Kia has announced that its Picanto city car will join the fleet of an energy data collection company.
The deal will see 51 Picantos, in 3 trim, being used by meter-reading agents working for IMServ.
Kia’s regional business sales manager Lucy Allberry, who worked closely with IMServ and its leasing company Hitachi to secure the deal, said: “We are delighted to have been selected for this part of the IMServ fleet – demonstrating that Picanto is a practical yet perfectly suited vehicle with class-leading whole-life costs.
“Since its launch in May last year, Picanto has been popular in both the retail and fleet market.”
Hitachi is said to have recommended switching to the Picanto from small vans based on cost savings, environmental concerns, safety and comfort.
Kate Whitehouse, business support, environment, health, safety and sustainability manager for IMServ, said: “We were looking for an alternative vehicle for our site visit agents – meter readers – as a van isn’t really necessary for the small amount of kit they need to carry with them. Wanting to reduce our diesel fleet was an important factor.
“We were looking for a vehicle which was not only an ergonomically comfortable drive, but one with all the safety and comfort features IMServ requires.
“The Kia Picanto stood out as the one which met all the requirements, and testing the cars both at head office and in the field resulted in a unanimous decision being made.
“Now that we have seen the end product, including livery and Chapter 8, we are excited to see the cars roll out to represent IMServ.”