Custom Fleet is preparing to introduce a vehicle-initiated payment platform to Australia and New Zealand, aiming to reduce the administration, fraud risk and delayed reconciliation associated with conventional fuel cards.
The technology comes from Car IQ, a San Francisco-based payments business acquired by Custom Fleet parent company Element. The business has since been rebranded as Element Pay.
Chris Tulloch, President, Custom Fleet, said the platform creates a direct connection between the vehicle and the point of sale, rather than relying on a driver carrying a plastic or digital card.
“It provides connectivity from the vehicle to the point of sale at a gas station,” Tulloch said.
“Driver drives into the fuel station, pumps their fuel, drives away, and the payment just happens in the background automatically.”
For Fleet Managers, the potential change is significant. Traditional fuel card systems can involve card ordering, delivery delays, lost cards, PIN management, manual exceptions and reconciliation processes. Digital fuel cards may improve the driver experience, but Tulloch said Element Pay is intended to go further.
“We feel that this is a leapfrog of that,” he said.
“We have been in a position where we were still issuing plastic, and then it’s digitised the plastic. Instead of digitising the plastic and effectively still having the same process, this takes another level further.”
The vehicle becomes the payment mechanism
Under the model described by Tulloch, the vehicle itself becomes the payment credential. That could remove the need to issue a card to the driver and create tighter links between the transaction, the vehicle and the fleet system.
“It completely reduces the likelihood or risk of fraud because it’s the vehicle that’s actually making the payment,” Tulloch said.
The approach could be particularly relevant for fleets managing multiple drivers, high vehicle turnover or vehicles operating across dispersed locations. It may also help reduce circumstances where a fuel card is used for an unauthorised vehicle, personal travel or non-fuel purchases.
The platform is also expected to use telematics and fuel-price data to guide drivers towards nearby lower-cost fuel locations.
“Where there is telematics integrated into the solution as well, [there is] the ability to direct drivers to the station that is in their direct proximity that has the cheapest fuel costs,” Tulloch said.
“The team track that, and then report the benefit to the client associated with following the recommended stations.”
That reporting could give fleet buyers more visibility over whether fuel-saving policies are producing measurable value, rather than relying only on broad fuel-card transaction data.
A broader platform for vehicle-related spending
Fuel is the first use case, but Element’s ambition is broader. Tulloch said the company wants to integrate all vehicle-related payments into the one platform.
“The aspiration or the vision is to have all vehicle-related payments integrated and embedded into this solution,” he said.
EV charging is identified as an early priority, followed by maintenance and potentially toll payments.
“The solution, as it still was when we acquired Car IQ, [EV charging] is not part of it, but it’s a priority item that we’re building out,” Tulloch said.
“Maintenance will follow, ideally get to a point where there’s tolls as well.”
For fleets transitioning to EVs, bringing public charging payments into the same framework as fuel and maintenance could simplify cost allocation and reporting. However, the full value will depend on how widely the platform can connect with charging operators, fuel retailers, maintenance providers and tolling systems.
Local rollout being explored
Tulloch said Custom Fleet is in discussions to have Element Pay deployed in Australia and New Zealand by the end of the year.
“It’s capability and functionality that we’re able to drag and drop into the local market,” he said.
The proposal reflects a wider shift in fleet management from standalone products towards connected systems that combine vehicle data, payments, fleet policy and operational reporting.
For Fleet Managers, the immediate question will be whether vehicle-initiated payments can provide a practical improvement over existing fuel-card arrangements without adding another platform or process.
If Custom Fleet can integrate payments with telematics, fleet management and future EV charging transactions, the model could offer a more connected alternative to both plastic and digital fuel cards.
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