Marvin OnumonuNottingham City Council has launched a new car salary sacrifice scheme with Tusker, giving around 7,000 eligible employees access to brand new electric or ultra-low emission vehicles.
The scheme aims to support staff with cost-effective motoring, while backing greener travel options.
The Tusker scheme lets staff get an electric or ultra-low emission vehicle, paid directly from their salary.
It covers insurance, servicing, maintenance and breakdown cover, offering a fixed cost for employees.
Lynn Griffin-Pearce, HR Reward Consultant at Nottingham City Council, said: “Our new benefit provides a cost-efficient and environmentally responsible alternative to traditional vehicle ownership, and is supported by competitive Benefit in Kind rates and optional access to a nationwide public charging network.
“Providing a car salary sacrifice scheme as part of our Works Perks programme was fully supported by our HR Director.
“We considered two key elements: how much a scheme could financially benefit our employees, as well as how it generates National Insurance savings for the Council.”
Griffin-Pearce added: “Officially, this is a re-introduction of the Tusker benefit – we had a car scheme 10 years ago with the Tusker team.”
Employees can choose new hybrid or electric vehicles and have the option to access charging points across the UK.
Kara Harrison, HR Reward Advisor at Nottingham City Council, said preparation and setting clear guardrails was important to reduce financial risk to the council.
Harrison said: “Our payroll, finance, and legal teams were all involved to ensure scheme compliance. It had to be fully robust pre-launch for all parties.
“Beyond Tusker’s protections, we also ask that managers approve the cars to help protect against people leaving or retiring.”
Nottingham City Council and Tusker plan to introduce a pre-loved car scheme, which will give employees another way to access low-emission and electric vehicles at a lower cost.
Cheryl Clements, head of business development at Tusker, said: “We are so pleased to welcome Lynn, her team and Nottingham City Council back to Tusker.
“HMRC has set clear guidelines that protect car salary sacrifice schemes for the future, plus there are robust systems and guardrails to protect employees and employers.
“The green movement makes complete sense when a council such as Nottingham is so focused on building a sustainable, inclusive city.”
