Fuel could become the highest pence per mile cost of running a company car in less than five years, says CFC Solutions.

The fleet software industry company pointed out that petrol and diesel prices have risen by roughly 50% in the past five years and there is every reason to expect that they will increase by the same amount before 2016.

Currently, depreciation is the most expensive cost for a typical 2.0 litre upper medium petrol company car at around 25p per mile with fuel costs around 16p. Depreciation is unlikely to change substantially within the next five years, said CFC, so it is very likely to be overtaken by fuel costs.

Neville Briggs, managing director at CFC Solutions, explained: "Depreciation has been by far the highest cost in company cars since anyone seriously started measuring whole life costs on a pence per mile basis in the 1970s."