

 

[RichardDee]

Hi Ben,

Thanks for that.

Not being able to buy extras would be quite inconvenient (surely pasties and drinks count as fuel, just a different kind?!).

Does anyone else have any recommendations, it would be good to explore a few different options as there are a lot of companies out there to choose from.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Merchant UK]

To be honest when i had a fuel card, it was cheaper to buy your fuel from the supermarkets.

Stuck with them for about a year and then cancelled for favor of the supermarkets

 

[RichardDee]

The thing with just using supermarkets is that sometimes you don't have the luxury of having one nearby. Have you found this?

I think there are some companies which offer cards that can be used at supermarkets as well, but as I said before it's just finding a reliable one. Usually best to go off recommendations, but there doesn't seem to be much info when I search for it and obviously every company's website is going to tell me they're the best. Very tricky!

 

[Merchant UK]

T

I think there are some companies which offer cards that can be used at supermarkets as well, but as I said before it's just finding a reliable one. Usually best to go off recommendations, but there doesn't seem to be much info when I search for it and obviously every company's website is going to tell me they're the best. Very tricky!

The problem with some fuel cards is the price they charge are set, because they buy the fuel in advance. I found that i could go to a petrol station, anyone and buy the fuel for anything upto 5p cheaper, than what it would cost with a fuel card.

You also need to remember that not all petrol station take all fuel cards you need to shop around looking for one that takes your card, no different to shopping around for a supermarket?

 

[RichardDee]

Yeah that's a good point. I hadn't really considered that I would miss out on deals when supermarkets are out on undercutting wars.

I've looked into a few suppliers and they do supermarkets as well as others so I'm just wondering whether paying a bit extra with a card will even out, when there are times I can't find a supermarket. I do a lot of 'out in the sticks' driving and at the minute I'm sick of paying the ridiculous prices that some places charge, because they have the monopoly. Someone recommended fuel cards might be an option so just trying to explore it really.

Cheers,

 

[Merchant UK]

Hi Richard

I would guess the final say would be down to you, yes whilst some independant garages do charge more you need to remember that Fuel card prices are normally fixed the week before and if you add the vat, you'll probably find thats its only a difference of pennies so you may as well just use your credit or debit card. Not all garages take fuel cards so you'll often drive around looking for ones that do wasting even more fuel

The general idea of fuel cards are for fleet drivers and companies with drivers who don't just give out cash for fuel refills, this generally works out well for large companies with loads of drivers, but for the single small businessman you won't spend enough to see the benefits.

Some fuel cards also want a minimum spend each month, so thats another worry for you to keep filling up just to keep them happy.

By all means get one and try it, you can always just refuse to use it if you find that you can get a better deal direct at the pumps

 

[SuffolkDesigns]

To be honest when i had a fuel card, it was cheaper to buy your fuel from the supermarkets.

I used to fill up at Tesco's or Morrisons and over 5000 miles averaged 44.3mpg from my 2l diesel estate.

I have now done a further 3500 miles using only shell and am averaging 52.1mpg

Without using a calculator I think that is about 13% more mpg for an additional cost per liter of about 4%

 

[Rob Greenfield]

I was in a similar position a few months back.

Did a bit of research and read a lot of Google reviews as there seems to be a lot more info in that area rather than on forums for some reason. Maybe if FCs are used by bigger companies they don't tend to go on these kind of things to interact?

anyway, basically based on that research I plumped for Uk fuel Cards. after 5 months I'd saved money (maybe not as much as I hope initially but definitely been significant and certainly haven't lost out which was the worry same as you). main thing is not having to muck about with receipts etc if I'm honest. Like a few others said it depends on the amount of vehicles you're fuelling and size of company etc so might not be what you're looking for but If you want more info I suggest giving them a call as they were great over the phone (i'm a bit of a technophobe when it comes to actually getting my wallet out).

 

[roydmoorian]

Most fuel cards seem to run a "prospecting price" campaign to bring on new customers and base their "savings" by comparing to national pricing including motorway sites. They then have a nasty habit of ramping up the prices on your account once they have lulled you into a false sense of security.

Try and get a "Platt's Plus" which is based on weekly Rotterdam prices with a regular margin add.

This week we will be paying 111.84 + VAT or 112.34 + VAT at Motorway sites.

 

[RichardDee]

I used to fill up at Tesco's or Morrisons and over 5000 miles averaged 44.3mpg from my 2l diesel estate.

