Fleet
Registration figures from the original auto-schweiz Excel files, analysed by us. As of 2026-08-31.
This page is the reading version. Calculators, filters and charts on this topic are on the home page, in the section of the same name. To the section on the home page →
Fleet: several vehicles, different rules
From the third vehicle onwards different terms apply, from the tenth a different business model. What makes a fleet, which forms exist, and where the difference lies between a manufacturer and an independent provider.
- From three to five vehicles framework agreements open up; from around ten the advantage tips from the manufacturer to the independent provider — not because of the rate, but because of one contract instead of five.
- With full-service leasing the vehicle is not on your balance sheet and the residual-value risk sits with the provider. For that you pay a margin.
- Switching to electric is an infrastructure question, not a vehicle question: charging on site is a building investment and needs lead time.
This tab is primarily aimed at companies. But four routes lead to private individuals benefiting from fleet economics too:
- The car subscription is fleet economics in miniature. The provider buys in volume, carries the residual-value risk and passes both on in a monthly rate. Arval, the Swiss market leader in full-service leasing, explicitly offers a solution for private customers with the Arval car subscription.
- The employer fleet. Many companies with a framework agreement let employees buy or lease at fleet terms. Ask your HR department about the fleet supplier and whether there is an employee programme. The discount is often larger than any cantonal purchase subsidy.
- Association terms. Professional associations, trade unions and automobile clubs negotiate framework agreements. Whether your membership yields anything is usually in the members’ area and not on the front page.
- Ex-fleet cars on the used market. Just under a third of Swiss electric car registrations go to companies. These vehicles come back in batches after three to four years: serviced without gaps, with a traceable history, often cheaper. A battery test is still mandatory there — more on this in the «Used or new» tab.
From when is it a fleet
There is no legal definition — in practice three thresholds decide: 3, 10 and 50 vehicles.
There is no legal definition. In practice these thresholds apply:
| Size | What changes |
|---|---|
| From 1 vehicle | The large providers also take single vehicles and the self-employed — the service does not differ fundamentally. |
| From 3 to 5 | Framework agreements and fleet discounts at the importer become accessible. |
| From 10 to 20 | A dedicated contact person, reporting, room to negotiate on residual values and service packages. |
| From 50 | Fleet administration becomes a job of its own. Telematics, driver policies, charging infrastructure, tax matters. |
The Swiss market for fleet management and leasing serves around 400’000 company vehicles. That is an industry of its own with its own rules — and the reason why a vehicle in a fleet is calculated differently from the same vehicle in private hands.
The forms at a glance
The question is not buying versus leasing, but whether the vehicle sits on your balance sheet and who carries the residual value.
| Form | Vehicle on the balance sheet | Residual-value risk | What for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Purchase | yes | with you | Long holding period, high mileage, existing workshop structure |
| Finance lease | depending on the structure | with you | You want to take the vehicles over at the end |
| Full-service leasing (operating) | no | with the provider | Predictable fixed costs, no administration of your own |
| Mid-term rental | no | with the provider | 1 to 24 months: order peaks, seasons, probation periods |
| Car subscription for companies | no | with the provider | Few vehicles, short commitment, no administrative effort |
| Mobility budget | not applicable | not applicable | The company car is replaced by a budget for public transport, sharing and rental |
Full-service leasing in detail
Fixed costs across the whole term, no vehicle on the balance sheet — paid for with a margin for taking on the risk.
The most common form in the Swiss fleet business, also called long-term rental. Terms of two to six years. The package usually contains financing, insurance, maintenance and repairs, tyres, a replacement vehicle, assistance, vehicle tax and fuel or charging cards.
The economic core: the vehicle is not on your balance sheet, the residual-value risk lies with the provider, and the costs are fixed over the term. For that you pay a margin — the provider earns from being able to assess the risk better than you, because it sees tens of thousands of vehicles.
Mid-term rental
For demand that cannot be planned years ahead: more expensive per month, but without a multi-year commitment.
One to 24 months. It covers demand that cannot be planned years ahead: order peaks, seasonal swings, employees on probation, bridging the wait for an ordered vehicle. More expensive per month than full-service leasing, but without a multi-year commitment.
Manufacturer or independent provider
The manufacturer has the better price on the individual vehicle, the independent provider the lower total cost across a mixed fleet.
The central fork in the fleet business. Both sides deliver the same thing but earn at different points — and that shapes the offer and the price.
| Criterion | Manufacturer | Independent |
|---|---|---|
| Choice of brands | one brand or one group | all brands |
| Price on the individual vehicle | usually better | usually somewhat higher |
| Total cost over the term | depends on the residual value assumed | often lower, because optimised brand- and model-neutrally |
| Advice | sales-oriented | manufacturer-independent |
| Mixed fleet | several contracts needed | one contract |
| Reporting across the whole fleet | only for their own brand | complete |
| Delivery times on sought-after models | access to quotas | depends on the market |
| Residual value assumption | steerable via their own used market | purely calculated |
With one brand and few vehicles the manufacturer usually has the advantage: the best vehicle price, a short route, no complexity.
