The handover took place at Mercedes-Benz World.

Mark Bursa, editor of Professional Driver and chairman of the judging panel, said of the most recent award win: ‘The S-Class received consistent scoring from all the judges who tested it, and it’s a testament to its quality that a car toward the end of its product lifecycle can still outscore some newer rivals to win our Chauffeur Car of the Year category for 2012.’

He continued: ‘Good customer support has also played a major part. Mercedes-Benz made major improvements to its chauffeur programme this year, with the S-Class now matching its competitors pound-for-pound, so it boils down to taste. And the three-pointed star still carries a lot of kudos in the chauffeur industry.’

Throughout 2012, the S-Class has also been triumphant in the number of accolades it has received, with a total of four awards won this year alone, including Auto Express Best Luxury Car, What Car? Best Luxury Car, and The Sunday Times Best Executive and Prestige Model.

S-Class registrations are up 13.6% year to date (1,709). In the fleet sector specifically, registrations are enjoying a 27% increase YTD.

The S 350 BlueTEC L is equiped with one of the world’s cleanest diesel engines, returning 41.5 mpg and 177 g/km of CO₂ on the combined cycle. With its generous equipment levels, class-leading comfort and peerless safety standards, the S 350 BlueTEC L is priced at £64,610 on the road.