Octopus launches new company offering EV salary sacrifice schemes

Octopus Electric Vehicles is launching a new leasing service – Electric Dreams – offering electric salary sacrifice schemes.

Drivers already signed up are saving an average of £14,445 over three years, by sacrificing some pre-tax salary in return for a brand new electric car.

The benefit is made possible due to low Benefit in Kind (BiK) tax rates on electric cars, which is just 1% for tax year 2021-22, and 2% for the three years following.

Octopus has designed their scheme to be low effort and zero cost for a business to set up. From launch, Octopus experts are available to help employees choose their cars and get set up with charge points and EV energy tariffs; as well as support the business with scheme documents, approvals and payroll.

Fiona Howarth, CEO of Octopus Electric Vehicles, said: “Businesses and employees across the UK are searching for ways to do their bit for the environment. We have seen a seven-fold jump in salary sacrifice enquiries in the last year. If businesses in the UK introduce a scheme like this, they have the power to significantly reduce transport emissions across the UK by 2030.”

15 companies are already live on the scheme, including Huel and Purplebricks, making it available to 1,491 employees across the UK.

James McMaster, CEO at Huel, said: “We’re not the sort of company that would go with a traditional car scheme. Being able to offer something that promotes cleaner transport has been a real benefit to helping our team live our mission of a more sustainable world – they are amazed at what a brilliant deal this is.”

Businesses of all sizes are eligible for the Octopus Electric Vehicles scheme, in contrast to some schemes which are only available to large employers.

With over 30 cars that can travel over 100 miles on a single charge, drivers can choose from a Porsche to a Renault, a Jaguar to a KIA, a Polestar or even a Tesla Model S.

Partners including Close Brothers and Lloyd Latchford will provide Octopus with financing and insurance services respectively. Octopus will provide first-class customer service for both the businesses and employees

Drivers ordering before July will get a smart home charge point installed for free. And those with Octopus Energy will receive enough free renewable energy to drive 8,000 miles, enough to power the average UK driver for a year.