Average CO2 emissions for new cars on order under the company's schemes are just 122g/km – more than 15% lower than the SMMT's average figure of 143.8g/km for company cars ordered in the UK last year.

Due to the way in which company car tax is structured, Salary Sacrifice offers the greatest savings for drivers of low-emission vehicles and therefore encourages the uptake of "greener" vehicles.

Zenith Provecta's customers can choose to cap the emissions of vehicles contained within the Salary Exchange choice lists – usually this is at between 120g/km and 160g/km. The greatest savings are achieved for vehicles with emissions of 120g/km or under, as these attract less Benefit in Kind tax.

However, analysis of the Zenith Provecta Salary Exchange fleet shows that imposing a higher cap does not necessarily encourage drivers to select more polluting cars. Whilst the wider choice list may initially attract employees to the scheme, they will still generally choose lower-emission vehicles; attracted by cost efficiencies that they can achieve. 

Ian Hughes, commercial director for Zenith Provecta, said:  'Cars ordered through our Salary Exchange schemes have always been significantly lower than the UK average for company cars. In the first year of our scheme the average for new Salary Exchange cars ordered was 128g/km. Now, two years on, that average has fallen even further to 122g/km. This shows that the tax incentives coupled with the choice of suitable low CO2 models now available are making a significant contribution to reducing carbon footprint.'