I have now done a further 3500 miles using only shell and am averaging 52.1mpg

Without using a calculator I think that is about 13% more mpg for an additional cost per liter of about 4%

So is this with a fuel card or not?

 

[RichardDee]

They then have a nasty habit of ramping up the prices on your account once they have lulled you into a false sense of security.

Ben and Rob did this happen to either of you with your card providers?

I'm definitely going to opt for fuel cards for me and my employees to keep life simple but just deciding on which to go for.

Thanks for the advice so far everyone.

 

[SuffolkDesigns]

So is this with a fuel card or not?

No, But I doubt using a fuel card affects mpg.
But getting more mpg from 'better quality' fuel might make an arguement for using a fuel card at the more expensive petrol stations compared to the cost savings of supermarket stations that have lower prices.

 

[Rob Greenfield]

Ben and Rob did this happen to either of you with your card providers?

Only fluctuations you would expect - up and down as it's weekly.
Otherwise really happy with UKFC service.

 

[Bobadob]

I spoke to fuel card companies and asked them for their prices for the last 8 weeks. We were first signed up to UK Fuel and then found Fuel Card Services was cheaper, so we use them. It is really not that much cheaper than paying for them at teh cheapest fuel stations, but if you have a team of people and they "dont care" as much where they buy their fuel from then the fuel cards are good. Also, there is a cost saving of the time saved sorting receipts refunding expenses etc as the fuel cards give you one invoice.

 

[Bobadob]

Also, one of my team has a petrol car and has been using the cards to buy petrol - only now after about 2 years i have discovered that i have been charged pump price plus 10% for petrol - DOH!
The card providers sell you the cards and then hope you forget about them, so key thing is to stay well on top of them!

 

[RichardDee]

Also, one of my team has a petrol car and has been using the cards to buy petrol - only now after about 2 years i have discovered that i have been charged pump price plus 10% for petrol - DOH!
The card providers sell you the cards and then hope you forget about them, so key thing is to stay well on top of them!

What a nightmare. That's exactly the kind of thing I wanted to avoid - obviously the companies aren't going to tell you outright about that kind of thing so it's great to know what to ask about. Not so great for you though, how annoying when they claim to save you money!

I have called a couple of recommended ones and have quotes. Fuel Card Services seemed on the expensive side unless dishing out cards to a fleet of 50..

UKFC seem bit more reasonable. pretty thorough with extra costs etc over the phone. friendly staff as well. Always helps if you haven't got slick salespeople trying to flog you stuff! Has anyone else used them? need to take the plunge and make a decision soon!

 

[roydmoorian]

Try

http://www.essocard.com/en-gb/?gclid=CMmylc2sh7oCFY_KtAodGnkAVg

It may or may not work in your situation but they seem to work direct with the customer and not via an agency

 

[Bobadob]

FYI last week Fuel card services were 115.6p ppl (excl VAT) and Forecourt Fuels were 124.00 ppl excl VAT. Big difference.
I am going to check with UK Fuels.
Just did and Uk Fuels run Forecourt Fuels (and probably some other ones we dont know about)
I am not on commission from anyone by the way!

 

[RichardDee]

So many company names being banded about - all a bit confusing haha!

Had a look at a couple more (just found them on Google) just to compare but getting a bit bamboozled by all the figures now.

Sounds like UK fuel cards are in the running still.. If all the other companies I've called up are under them then that's just been a fantastic use of my afternoon! At least it will make me feel a bit better about giving up the search... might just go and give the research one last push!

 

[RichardDee]

hello everyone, thanks for all your advice so far. it's been brilliant, so cheers for that.


just saw the post about esso. haven't they got a rep for being rip off merchants? purely based on gossip not research haha!

 

[RichardDee]

Try
(won't let me quote website!)

It may or may not work in your situation but they seem to work direct with the customer and not via an agency

See last post - forgot to quote last time!

 

[MorrisChesterfield]

Another issue with fuel cards is they give you a choice of which card you need.

Basically one card will only cover tesco, esso and shell.

Another card with cover bp only.

Another will cover murco and somewhere else.

So its sods law the fuel station you find will not accept your card

Another issue is, i once filled with fuel and went to pay. They didnt accept the card as it was a BP station owned by sainsburys not a BP franchise. So that nearly did me as i didnt have no cash on me. Luckly i had the company credit card.

Sorry for the negatives!

 

[Merchant UK]

Another issue with fuel cards is they give you a choice of which card you need.

Basically one card will only cover tesco, esso and shell.

Another card with cover bp only.

Another will cover murco and somewhere else.

So its sods law the fuel station you find will not accept your card

Another issue is, i once filled with fuel and went to pay. They didnt accept the card as it was a BP station owned by sainsburys not a BP franchise. So that nearly did me as i didnt have no cash on me. Luckly i had the company credit card.

Sorry for the negatives!

Don't apologise, its all good info, almost makes buy your fuel at the supermarket with your weekly shop more attractive

Anyway to test the waters i've applied for a card by "Allstar" apparently its the biggest one in the Uk with over 8,000 outlets http://www.allstarcard.co.uk/

Plus they do a supermarket card also, if anything they just give you 2 weeks credit and take any spend out via direct debit.

Will let you know how i got on

 

[Rob Greenfield]

Merchant UK have you looked into UK Fuel Cards? They manage a lot of other companies so can give a good rate usually. Just thought if you're on the hunt for a bargain it might be helpful.

 

[Merchant UK]

Merchant UK have you looked into UK Fuel Cards? They manage a lot of other companies so can give a good rate usually. Just thought if you're on the hunt for a bargain it might be helpful.

Hi Rob,

As luck would have it i've just received my new Allstars Fuel card today, haven't had any prices or anything as yet, so will wait to see what happens when i fill up.

I chose Allstars mainly because they do over 8,000 outlets including supermarkets and most of the major petrol companies.

The worst thing to do is to get a fuel card and then drive miles to get to a garage that accepts it, kinda defeats the object, you save a few pennies but are wasting more going out of your way to a garage which takes your card.

One of the fuel cards i had many years ago was UKFuels and that was a nightmare finding a local garage to take it. I actually had to drive out of colchester for 3 miles to a small village garage for fuel :-(

 

[bublibob]

Do not use UK Fuels. I opened an account about a year ago. They told me there was no charge for the card so I may as well have 2. They then invoiced me for £15.00 per card plus vat making £36.00 in total so I closed my account. They have now invoiced me for closing the account and claim I owe £111.00.When I rung up to close the account I told them I was cancelling the direct debit and paid my account in full except for the £36.00 which I was disputing. When I queried it they told me they can do this and I should have read the small print which basically amounts to "we can do what we want without notifying you"
Is this legal? Whether it is or not it is a firm to steer well clear of.

 

[HorseLatitudes]

I used to work for a company called Diesel Fleet Services that was part of the UK Fuels network.

They would buy the fuel in advance and give out their own pricing on a weekly basis and it was 99/100 cheaper than every single forecourt you can dream of.

what they would do is entice you in with a fantastic base price, this is the price that you quote to prospective customers and roughly the price that your fuel would start off as. With that price you'd consistently save between 3 and 10p per litre depending on where you were chosing to fill up.

but then after a week or so they'd introduce price conditioning, gradually working up your price hoping customers simply wouldn't check or question the price.

Time and time again I would see people using cards in the likes of Morrisons, tesco, texaco and they'd be paying 3/4 ppl more than what they would at the likes of Shell and BP.

It was a disgusting rip off at times unless you had the nous and time to religiously check the set price against the pumps and call up to negotiate.

 

[HorseLatitudes]

FYI last week Fuel card services were 115.6p ppl (excl VAT) and Forecourt Fuels were 124.00 ppl excl VAT. Big difference.
I am going to check with UK Fuels.
Just did and Uk Fuels run Forecourt Fuels (and probably some other ones we dont know about)
I am not on commission from anyone by the way!

some fuel card providers can provide you with a fastfuel card which covers texaco, tesco, morrisons, and the uk fuels network.

They can fix the price of unleaded as well with that card so you may still be able to save on any petrol usage

 

[roydmoorian]

I used to work for a company called Diesel Fleet Services that was part of the UK Fuels network.

They would buy the fuel in advance and give out their own pricing on a weekly basis and it was 99/100 cheaper than every single forecourt you can dream of.

what they would do is entice you in with a fantastic base price, this is the price that you quote to prospective customers and roughly the price that your fuel would start off as. With that price you'd consistently save between 3 and 10p per litre depending on where you were chosing to fill up.

but then after a week or so they'd introduce price conditioning, gradually working up your price hoping customers simply wouldn't check or question the price.

