THE global pandemic did not put the brakes on Arval’s growth last year with its leased fleet growing by 6.4% compared to 2019, reaching 1,381,555 vehicles, with 4.6% growth in its UK market.

The Corporate financed fleet reached one million vehicles in 2020. The Retail segment grew by 15.7%, including 100,000 vehicles on private lease. The Mid-term Rental segment grew by 6%. Arval’s 7,200 employees serve 300,000 customers in 30 countries.

During the pandemic, Arval’s teams were mobilised across the world to make sure the services it offers to customers continue in a secure manner. Thanks to its robust IT infrastructure, more than 99% of Arval employees were able to work from home safely from March 2020.

The company also provided nearly 350 vehicles free of charge to healthcare workers in twelve countries. In this context, Arval has actively supported its customers throughout the crisis, offering flexibility in contractual terms and contract extensions.

Arval has accelerated its remarketing strategy throughout the COVID-19 crisis, complementing its B2B sales activities with a retail offer supported by a fully digital customer journey. In response to new post-lockdown mobility trends, in May 2020 the company launched “The Journey Goes On”, a pioneering service designed to help and support Arval’s customers restart their business with safe, sustainable, and cost-effective mobility solutions.

• 1,381,555 LEASED VEHICLES, +6.4%* GROWTH, MAKING ARVAL THE EUROPEAN LEADER IN FULL SERVICE LEASING
• +4.6% GROWTH OF LEASED VEHICLES IN THE UK
• ARVAL OUTPERFORMS THE MARKET DESPITE THE PANDEMIC
• A PIVOTAL YEAR WITH THE LAUNCH OF A NEW, AMBITIOUS STRATEGIC PLAN: ARVAL BEYOND
• IMPORTANT PARTNERSHIPS CONCLUDED WITH THE OPENING OF A NEW SUBSIDIARY IN COLOMBIA
• ACCELERATION OF ARVAL’S CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY (CSR) COMMITMENT, REWARDED WITH THE PLATINUM ECOVADIS RATING, RANKING ARVAL IN THE TOP 1% OF ITS INDUSTRY

After its 30th anniversary in 2019, Arval took an important step by presenting its new strategic plan, Arval Beyond, in October 2020, preparing the company to grow steadily in a new world, based on its main strengths while rethinking its business model to respond to customer needs.

Arval Beyond translates into four different offers: mobility in addition to cars with, for instance, the recent launch of bike leasing in eight countries (360° Mobility), technology for the benefit of Arval’s customers (Connected & Flexible), strong partnerships (Arval Inside) and sustainability at the core of everything (Good for you, Good for all).

Driven by a sense of responsibility towards society and its customers, in 2020 Arval developed a strong CSR strategy to respond to environmental issues, setting up unparalleled goals for 2025: half a million electrified vehicles leased and an average reduction of 30% in CO2 emissions for its entire fleet.

In 2020, Arval assumed its role as an advocate for electric mobility and grew at twice the pace of the market in terms of Battery Electric Vehicle orders, taking into account the global market per country. Arval is also actively addressing diversity issues. With the “Arval Women in Action” Career Programme, for example, Arval is convinced that the women of today will pave the way for the women of tomorrow.

Fully in line with the new offer, Arval Inside, 2020 saw the renewal or launch of partnerships forged with major partners around the globe, including SIXT (beginning with Germany, France, the Netherlands, UK and Belgium) and CaixaBank Payments & Consumer group in Spain and Portugal.

A new cooperation agreement was also signed with Unicredit Bank Austria, strengthening Arval’s position in the country with the acquisition of UniCredit Leasing Fuhrparkmanagement GmbH. All of these partnerships are based on a strong focus to provide a digital customer experience and expand the range of products and services with shared, connected and electrified mobility solutions.

Arval’s growth in 2020 not only came through strong partnerships, but also through geographical expansion. The company reinforced its presence in Latin America, opening a new subsidiary in Colombia in partnership with Relsa. This confirms Arval’s growth alongside its partners in the Latin American region.

In 2021, Arval will continue to deploy its strategy through concrete objectives. Amongst this year’s projects are:

Alain van Groenendael, Arval Chairman and Chief Executive, said: “The crisis in 2020 confirmed the priorities we defined for Arval Beyond as something our customers needed. Arval is even stronger today and is leading the market in terms of performance, with a pioneering spirit and our ambitious CSR commitments. I am very confident about the year ahead; we have numerous projects and initiatives planned. The investments we make today will strengthen our vision through 2021 and the years to come, and we expect to exceed 2020’s performance in terms of fleet growth this year.”