2025 in Fleet: What will the next 12 months bring for operators?
With 2024 now behind us, fleets and their partners have their sights firmly set on what 2025 will bring for their supply chains and operational strategies.
As fleet accident management specialists, sopp+sopp work with some of the UK’s best-known fleets and commercial insurers to deliver end-to-end claims and repair solutions. For over 20 years, we’ve focused on helping fleets achieve streamlined incident processes, robust cost controls, and reputation-centric claims management strategies.
Here, we explore our projections for what 2025 may hold for fleet operators, their claims partners, and the wider automotive industry.
Before you dive in: Read our reflection on 2024 in Fleet Management
Poll Results: Key focuses for fleet operators in 2025
We conducted a week-long poll amongst our professional fleet network, to gauge what operators and their partners view as the most significant focuses for fleet in 2025. Here’s how they voted, and what their responses can tell us:
1 - Reducing operating costs & VOR
A significant 45% of our network highlighted operating costs & VOR as their #1 focus for the year ahead, as fleets continue to pursue maximum efficiency, uptime, and financial sustainability in the face of inflationary pressures.
Operators are placing greater emphasis on predictive maintenance, parts sourcing, and streamlined repair processes, to maximise vehicle availability and improve cost efficiency across their supply chains.
2 - EV adoption & charging infrastructure
Perhaps unsurprisingly, 41% of our network highlighted EV adoption and its related obstacles as their number one focus for the year ahead. With EV registrations among corporate buyers vastly outpacing the private market, infrastructure and readiness are critical hurdles for their operators to overcome.
Fleets are looking for innovative solutions within their supply chains to tackle challenges like range uncertainty, charging accessibility, battery longevity, and EV-specific repair & maintenance - including for onboard systems and technologies.
3 - Meeting ESG & sustainability goals
ESG standards are more than just a compliance requirement - they’re becoming a cornerstone of fleet strategy, and a critical success factor in operators’ commercial reputations, and therefore bottom-line success.
9% of our fleet network highlighted ESG as their primary focus for 2025. From adopting sustainable repair practices, to increasing EV adoption, fleets are aligning their operations with broader sustainability commitments to improve their reputations and long-term viability.
4 - Overcoming parts sourcing challenges
5% of our network told us that overcoming parts sourcing challenges was their #1 focus for 2025. Parts shortages have been a persistent issue in recent years, and fleets are increasingly seeking alternative sourcing methods to reduce delays and control costs.
The rise in the use of green and recycled parts highlights the industry’s shift towards more sustainable and efficient practices, and has proved an invaluable approach to offset delays on OE and aftermarket components.
Additional areas for fleets to watch in the year ahead
Aside from the key focuses highlighted in our poll, here are some additional areas which may spark significant considerations for fleets over the next 12 months…
The ZEV Mandate: Will the 2035 deadline be shifted?
In Q4 of last year, the UK government announced a cross-industry review of the ZEV Mandate – the legislation underpinning the 2035 deadline to end the sale of fossil-fuelled vehicles. This announcement followed months of lobbying by manufacturers, consumer groups, and other key stakeholders in the country’s zero-emission transition.
While the mandate doesn’t directly govern fleet EV uptake, it carries significant implications for the practicality, timeline, and affordability of operators’ transitions to low-emission vehicles. Any adjustment to the deadline or annual targets could ripple through the industry, potentially altering manufacturer discounts, vehicle availability, and insurability ratings that fleets are currently used to.
The review could also lead to broader changes in the UK’s electric vehicle strategy – whether that’s increased urgency if deadlines are tightened, or a slowdown in production and infrastructure rollout if targets are relaxed.
Whatever the outcome, this review is set to attract considerable attention across the fleet sector in the months ahead, prompting operators to evaluate its potential impact on their EV plans.
The key question is: if the 2035 deadline is pushed back, will fleets maintain their acute focus on transitioning to low-emission vehicles, or will priorities witness a shift?
More focus on predictive maintenance & downtime optimisation?
The past few years have seen fleets apply more focus to predictive maintenance models, in an attempt to not only reduce vehicle downtime, but also minimise unnecessary repair & servicing costs, and extend vehicle lifespans.
Operators are increasingly making use of historical maintenance data, in-vehicle telematics, and driver-focused reporting applications to tailor maintenance plans based on vehicles’ real-world usage and performance.
With connected vehicle and fleet management technologies becoming more widely available, and more advanced, it’s likely that operators will be helped along in their strategic ambitions in the year ahead.
The key will be collaborating with repair, maintenance, and parts suppliers to ensure these strategies amount to real-world savings, more proactive components sourcing, and tangible downtime reduction.
