Fleet Management in Europe - 18th Edition

The installed base of FM systems to reach 26.5 million units by 2027

How will the market for fleet management systems for commercial vehicles in Europe evolve in 2023 and beyond? Now in its seventeenth edition this strategy report covers the latest trends and developments in the dynamic commercial vehicle telematics industry.

The report forecasts that the number of fleet management systems in active use in the region is forecasted to grow at a CAGR of 12.4 percent from 14.8 million units at the end of 2022 to 26.5 million by 2027. Get up to date with the latest information about vendors, products and markets.

Highlights from the report

• Insights from 50 new executive interviews with market leading companies.
• New data on vehicle populations and commercial fleets in Europe.
• Comprehensive overview of the fleet management value chain and key applications.
• In-depth analysis of market trends and key developments.
• Updated and new profiles of 120 aftermarket fleet management solution providers.
• Summary of OEM propositions from truck, trailer and construction equipment brands.
• Revised market forecasts lasting until 2027

Fleet management is an ambiguous term used in reference to a wide range of solutions for different vehicle-related applications. The report's definition of a fleet management solution is a vehicle-based system that incorporates data logging, satellite positioning and data communications to a back-office application. The history of fleet management solutions goes back several decades. On-board vehicle computers first emerged in the 1980s and were soon connected to various networks. Today mobile networks can provide ubiquitous online connectivity at a reasonable cost and mobile computing technology delivers very high performance, as well as excellent usability. All of these components combined enable the delivery of vehicle management, transport management, driver management and mobile workforce management applications linking vehicles and enterprise IT systems.

Commercial vehicle fleets play an essential role in the European economy. According to official statistics there were 44.0 million commercial vehicles in use in EU25+3 in 2021. The 7.3 million medium and heavy trucks accounted for more than 75 percent of all inland transports, forming a € 250 billion industry. Approximately 0.8 million buses and coaches stood for 9.3 percent of all passenger kilometres.

The greater part of the 35.8 million light commercial vehicles (LCV) in Europe was used by mobile workers and for activities such as distribution of goods and parcels. Last but not least, there are an estimated 23.0 million passenger cars owned by companies and governments in EU27+3.

The European fleet management market has entered a growth period that will last for several years to come. Individual markets may however suffer temporary setbacks, depending on the development of the general economy in the region and Ukraine crisis. The number of fleet management systems in active use is forecasted to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 12.4 percent from 14.8 million units at the end of 2022 to 26.5 million by 2027. The penetration rate in the total population of non-privately owned commercial vehicles and cars is estimated to increase from 22.1 percent in 2022 to 37.7 percent in 2027.

The top-38 vendors have today more than 100,000 active units in Europe. A group of international aftermarket solution providers have emerged as the leaders on the European fleet management market. The report ranks Targa Telematics as the largest vendor in Europe at the end of 2022 with 710,000 subscribers in the region, followed by Webfleet and Verizon Connect with 680,000 and 490,000 subscribers respectively.

ZF Transics is ranked as the largest player in the aftermarket heavy trucks segment with an estimated 190,000 active units installed. Other significant players include European companies such as ABAX, Bornemann, AddSecure Smart Transport, MICHELIN Connected Fleet, Gurtam, Radius Telematics, Viasat, GSGroup, Quartix, Océan (Orange), Linqo, Microlise, Macnil, Eurowag Telematics, RAM Tracking, AROBS Transilvania Software, Shiftmove and Coyote and international players like Trimble, Teletrac Navman, Inseego and Calamp from the US, Fleet Complete and Geotab from Canada, Astrata Europe from Singapore and the South African telematics providers Cartrack and MiX Telematics.

All major truck manufacturers on the European market offer OEM telematics solutions as part of their product portfolio. A major trend in the past years has been the announcements of standard line fitment of fleet management solutions. Since the end of 2011, Scania is rolling out the Scania Communicator as standard on all European markets and includes a ten-year basic service subscription. All medium and heavy duty trucks from Daimler Truck contains the Fleetboard vehicle computer as standard and the buses are equipped with OMNIplus ON. Volvo offers Dynafleet as standard in Europe. New MAN trucks are now equipped with RIO as standard replacing MAN TeleMatics. DAF launched its new optional DAF Connect that has been developed in-house in 2016. The leading OEMs in Europe are Scania, Daimler and Volvo with 379,000, 170,000 and 162,000 active FM subscribers respectively at the end of 2022.

The consolidation trend continues and seven M&A activities have taken place in 2023 so far. Coyote became majority owner of Ubiwan (51 percent). Vimcar and Avrios were acquired by Battery Ventures and consequently merged, resulting in a new company called Shiftmove. Private equity firm Idico acquired a majority stake in Simpliciti. Targa Telematics acquired Viasat Group. Mapon acquired CarCops based in Estonia which will expand the business in the country considerably. Addsecure Smart Transport acquired the Clifford Group which includes Traxgo, a Belgium-based company offering systems for tracking of vehicles, machines and equipment. Finally, Powerfleet and MiX Telematics announced an agreement to form a combined business which will be branded as Powerfleet. The transaction is expected to close in Q1 2024.

The report answers the following questions:

• What are the key drivers behind the adoption of FMS in Europe?
• Who are the leading providers of aftermarket fleet management solutions in Europe?
• What offerings are available from truck, trailer and construction equipment OEMs?
• What are the FMS vendors’ hardware strategies and thoughts on BYOD?
• How has the FMS market coped with the current economic situation in Europe?
• What impact will standard factory installed FM systems from the OEMs have on the market?
• Will the FM industry consolidate further during 2024?
• How will the commercial vehicle telematics industry evolve in the future?

Who should read this report?

Fleet Management in Europe is the foremost source of information about the Commercial Vehicle Telematics and Fleet Management market in this region. Whether you are a telematics vendor, vehicle manufacturer, telecom operator, investor, consultant, or government agency, you will gain valuable insights from our in-depth research based on hundreds of interviews with the companies involved in
this market.