Almost two in five fleet decision makers (38%) say that they have spent more on rental in 2014, while a similar figure (41%) expect to do the same in the next 12 months.

The picture is even more pronounced for van fleets, where more than three-quarters of fleet decision makers (76%) report that their rental spend has risen while almost half (48%) believe that they will spend even more in 2015.

The figures show the percentage of respondents who say their rental spend has increased:

Gary Killeen, managing director at GE Capital Fleet UK, said: “What we believe we are seeing here is a hangover from the recession. Fleets are facing increasing demand as the economy starts to show signs of improvement. They want to be able to retain the flexibility to hand back a vehicle at any point in time in the eventuality that we see another downturn. It is an understandable attitude.

"Unfortunately it makes little sense from a financial point of view. Daily rental is very much a top-up to your standard fleet needs rather than a long term solution and using it as an ongoing method of fleet provision is very expensive. That flexibility comes at a high price.

“We are starting to see some fleets take a more structured approach to answering the need for further vehicles rather than simply turning to a rental company. We are having conversations with several about the need to manage capacity while maintaining a high degree of flexibility. It is all about helping fleets to forecast and meet demand successfully.”