Business Barometer unveils dawn of fleet recovery post-lockdown

We can’t say we’ve ever used a barometer to gauge what the weather’s going to do from one day to the next. Though perhaps we should start now, if the recent unpredictable showers are anything to go by.

But there’s a new barometer that we certainly will be paying attention to; and it’s one that’s going to be a crucial player in predicting where fleet trends are headed and how bright the industry’s future really is.

UK business and fuel expenses card provider, Allstar, has launched what they’re calling the “Business Barometer”, to track the UK’s business mileage. And its findings and indications should be valuable in making our way out of this Coronavirus fog we’ve all got so lost in.

Right now, things are looking tentatively positive.

The Business Barometer’s latest data unveils the genesis of recovery in business travel, with fleet miles travelled up 30.2% month-on-month. As lockdown measures softened, businesses travelled an estimated 2.51 billion miles more in June than they did in May.

It seems that the country’s cogs are more than grinding their way back to normal, with recovery progressing faster than expected.

Further research supports the findings of the Barometer and the latest statistics reveal that it’s the construction industry that’s seen the fastest revival.

While activity dropped by some 66% during the first two weeks of the lockdown, it’s now back at 88% of its pre-COVID baseline. Furthermore, it’s the UK’s Freight and Logistics sector that’s returned closest so far to life as we used to know it, currently at 94% of its pre-COVID baseline.

Paul Holland, MD of UK Fuel at Allstar’s parent company, Fleetcor said, “Every litre of fuel used since lockdown tells its own story of a business adapting, and often diversifying, to meet changing needs”. And we reckon he’s right.

While fewer restrictions and lower fuel prices must surely be playing their part in the recovery, promising figures like these breed hope that businesses have indeed found ways to be innovative during the lockdown, to find a way through.

We’ll be keeping an eye on the barometer for more fascinating insights and tell-tale signs that a new normal might finally be here.

But what do you think? Do the figures surprise you? How has your business adapted to meet the new needs of post-pandemic life? Drop a comment below to tell us your story.

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