LeasePlan doubles managed fleet, to 2,500 vehicles

LeasePlan Romania, an operational leasing company controlled by the Volkswagen group, expects to end 2009 with a 2,500-vehicle fleet under management, compared with 1,350 vehicles at the end of 2008. In 2010 and 2011, the fleet is expected to exceed 4,000 and 5,000 cars managed, respectively. The operational leasing market is estimated to include 22,000-23,000 managed cars this year. “Whilst the car market will decline by 60% this year, to 130,000 new cars sold, the financial leasing market will probably be down by 75%, to a value of financed goods of around 1.5 billion euros, and operational leasing will rise by 20% this year, this being a solution in a time of crisis,” says Bogdan Apahidean, the company’s general manager.