Companies in Romania are confident about the development of car fleets in the short and medium term, according to data collected by Arval Romania and presented in the Arval Mobility Observatory, 2025 edition. At the same time, businesses in the country are accelerating the electrification process, even if the charging infrastructure does not keep up with market developments. About 59% of companies have already adopted green technologies or plan to do so, the study shows.

To carry out this extensive study, which presents information from 28 countries in Europe, North America, South America or Africa, over 8,000 interviews were conducted with decision-makers on the car fleet in companies of all sizes. 250 companies in Romania submitted information, providing a unique overview of the domestic market. Of these, 132 are small companies, with a maximum of 99 employees, 68 are medium-sized companies, with a maximum of 999 employees, and another 50 are large companies, with at least 250 employees, many with more than 1,000 people on the team.

The majority of respondents in Romania (88%) expect the car fleet of the companies they represent to remain stable or even expand in the coming years, with almost a quarter of them (24%) anticipating an actual increase in the fleet. This is a trend that has been observed for two years in Romania and is in line with the European average. Also, 76% of Romanian companies that anticipate the development of their car fleets attribute this growth to the development of their activity. The second reason that determines the growth of fleets is represented by the company’s human resource needs, such as recruitment and retention.

In this context, more and more companies (44%) are already resorting to second-hand vehicles, used mainly as company cars, but also as part of the employee benefits package.

Operational leasing is proving to be an increasingly attractive solution for the Romanian business environment, with 44% of companies planning to initiate or extend leasing contracts in the next three years, while 17% already consider it the main method of fleet financing. It is a paradigm shift that began several years ago and reflects the maturation of the market and the desire to optimize costs and internal resources.

In addition, in addition to traditional ownership or leasing, 24% of companies are examining or already have short- or medium-term rental options in place. Public transport reimbursement and mobility budgets are alternative solutions already tried by 20% of participants. The main motivation for these decisions is human resource needs, cited by 38–47% of respondents, followed by commitment to corporate social responsibility, mentioned by 37–46%.

Accelerating electrification

Regarding the electrification process, companies in Romania are committed to its adoption, even if there are major challenges. 59% of companies have already adopted green technologies or plan to do so, but only 28% have actually implemented them, below the European average of 56%.

The lack of charging infrastructure is seen as the main obstacle to the adoption of environmentally friendly technologies by 77% of participants. At the same time, 87% have already started to develop or plan a charging strategy, which suggests a solid commitment from the business environment, but also underlines the need for investments in power networks.

Also, a very interesting aspect that emerges from the study is that telematics is starting to show its usefulness: 42% of companies have adopted such solutions for light vehicles, and 64% of them are thinking about capitalizing on the data obtained. Because the percentage of those who have actually used this information so far is only 11%, there is still unexplored potential for optimizing routes, reducing consumption and preventing unforeseen costs.

Finally, sustainability is becoming not only a desire, but also a concrete objective because 12% of companies have already set precise decarbonization targets, and another 26% are currently evaluating them. In the next three years, the main challenges targeted are adapting to increasingly strict regulations for vehicles with internal combustion engines (40%), electrifying the fleet (38%) and reducing the increasing total cost of ownership (31%).

“The data you will find in the Arval Mobility Observatory is very interesting and shows a gratifying trend, that of aligning the Romanian mobility market with European trends. More and more, companies in Romania realize what added value car fleets can bring and act accordingly to develop them or maintain them at an optimal level. Also, the trend towards electrification continues at a sustained pace and I am glad that in 2025 we see more and more responsibility. Companies accuse the deficiencies at the infrastructure level, but now they are starting to act actively to correct them and are planning investments that are not at all small in elements that support the charging of electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles. Last but not least, the reaction of the authorities is also gratifying, as this year they increased the bonus for electric cars purchased through the Rabla program, responding to a market demand for supporting the segment. I am not wrong if I say that the Arval Mobility Observatory offers us a real-time radiography of the mobility segment in companies, and the trends that emerge from this analysis are used in the market,” said Roxana Lupescu, General Manager of Arval Service Lease Romania.