The analysis also revealed that average vehicle emissions had also dropped in the past year in the salary sacrifice fleets of both sectors – dropping from 120.6 g/km to 117.9 g/km in the public sector and from 142.9 g/km to 135.9 g/km in the private sector. Underscoring the differences, red was the most popular vehicle colour in the public sector and black by a significant margin in the private sector.

Roddy Graham, commercial director at the Leasedrive Group, said: ‘Employees entering car salary sacrifice schemes are clearly more conscious than ever of their green responsibilities and definitely more aware of the positive BIK tax implications of opting for cars with lower CO2 emissions.

‘In terms of the environment, a salary sacrifice scheme reduces the carbon footprint across an organisational fleet and lowers fuel costs. It also improves an employers’ corporate social responsibility standing.

‘The disparity in green choices between public sector and private sector drivers is not altogether surprising as the average contract mileage for a vehicle under the mycar salary sacrifice scheme is 29% higher in the private sector, at 40,032 miles compared to 30,913 miles in the public sector. The higher average mileage of the private sector vehicle explains the 15% higher CO2 emission figure – drivers covering longer distances prefer larger, more comfortable vehicles.

‘A salary sacrifice scheme also acts as a valuable recruitment and retention tool in the war for talent. With the current pressures on salaries, salary sacrifice provides a creative way to enhance the total remuneration package in the eyes of the employee at no additional cost to the employer. It is a tax-efficient scheme for the employee, saving them money.’