How do fuel card, telematics and vehicle leasing companies find new fleet customers?
Updated 26 October 2026 · by Matt Vallis, Salenovo · counts from our own daily files, read from public registers
The firms that win most new commercial work reach a business at the moment it has to decide, before it has asked anyone for a quote. A business orders its fuel cards, trackers and vehicle cover in the first weeks its vans are on the road. We see the registrations that say when. In our daily files from 20 to 26 October 2026, 109 businesses across Great Britain were at that point for a fleet sales desk, 35 of them opening or about to.
Why timing matters for fuel card, telematics and vehicle leasing companies
A business that carries waste from customers' sites has to register with the Environment Agency before it starts, and one that runs lorries needs an operator licence before it uses a depot. Both registers are public and dated, so a new fleet shows up the week it begins, often before the first invoice. Businesses taking on premises in trades that run vans (building, cleaning, haulage, wholesale, the motor trade) come through too.
The usual ways to find new customers, and what each is good for
Referrals and repeat customers
The cheapest work there is, and the most likely to say yes. The catch is that you can't turn the volume up when you need more.
Your own website and Google Business Profile
These bring in businesses already searching for what you do. They're searching for your competitors too, so you're one quote of several.
Trade bodies and accreditation
Trade associations and certification schemes list their members, and some buyers look there first.
Quote websites
Sites such as Bark pass on requests from businesses ready to buy. You pay to respond, and other suppliers can answer the same request, so the work goes to whoever answers first or cheapest.
Public tenders
Contracts Finder and Find a Tender list public sector contracts and are free to search. The jobs are larger and the paperwork heavier, and the decision takes months.
Bought lists
A list broker sells names in bulk by trade and area. Plenty of names, but no reason to call any of them today, and they go out of date quickly.
The moment a business needs you
Food registers, licence applications, the care regulators, operator licences and the councils' rates lists show the week a business takes on premises, changes hands or is about to open, each dated, if someone reads them every day. That's what we send: a file each weekday of the businesses at that point in your region, graded for your trade. Ring the newly registered carriers and the new depots first, then the trades moving into premises. Every row says what kind of business it is and, where the accounts show it, how many people it employs.
What a business at the right moment looks like
The moments at a premises that matter to fuel card, telematics and vehicle leasing companies:
| Coming | A business is about to open: a licence applied for, a unit being fitted out, a new company set up to trade from the address. |
| Just moved in | A business has started at premises that had nobody in them: a new ratepayer, a new food business, a newly registered care home, nursery, surgery or garage. |
| Changed hands | A new operator at premises that were already trading: a pub, shop or care home under new ownership, often keeping the old name on the door. |
Last week in numbers
In the daily files from 20 to 26 October 2026, businesses that took on premises, changed hands or were about to, graded A or B for a fleet sales desk: 109 across Great Britain, 35 of them opening or about to and 74 just moved in or under a new owner. 96 came with a landline to ring. 32% of them could not have been flagged by a service working from Companies House alone: the premises isn't the registered office, or nothing new was on the register.
| Region | Rows graded A or B | Opening or about to | Moved in or new owner | With a landline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| East Midlands | 13 | 4 | 9 | 11 |
| East of England | 13 | 4 | 9 | 11 |
| South East | 13 | 4 | 9 | 11 |
| North West | 12 | 5 | 7 | 11 |
| West Midlands | 11 | 3 | 8 | 9 |
| Scotland | 10 | 5 | 5 | 10 |
| South West | 10 | 3 | 7 | 8 |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | 10 | 3 | 7 | 9 |
| Wales | 8 | 3 | 5 | 8 |
| London | 4 | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| North East | 3 | 0 | 3 | 2 |
Some of last week's rows for East Midlands, said in words (the file has the name, the address, the number and where each came from):
- A haulage or goods vehicle operator in Bolsover, not open yet, 23 October. A landline to ring.
- A haulage or goods vehicle operator in Ashfield, new owner, 21 October. A landline to ring. A mailbox.
- A building completion and finishing business in North West Leicestershire, moved in, 21 October. A landline to ring. A mailbox.
Counted from the daily files dated 20 to 26 October 2026, the seven days to the latest file, as they were read on 26 October 2026. Each event is counted once, on the first file it reached.
What we send
A file by 8am every weekday with the businesses in your region at one of those moments, graded so your team rings the best first, each row saying what happened, when, what kind of business it is and a way to reach it where one is public. £250 a month for a region, or £1,000 for Great Britain, monthly, and you can stop at any month's end. The first two weeks are free.
Questions people also ask
How many vehicles do they run?
An operator licence says how many lorries it allows, and the row carries that. For vans the register doesn't say, so the row gives the trade, the staff count where accounts show it, and the site.
Is it legal to email a business we haven't dealt with?
A limited company or an LLP can be emailed without its prior consent under PECR, as long as you say who you are and give a way to opt out. Sole traders and partnerships are treated as individuals, so the rules are stricter. Screen phone numbers against the TPS and CTPS before you ring.
What does it cost?
£250 a month for a region, or £1,000 a month for the whole of Great Britain, monthly, and you can stop at any month's end. The first two weeks are free.