With a mixed fleet from around ten vehicles it tips towards the independent provider. Not because of the rate, but because of everything around it — one contract instead of five, one report instead of none, and advice that does not depend on the sales of one brand.
And always get both offers. A manufacturer offer is the best leverage against an independent provider, and the other way round.
Manufacturer-tied providers
They earn from selling vehicles, not from leasing — hence the sharper price and the bolder residual values.
The leasing companies of the car groups. In Switzerland above all AMAG Leasing (VW Group), Alphabet (BMW Group), plus the financial services arms of Mercedes-Benz, Stellantis and other manufacturers.
How they earn: primarily from selling vehicles. Leasing is a sales instrument. That is why they can be more aggressive on the vehicle itself and assume residual values an independent provider would not guarantee — they know their own models and help steer the used market for them.
Strengths: often the best price on the individual vehicle. Direct access to delivery quotas, which decides weeks or months of waiting time on sought-after models. Factory-level knowledge of the technology.
Limits: one brand, or the brands of one group. A mixed fleet means several providers in parallel — with several contracts, several sets of invoices and no common reporting. And the advice is not neutral: whoever sells vehicles recommends their own.
Independent providers
They earn from financing and residual-value calculation — hence brand-neutral advice, but rarely the lowest single price.
The brand-independent leasing companies, mostly subsidiaries of banks. In Switzerland Arval (BNP Paribas, in the market since 2001, more than 26’000 vehicles, market leader in full-service leasing), Ayvens (Société Générale, formed from ALD Automotive and LeasePlan) and Auto-Interleasing.
How they earn: from the financing, from the service packages and from calculating residual values. To them the vehicle is a purchase item.
Strengths: all brands in one contract, one set of invoices, one report. Manufacturer-independent advice on the choice of vehicle — the interest lies in low total costs, not in a particular brand. Increasingly specialised in the switch to electric: fleet analysis, charging infrastructure, charging cards.
Limits: rarely the absolutely lowest price on the individual vehicle. They buy at terms which they pass on with a margin.
Source: provider information from Arval Switzerland and an industry overview of the Swiss fleet management market, as of 2026. Gap: market shares and vehicle numbers come from these sources and have not been checked against a register.
What comes on top when switching to electric
What regularly goes missing from the calculation is not the vehicle but the electricity: wallboxes, grid connection, reimbursing employees.
Converting a fleet to electric is not a vehicle question but an infrastructure question. The points regularly missing from the calculation:
- Charging on site. Wallboxes, grid connection, load management. This is a building investment and needs lead time. Several cantons subsidise the basic infrastructure — the canton of Zurich, for instance, with an amount per parking space and a higher one for bidirectional charging points. Applications usually have to be made before construction starts. Details in the «Outlook» tab.
- Charging at employees’ homes. Anyone charging the company car at home is advancing electricity costs. You need a rule for reimbursement and a way to document consumption.
- Charging on the road. Charging cards are part of the package with full-service providers. Check which network is covered and at what tariff — the differences are considerable, see «Used or new».
- Choose vehicles by charging profile, not by range. A field service doing 200 kilometres a day with fast charging stresses the battery more than a vehicle with the same mileage that charges slowly overnight. That feeds through to the residual value.
- Vehicle tax by canton. In a fleet, what is a footnote for one vehicle multiplies. The range runs from zero francs to over 900 per vehicle and year. The figures are in the «Outlook» tab.
- The possible levy from 2030. The federal government has put two variants out for consultation. For vehicles staying in the fleet beyond 2030 this belongs in the calculation. Also «Outlook».
A fleet decision depends on figures only you have: mileages, usage profiles, locations, balance sheet structure, tax situation. This page explains the forms and the differences between the provider types. The calculation is done by a provider — best of all by two, so that you can compare.
And as everywhere on this site: wattradar has no contractual partner today and is paid for nothing on this site — no brokerage is switched on for fleet enquiries. Were one ever added, the rule would stand here before it ran: the same amount for every brokered enquiry, regardless of the provider, and never for placement or ordering.
What the levy from 2030 would mean for a fleet
A fleet drives a lot — and that is exactly what separates per-kilometre billing from a flat rate.
At 30’000 kilometres a year and the reference weight of 2’383 kilograms, the distance variant costs CHF 1’620 per vehicle and year. The draft’s transitional flat rate is at most CHF 823. Across 50 vehicles that is CHF 39’850 of difference a year — same fleet, same mileage, only a different way of collecting.
For procurement that means two things. First, the amount hangs on gross weight: the rate rises with every kilogram above the reference weight, so a heavy van pays more than a compact car. Second, nothing is decided — the proposal requires a constitutional amendment. Anyone leasing today should still have done the arithmetic, because leases run beyond 2030.
You can work it through with your own figures — kilometres, consumption, gross weight and number of vehicles — under My EV.
Where to go from here
Vehicle tax, subsidies and the possible levy from 2030 are under Outlook. Charging prices and ex-fleet cars under Used or new. The underlying mechanics of leasing, subscription and rental are explained by Leasing or rental.
