A new electric vehicle (EV) charter and accompanying training course have been launched by the Association of Fleet Professionals (AFP).
The charter commits the organisation to fast-tracking the adoption of EVs in the UK through: supporting members through electrification with a helpline and administrative assistance; providing best practice documents and education; and lobbying government on the conditions needed to reach the 2030 cessation of the sale of petrol and diesel cars and vans.
The EV Fleet Manager Training Course lasts one day and will be held for the first time online on 16 March 2021.
It covers topics including evaluating your current fleet and assessing the potential to electrify, analysing the cost and carbon benefits of transitioning to electric, developing the infrastructure to support electrification, and how to measure ongoing progress.
The cost will be £349 for AFP members and £449 for non-members, and it will be repeated regularly based on demand.
Also, the AFP has launched three core best practice documents for fleets looking to switch to EVs: Myth Busters; EV Policy Deployment Hints and Tips; and EV Policy Wording and Guidance.
Paul Hollick (pictured), AFP chair, said: “We believe that 2021 will be the year of fleet electrification and, as the fleet industry’s leading professional body, we fully intend to play our part.
“There has been a lot of work going at the AFP in recent months to produce the charter, the new course, and the new documents – especially from our electric vehicle committee – and these developments should be of considerable practical assistance to fleet managers beginning to transition to EVs in real world conditions.
“We are placing a great deal of emphasis on the outstanding EV expertise that exists within the AFP and believe that it will attract more fleet managers to join the organisation over the next few months.”
He added that while the AFP’s first documents have concentrated on electric cars, a similar initiative is now planned for electric vans, as more models come to market during 2021. “We are very fortunate to have both our LCV Committee and our EV, Alternative Fuels and Low Carbon Committee looking into this topic.”
