Shared Economy in the Fleet

An electric car is parked in the company parking lot; the battery is fully charged, but no one needs it. Two parking spaces away, an employee is waiting for a car for his next client appointment. Situations like these show that electrifying the fleet alone does not guarantee efficient mobility.

The key factor is how companies use their fleets. One option is the shared economy model: Instead of assigning each employee their own company car, several colleagues share a common pool of vehicles.

This model is particularly interesting for e-mobility. But how does electric car sharing work in practice? What should you keep in mind when incorporating an electric car into your own fleet? And what kind of charging infrastructure does such a fleet require? You’ll find answers to these questions in this article.

In a nutshell: In a company fleet, corporate carsharing means that employees share a pool of vehicles and can book them digitally. Electric cars are particularly well-suited for this because their higher fixed costs are spread over more kilometers when utilization is high. Prerequisites include sufficient charging stations on-site and software that takes battery charge level and remaining range into account when assigning vehicles. As of October 2026.

Contents

1. The Sharing Economy and Electric Mobility: Why Sharing Electric Cars Is Worth It
2. Procurement: Fewer Cars, Better Terms
3. When the charge level and reservation must match
4. How the CarWise Group Automates Vehicle Assignment
5. Planning Charging Stations and Charging Infrastructure Properly
6. Conclusion
7. Other useful articles

The Sharing Economy and Electric Mobility: Why Sharing Electric Cars Is Worth It

The shift to electric mobility is also changing the cost structure of vehicle fleets. The purchase or leasing costs of an electric car are often higher than those of a comparable internal-combustion vehicle, but the energy and maintenance costs per kilometer are frequently lower. This brings one key metric into sharp focus: utilization.

A company car that spends most of its time in the parking lot incurs ongoing costs, regardless of how often it is actually used. If, on the other hand, several employees share a common vehicle pool, existing capacity can be utilized more effectively, and in some cases, the size of the fleet can even be reduced.

The economic benefit, therefore, does not stem solely from the type of powertrain, but rather—and above all—from using the cars as efficiently as possible.

In 2027, a tax incentive will be introduced: For new electric vehicles purchased by December 31, 2027, companies can depreciate 75 percent of the purchase cost in the first year (as of October 2026). This also applies to purchased fleet vehicles. Only the owner can claim the depreciation; for leased vehicles, this is generally the leasing company. The specific requirements should be clarified with a tax advisor.

However, the shared use of electric cars also presents new challenges. Existing management, scheduling, and booking systems need to be reviewed. In addition, usage documentation, appropriate charging strategies, and demand-based scheduling must be incorporated into the strategy to ensure that the transition is economically viable.

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Procurement: Fewer Cars, Better Terms

How many company cars are actually needed? The answer isn’t determined solely by the number of employees. Rather, the key factors are actual demand, scheduling overlaps, and usage patterns.

Fewer Cars Through Higher Utilization

When multiple employees share a car, under the right conditions, the need for company cars decreases—and with it, leasing, purchase, and operating costs. The fleet ties up less capital and requires fewer personnel resources for administration. Our article on pool vehicle management shows how companies can determine their needs and organize the pool.

However, the fleet size should not be estimated too conservatively. In addition to regular mobility needs, peak demand periods, maintenance windows, and—in the case of electric vehicles—necessary charging breaks must also be taken into account.

For fleet managers, this means that the goal is not maximum utilization at any cost, but rather the right balance between availability and costs.

Better Terms Through Bundling

Small and medium-sized businesses, in particular, often lose out when it comes to procurement, as they can hardly negotiate significant discounts due to their low purchase volumes.

By consolidating orders—for example, within a corporate group or across multiple locations—you can strengthen your negotiating position with manufacturers and distributors. This can also yield benefits when it comes to service and maintenance contracts.

When it comes to electric cars, it’s also worth comparing buying versus leasing: With mileage-based leasing, the leasing company typically bears the residual value risk. Which option is more economical depends, among other things, on mileage, the length of ownership, and financing.

Standardized Equipment

Standardized equipment offers additional advantages: A uniform fleet is easier to maintain, and employees can quickly get the hang of any car. For electric vehicles, standardization should also include charging ports and charging power so that the entire electric fleet can charge at existing charging stations.

When the charge level and reservation must match

A traditional vehicle fleet is primarily based on availability and features. With e-mobility, another dimension comes into play: the state of charge. After all, a car may be parked in the lot but still be unsuitable for the next scheduled trip.

This is precisely where fleet management becomes a critical success factor.

At the heart of modern fleet management is software that automates booking, assignment, and documentation. It should integrate various requirements:

Availability: Which car is available at the desired time?
Range: Is the current charge level sufficient for the planned route?
Authorizations: Which employees are authorized to use which vehicle classes?
Contract details: How can agreed-upon lease mileage limits be taken into account effectively?
Flexibility: What happens in the event of delays, cancellations, or last-minute changes?

