The company will be using its VW Caddy fleet to make door-to-door deliveries to 270,000 Ringtons customers across the UK every two weeks, covering a total of around 2.5 million miles per annum. Each Caddy will be specified in black with a 2.0-litre 69 PS SDI engine and, for maximum convenience for the drivers, with parking sensors and twin sliding side doors.

Carl Moffett, finance director of Ringtons, said: 'There are three clear reasons why we chose the Volkswagen Caddy – reliability, competitive whole life costs and driver acceptance. The last thing we or our customers need is a vehicle off the road, so we need a van that we can completely rely on. Secondly, a competitive deal and stronger residual values made the Caddy a very cost effective choice, and our drivers have found the Caddy very comfortable and of high quality, so they are extra proud of the vans they drive.'

Ringtons ordered the new Caddy fleet from the local Benfield Van Centre in Newcastle along with a fixed-price service and maintenance contract to keep the vehicles in top condition and serviced by fully trained Volkswagen technicians at selected Van Centres from the nationwide Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles' network.

Chris Blue, national fleet manager for Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, said: 'This large fleet deal clearly demonstrates the cost effectiveness and durability of Volkswagen vans. We look forward to seeing the Ringtons tea Caddys on the road across the country.'