Companies continue commitment to company cars despite changing fiscal policies

Brussels, 18 March 2025 – Companies are likely to maintain their offerings of company cars in the foreseeable future, according to PwC Belgium’s latest mobility report. The professional services provider spoke to 23 fleet managers, representing 41,000 Belgian employees: only one company intends to stop offering company cars to employees in the future. Despite the introduction of mobility budgets and changing fiscal policies, employers find it simpler to provide company cars and observe a clear preference for them among employees.

For the second year in a row, PwC Belgium published its Mobility Report, based on in-depth interviews with fleet managers of 23 companies throughout Belgium, representing 41,000 employees. The report offers a nuanced perspective on the strategies employed by several employers and some general trends that have emerged since last year. Moreover, with the freshly installed government announcing some new measures regarding company cars, companies must be ready to cope with rapid changes in a structured and effective way in order to maintain employee satisfaction and ensure compliance with new regulations.

Bart Van den Bussche, Partner and Reward Lead, PwC Belgium: “As organisations continue to grapple with the dual challenges of sustainability and cost-effectiveness, the need for innovative and adaptable mobility strategies has never been more pressing.”

Company cars remain omnipresent 

Although the call to abolish the company car system is growing louder and several legislative initiatives have already been taken to make company cars less fiscally attractive, company cars remain omnipresent in remuneration packages. All respondents indicated a willingness to provide a company car to at least a portion of their staff, while the federal mobility budget scheme does not appear to have gained much ground. 40% percent of the respondents offer their employees the option to make use of the federal mobility budget; uptake progressed by a mere 2.5% compared to last year. 

PwC Belgium’s Mobility Report highlights several critical issues hindering its broader adoption, notably the complexity of legislation, the administrative burden and the perceived inequality among employees not eligible for a company car. The report clearly demonstrates that companies are not opposed to the federal mobility budget, but further implementation has stalled due to the aforementioned issues. 

Bart Van den Bussche, Partner and Reward Lead, PwC Belgium: “While mobility budgets present a substantial opportunity to offer employees greater freedom in their mobility choices, it is crucial that the recently installed government ensures new measures do not impose an excessive administrative burden on businesses and can be implemented as accessibly as possible. The amendment of the federal mobility budget as introduced in the coalition agreement is therefore promising. Although we will have to wait for more concrete elements and details to be defined, we note that this a big step in the right direction: towards a realistic, multimodal mobility landscape.”

Electrification progresses

The electrification of vehicle fleets appears to have made further progress. Specifically, 68% of respondents expressed the intention to offer only electric vehicles, albeit with exceptions where absolutely necessary. The legislative changes implemented are proving to be predominantly effective. While PwC Belgium’s previous mobility study indicated that just under 60% of respondents offered only fully electric vehicles to their employees (for new orders, as existing leases are grandfathered), that percentage has now risen to 68%. ​ 

Another significant portion (approximately 21%) of companies still offers various types of vehicles but operates with a total cost of ownership (TCO) budget that favours vehicles with low or no emissions. A trend towards increasing electrification seems to be fully underway. 

The challenge of charging

Within PwC Belgium’s focus group, approximately 87% of respondents provide home charging equipment, marking a noteworthy decrease compared to last year (94%). One possibility observed in the broader market, though not regularly mentioned in the survey, is that companies are no longer providing a home charging station within the TCO, but merely offering it within a flexible income plan to mitigate their rising fleet costs. ​ 

The reimbursement of costs for home charging of EVs has been a hot topic for a very long time. It is noticeable that for the past several years, the tax administration has maintained the position that reimbursement for electricity costs related to home charging could only be based on the actual cost incurred by the user. This posed significant challenges for employers, as it was practically impossible to determine the cost of the electricity used for charging individually.

In practice, nearly every employer resorted to using the CREG tariff for reimbursing electricity costs. According to our survey, more than 85% of respondents indicated that they use this tariff for reimbursing these costs, while only less then 5% of the respondents indicated being capable of reimbursing the actual cost. It wasn't until the end of last year that employers received legal certainty that using a particular CREG tariff is acceptable to the tax authorities, following the publication of a circular letter (2024/C/77) by the administration. Although this is currently a provisional tolerance, it is a positive development, and hopefully this position will be validated by the newly installed minister and government. ​ 

Another common issue regarding home charging and the charging station provided is the openness of this equipment. The survey reveals that two-thirds of respondents indicated that they typically provide a semi-public charging installation for their employees. The remaining respondents stated that they initially provide a strictly personal charging installation, but it may be possible for it to be opened to other individuals, making it a semi-public installation. 

 As well as home charging solutions, there is ongoing debate regarding keeping the charging infrastructure fully private or moving towards semi-public charging stations that become available for the public at larger. In addition to the practical inconvenience of opening up parking spots for external commuters that use the infrastructure, (local) regulations very often play a role in the decision to not provide a semi-public charging solution. ​ 

 Bart Van den Bussche, Partner and Reward Lead at PwC Belgium, emphasises: “Legal certainty around charging costs is imperative to support the electrification of vehicle fleets.” ​ ​ 

About PwC Belgium’s 2025 Mobility Report 

PwC Belgium interviewed 23 key stakeholders between September and December 2024, and gathered qualitative and quantitative data from the participating stakeholders. The participating companies represent a broad range of sectors and represent more than 41,000 employees and nearly 21,000 company cars. Although the survey was conducted prior to the recent changes for hybrid cars, the impact on the results is limited.

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