Time and time again I would see people using cards in the likes of Morrisons, tesco, texaco and they'd be paying 3/4 ppl more than what they would at the likes of Shell and BP.

It was a disgusting rip off at times unless you had the nous and time to religiously check the set price against the pumps and call up to negotiate.

Most fuel cards seem to run a "prospecting price" campaign to bring on new customers and base their "savings" by comparing to national pricing including motorway sites. They then have a nasty habit of ramping up the prices on your account once they have lulled you into a false sense of security.

Try and get a "Platt's Plus" which is based on weekly Rotterdam prices with a regular margin add.

Week commencing 10/11/2013 we will be paying 110.56 + VAT or 111.06 + VAT at Motorway sites.

Be careful when choosing a fuelcard and watch the weekly pricing like a hawk.

 

[bublibob]

Agree wholeheartedly with previous answer. One month the UK Fuels price was consistently higher than the most expensive forecourt price in my local town so I didn't use the card. They charged me for not using the card then rung me to ask why I wasn't using it. When I told them why the price came down and they started looking for other ways to steal my money - covered of course by their small print, until I finally cancelled. I paid my fuel charges in full by card and they charged me £74.00 for cancelling my direct debit and am now threatening legal action with the costs going up daily. Started at £36, then £111 and now over £160 within less than a week. Steer well clear of UK Fuels. Also known as Forecourt Fuels

 

[HorseLatitudes]

Agree wholeheartedly with previous answer. One month the UK Fuels price was consistently higher than the most expensive forecourt price in my local town so I didn't use the card. They charged me for not using the card then rung me to ask why I wasn't using it. When I told them why the price came down and they started looking for other ways to steal my money - covered of course by their small print, until I finally cancelled. I paid my fuel charges in full by card and they charged me £74.00 for cancelling my direct debit and am now threatening legal action with the costs going up daily. Started at £36, then £111 and now over £160 within less than a week. Steer well clear of UK Fuels. Also known as Forecourt Fuels

They have many names that they go by.

there were at least 7 companies under thr UK Fuels umbrella that while I was with one

 

[bublibob]

Interesting and suggests they are a bit dodgy. Why would you go under a number of names if you had nothing to hide. Presumably when a customer leaves them they hope he will sign up to another of their names so the whole rip off cycle starts again. Any chance of letting us know what other names they use then I can steer clear of those as well.

 

[HorseLatitudes]

Interesting and suggests they are a bit dodgy. Why would you go under a number of names if you had nothing to hide. Presumably when a customer leaves them they hope he will sign up to another of their names so the whole rip off cycle starts again. Any chance of letting us know what other names they use then I can steer clear of those as well.

Thats the crux of it. Before approaching a new customer you had to post code check and make sure they weren't in group as they'd have been price conditioned and a million miles away from the base price

aside from fuel card services and Diesel Fleet Services I'm really strugglingto remember.

Apologies

 

[Basi Heating]

There is a fuel card called "Fuel Genie" that you can use at any Tesco or Morrisons petrol station. You need to pay the balance each month, but there are no fees to use the card unless you pay late or pay by credit card.

The amount you pay Fuel Genie is the amount you spent at the pumps, meaning you get the convenience of fuel cards AND supermarket forecourt prices.

 

[MIKE-1]

We use allstar fuel cards and not had any problems yet.

 

[roydmoorian]

Week commencing 10/11/2013 we will be paying 110.56 + VAT or 111.06 + VAT at Motorway sites.

Be careful when choosing a fuelcard and watch the weekly pricing like a hawk.

Currently at 108.6 + Vat (130.32) or 109.1 +Vat (130.92) at motorway sites for diesel.

 

[RichardDee]

Well, I'd forgotten this thread existed - a blast from the past!
We're with Texaco Fastfuel through UK Fuel Cards (they do a comparison service of various different cards rather than being a sole card provider). Not to be confused with UK Fuels (though that is one card they offer - I guess it must work for some companies, perhaps with larger fleets). From what I can see, what you might lose on supermarket forecourts you gain at motorway services, particularly down south.

 

[McDade1]

I had my fuel cards from the fuel card company. They asked what my business was, what vehicles i ran and found the best company for me i ended up with an esso fuel card, had good payment terms and they were more than helpful with any queries i had.

You also have one account manager which is bliss they know you and your business. They get your account opened and stick with you from there. Great experience with them