It will also require a strong and supportive approach to driver engagement, ensuring drivers know how to report issues, faults, and damage proactively to keep vehicle integrity data flowing, to inform predictive models.
Higher prevalence of in-cab safety technology?
In-cab safety technology is likely to become more prominent in commercial vehicles across Europe, as more solutions hit the market to improve driver safety, awareness, and risk.
This includes driver safety-focused solutions like alcohol interlocks, and drowsiness/distraction monitoring, which have seen increasing popularity in the European market over the past 2 years.
These solutions are only becoming more advanced, and more accurate, owed in part to increased focus on AI-led data and visual analysis amongst manufacturers.
What’s more, these in-cab devices can be integrated with onboard telematics, and fleet management systems, to enable real-time, centralised risk monitoring across entire fleets.
With proactive incident reduction remaining such a core focus for fleets, as reputational pressures mount, and claims costs rise, it’s likely these technologies will see more widespread implementation in the year ahead.
New OEMs in the EV market: Will they take off?
International EV manufacturers are beginning to make headway in the UK market, with Chinese automakers such as BYD and Omoda bringing new competition for established leaders like Tesla and Nissan.
Many of these vehicles are priced competitively when compared to American or European models, while offering comparable features, performance, and design - making them an appealing option for many commercial and private buyers.
However, the adoption of these vehicles within fleets will depend heavily on the availability of robust aftercare services, a reliable supply chain for parts, and the sharing of repair methods from OEMs to the wider repair industry.
For operators, the cost and turnaround time of repairs will be critical considerations once these vehicles hit the market. Potential for adoption will hinge on their ability to access accurate market data, enabling them to fully understand the financial and operational implications of integrating these vehicles.
This places increased weight on manufacturers to ensure the necessary infrastructure, knowledge, and support are in place to meet the demands of commercial buyers.
James Fisher of Gecko Risk, our EV & AFV insights partner, comments:
‘There are now more than 10,000 BYDs on the road in the UK, with 75% of these being new registrations last year. The appetite for Chinese manufacturers will no doubt be driven by price, however brand loyalty and recognition will still have a part to play.
It should be noted that the British brand MG is controlled by Chinese state-owned manufacturer SAIC, and was in fact the most searched for EV make on Autotrader for 2024. MG is also one of the few manufacturers where average labour costs exceed that of parts costs. This perhaps indicates artificially low parts costs or indeed a deeper understanding of diagnostics required by repairers.’
sopp+sopp’s Vision for 2025
“In 2025, sopp+sopp’s vision is to not only react to change, but lead it - combining in-house innovations with efficiency, connectivity, and sustainability to deliver exceptional value to our customers, and drive the industry forward.”
Chris Beeby
Business Development Director
Delivering smarter, data-driven claims solutions
We’re embracing more technologies like AI and automation to enhance the speed and accuracy of claims handling, enable predictive repair models, and further streamline our in-house tech solutions. In 2025, we’re focusing on providing our customers with real-time, data-driven technologies that enable proactive risk prevention, more efficient repair & maintenance management, and robust cost and turnaround controls.
Maximising cost & operational efficiency
Claims inflation continues to be a pressing challenge for fleets, and we’re focused on providing solutions to mitigate and drive down costs. In 2025, we’re focusing on further strengthening our cost control measures, data sharing, and repair strategies to prioritise both efficiency and transparency. Predictive analytics will also play a critical role in helping our customers make data-informed decisions, ensuring they can manage costs while maintaining operational integrity.
Helping industry professionals adapt to advancing technology
As vehicle technologies advance, equipping experts across our industry with the right skills and support is critical. In 2025, we’re focused on workforce evolution, with training programmes designed to prepare our people for the demands of advanced vehicle technologies. Wellbeing support also remains a priority, ensuring our teams are ready to deliver the consistently high standard of service our customers expect.
Supporting fleets in sustainability & ESG objectives
Sustainability is a growing priority for fleets, and we’re committed to supporting our customers in delivering on their environmental targets. From using alternative and recycled parts to promoting green repair practices, we’re working towards solutions that not only reduce environmental impact, but also align with increasingly demanding ESG standards. As the adoption of EVs accelerates, our enhanced repair capabilities, and access to detailed automotive market data, are helping fleets adapt to the more complex requirements of zero-emission vehicles.
Fostering collaboration throughout the fleet ecosystem
We recognise that partnership is key to creating a more resilient and integrated fleet ecosystem. By working closely with insurers, repair networks, and technology providers, we’re focused on improving operational efficiencies and fostering a collaborative approach. Strengthening these connections will allow us to deliver faster, more transparent repair solutions that help fleets stay ahead in an ever-changing industry.
Learn more about sopp+sopp’s range of technology-driven, efficiency-focused fleet management solutions: