Held last Thursday (3 March) at the London Hilton on Park Lane, the event was attended by 950 industry colleagues to recognise the contributions of outstanding performers in the vehicle rental and leasing industry.

This included the latest Industry Heroes, as nominated by their co-workers for recognition of their work to help deliver outstanding levels of service. A team of BVRLA judges then assess the merits of each entry to name the Industry Heroes.

The first Industry Hero award went to Debby Moore, strategic account manager at Hitachi Capital Vehicle Solutions. Having started at the company in 2000 as a client liaison executive, Moore now looks after major accounts, and recently played a vital role in her employer retaining a fleet contract involving 4,000 vehicles.

The next winner was Julian Okoronkwo, who has only been in the industry since 2014, but is already described as one of Activa Contract’s best performers. Like Debby Moore, he has made a particular impact on a major client and received praise from customers as “fantastic”, “a champion” and “someone who goes above and beyond”.

The final Industry Hero recipient was Sara Williams of Brecon Car Rentals. From a very early age Williams has performed every job there is, from cleaning cars and answering calls to dealing with customers and doing the accounts.  She joined the business full-time in 2007 and now runs the hire department single-handed, while also making a name for herself as a rally driver.

The BVRLA also revealed the winners of its Industry Achievement Awards.

The Certificate for Rental Operator Skills is a benchmark of quality and an endorsement of professionalism in daily vehicle rental, and the City & Guilds Achievement Award goes to the individual who attained the highest pass mark in the 2015 examinations. The 2016 recipient is Bryan Macdermid of Arnold Clark Car & Van Rental in Aberdeen, who achieved a remarkable score of 96%.

In addition, the BVRLA’s Fleet Consultant Development Programme was set up eight years ago, and it continues to give senior sales people a greater understanding of the needs of their customer – the typical fleet manager. The top performer in 2015 was Marco Capozzoli of Volkswagen Financial Services (UK) Limited, who scored 95% and gained a Pass with Distinction.

Finally, the BVRLA announced the winner of its Airport Operator of the Year Award, which recognises the excellent work undertaken by a particular travel hub in promoting car rental services to all passengers.

Facing stiff competition from nine other airports, this year’s award went to Heathrow Airport, which the organisation said has taken major strides to ensure that the customer journey is as stress-free as possible – from getting off the plane to getting into the car. Paul Buckley, head of travel services at Heathrow Airport, collected the award.

BVRLA chief executive Gerry Keaney said: “Our awards recognise the very best individuals in the rental and leasing industry. Whether it’s the top performers from our accreditation and training courses, or the Industry Heroes who have gone above and beyond the call of duty, our winners are excellent ambassadors for our sector.”