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Andy Williams, operational services manager at leasing giant Alphabet, agrees that a proper spare is the better option, but adds that it can encourage drivers to change a wheel at the side of the road, even though you might not want them to: "Absolutely [a spare is better than a repair kit], especially in terms of fleets generally and care for employees.
"If you provide a vehicle with a spare wheel then there are two sides to it: if you do, are you then encouraging the employee to change a wheel by the side of the road? It's a balance between convenience and prioritising safety. If [an employee] gets a puncture on the motorway, do you really want them changing the wheel at the side of the road?
"I'm sure there are fleets out there that have policies in place [to prevent employees from doing so]. It's much like the mobile phone policy. It's on the same level."
The advice is to check the fine print at the procurement stage (BusinessCar's list of the top 10 fleet manufacturers' tyre policies will help - see right) and make sure you know what your vehicles come with from the outset, and whether there's an option to upgrade.
Williams continues: "A lot of it is around the car choice generally, but it's peace of mind. I think if you've got a spare then great, but it's not a one-size-fits-all policy. The underlying issue is that even if you choose to upgrade, there isn't a spare to put in a number of manufacturers' models, so it's down to picking a model that has the capability to get you somewhere safe."
A bit of noise also goes a long way, according to Ryan: "It's helpful that large fleets do raise their concerns in that way because they have the buying power to raise awareness with drivers and they have more influence with manufacturers with issues like this.
"With retail sales, manufacturers will often try to sell customers an aftermarket space saver, but I believe that happens less with fleets. I would applaud fleets who are raising awareness of this.
"I understand the CO2 legislation that's driving the manufacturers in this direction and a big part of that is reducing weight. But with fleets, a lot of drivers have got special requirements or loads with things that need to be delivered and that's an issue. Especially time."
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