Car sharing software facilitates the booking of pool vehicles and automatically sends notifications in the event of delays or rebookings. — Car sharing software offers a clear booking calendar, sends automatic notifications and prioritizes e-vehicles for bookings.

How the CarWise Group Automates Vehicle Assignment

The CarWise Group’s car-sharing software integrates these requirements into a digital booking and allocation process.

Employees reserve a vehicle via the app or website; the software checks availability in real time and automatically sends email notifications in the event of rescheduling, delays, or cancellations.

Behind the scenes, the system takes into account access permissions, equipment requirements, and predefined pooling rules. For electric vehicles, the charge level and range are factored into the automatic allocation. The agreed-upon mileage limits from lease agreements can also be considered during scheduling.

If someone returns late, the software automatically rebooks them to a suitable replacement vehicle.

Optional key cabinets or key boxes allow for 24/7 access without the need for manual handoffs. Drivers document any damage, defects, or dirt before the start and after the end of each trip, as well as at any time during the booking.

Different Drivers, Same Responsibility: Owner Obligations for Pooled Vehicles

Changing drivers make owner responsibilities for a vehicle pool more challenging than for permanently assigned company cars. Companies must ensure that only employees with a valid driver’s license drive and that they receive regular training on the safe operation of the vehicles.

Especially with a larger user base, manual organization can quickly become time-consuming. Digital processes help link these tasks directly to the vehicle booking.

The CarWise Group’s software allows for the integration of electronic driver’s license verification and UVV driver training, ensuring that only authorized and trained employees have access.

This ensures that important compliance requirements are not managed in isolation but are directly integrated into operational processes.

Planning Charging Stations and Charging Infrastructure Properly

Even the best booking software is of little use if a sufficiently charged car isn’t available at the right time.

A major challenge in setting up an electric car fleet is planning the appropriate charging infrastructure. This isn’t just about the number of charging points, but above all about the actual downtime between bookings.

Here’s an example: If an electric car is needed for longer trips in the morning and afternoon, there may be little time to charge it in between. A car used for shorter trips with longer breaks, on the other hand, has very different requirements.

Several factors are therefore crucial for planning:

Usage Profiles: When and for how long are the vehicles on the road?
Charging Capacity: How much energy needs to be recharged between two bookings? How many cars need to be able to charge simultaneously?
Grid capacity: Is the existing connection sufficient, or is load management required?
Billing: How can charging sessions be tracked and assigned to the correct cost centers?

Legal requirements must also be taken into account. Under the Building Electric Mobility Infrastructure Act (GEIG), existing non-residential buildings with more than 20 parking spaces were previously required to install only a single charging point. With the GEIG amendment, the following will apply starting January 1, 2027: one charging point per ten parking spaces or wiring infrastructure for at least 50 percent of the parking spaces. Exceptions apply, among other things, to buildings owned by small or medium-sized enterprises and used primarily for their own purposes. Anyone planning an electric vehicle fleet anyway should consider both options together.

Sharing charging infrastructure with neighboring businesses can also be an option, provided that access and billing are clearly regulated.

The interaction between load planning and scheduling is crucial. Only when the software knows the current load statuses can it specifically assign sufficiently loaded vehicles to the next trips.

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Conclusion

Electric vehicles really demonstrate their cost advantages when utilization rates are high. A shared fleet creates exactly this level of utilization.
An e-pool cannot function without sufficient charging stations on-site. Planning must come before procurement, at the latest with the GEIG amendment taking effect in 2027.
Software that takes charging statuses, access permissions, and owner responsibilities into account transforms individual vehicles into a functional fleet concept.

The term describes the principle of sharing goods rather than owning them individually. In a fleet context, this means that employees use a shared pool of vehicles and digitally reserve the company cars they need as needed. This model is known as corporate carsharing.

Electric vehicles often have higher purchase or leasing costs, but lower energy and maintenance costs per kilometer. In a well-utilized fleet, the fixed costs are spread over more kilometers, so this cost advantage becomes more pronounced.

Charging points at the facility itself, where cars charge between bookings, are crucial. The number required depends on the number of cars, the duration of their stays, and the grid connection. For existing non-residential buildings with more than 20 parking spaces, the GEIG mandates, effective January 1, 2027, one charging station for every ten parking spaces or wiring infrastructure for at least half of the parking spaces.

The same obligations apply to corporate car-sharing: Companies must regularly verify that drivers have a valid driver’s license and provide them with training on the safe use of company vehicles. Digital solutions can integrate driver’s license verification and driver training into the booking process and help restrict vehicle use to authorized employees.

CarWise Group’s software factors in battery charge level and range when automatically assigning vehicles. This ensures that drivers receive a car that is sufficiently charged for their planned trip, and electric vehicles can be used in the fleet on an equal footing with internal combustion engine vehicles.