Northgate, the UK's largest vehicle hire company, has re-branded its network of 20 local brands as Northgate Vehicle Car.

The revamped operation consists of 12 business areas with more than 60 sites covering the UK and Northern Ireland.

The majority of the 60,000-strong fleet of mainly LCVs now carries the Northgate Vehicle Hire branding, which, according to Northgate, makes it the third largest liveried fleet in the UK behind BT and Royal Mail. The remainder of the fleet is branded by long term hirers with their own corporate livery.

As well as completing new signage across its network, Northgate has also launched a new website with online booking facilities..

Marketing director Ross Clarkson said: "These changes are already delivering higher levels of brand awareness and increasing demand for vehicles from both our corporate and retail customers."

Clarkson said the re-brand was backed by a single set of best practice processes designed to deliver more consistent levels of customer service. He added that the company's commitment to providing a local service to SMEs remained a fundamental part of its business model.