In a world of rising benefit costs, here's a potentially refreshing twist: Companies that hawk their own corporate fleet cars to workers as part of an employee benefit program can improve the bottom line and boost employee morale, says Philadelphia-based Driveitaway.com.
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Driveitaway helps employers automate vehicle sales to employees before cars go through the regular resale loop. The selling price to an employee is usually $2,000 to $5,000 less than the typical resale price, says spokeswoman Stacy Ratner. Employees also can access a vehicle's service history before they buy it.

"Driveitaway gives HR managers at companies with corporate fleets the ability to offer a quick, simple, and valuable employee perk at no startup cost," Ratner says. The company makes its money mainly on commissions from the auxiliary services offered on its site - financing, service contracts, transport, etc. It also derives revenue from fees paid for each successful car sale.

The company's main client is LeasePlan USA, which has more than 1 million fleet vehicles worldwide. In partnership with LeasePlan, Driveitaway is rolling out its employee vehicle sales program to companies such as Philips Electronics, The Chubb Corp. and Delphi Corp. More than 50,000 workers have used the program to purchase cars.

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