Sales Rep Going on Maternity leave...

Arddon

i am a sales rep (7 yrs with company) going on maternity leave in July...

my company are prob not going to pay my wages - i will get the standard govt payment for the duration of my maternity leave...

my question however concerns my company car
the company are going to hire somebody to cover my area while i am off
am i going to loose the car?
what is the norm?

Nody

My google fu failed me looking up the usual sources; hence I can only take a guess but I'd be inclined to say that yes, you'd lose all company benefits such as company car, phone etc. for the duration of your maternity leave as these are working tools and you're not working.

Mrs OBumble

TBH, I'm horrified that you're even asking ... but maybe I'm out of line!

Newaglish

Your company car is essentially part of your pay. If you're not being paid I'd say it's very unlikely that they will allow you to continue to use the car. Surely if you're not working as a sales rep, you won't need a company vehicle?

Arddon

JustMary wrote: »

TBH, I'm horrified that you're even asking ... but maybe I'm out of line!

What horrifies you JustMary?!

And in terms of "not working in sales so wont need a company car"

While I agree I am not working whilst off on maternity leave, I am still a member of the companies sales team...and I got rid of a personal car (for which they gave me mileage allowance) when they decided to get company cars...i have paid benefit in kind for this privilage since I got it and now I will have nothing to show for all that BIK...

ANXIOUS

Arddon wrote: »

.i have paid benefit in kind for this privilage since I got it and now I will have nothing to show for all that BIK...

You won't be paying bik when you don't have the car. You pay bik when you have use of the car, henece that's what you have to show for it.

Eoin

I think you need to ask your employer.

Nody

Arddon wrote: »

What horrifies you JustMary?!

And in terms of "not working in sales so wont need a company car"

While I agree I am not working whilst off on maternity leave, I am still a member of the companies sales team...and I got rid of a personal car (for which they gave me mileage allowance) when they decided to get company cars...i have paid benefit in kind for this privilage since I got it and now I will have nothing to show for all that BIK...

As a sidenote; if you do keep the car you'd most likely still need to keep on paying the BIK for the duration but with out the benefit of the salary to help pay for it...

Mrs OBumble

Company cars are for company business, and how they are used reflects on the company's reputation.

Obviously you have some deal that lets you use it for private stuff too - hence the BIK tax which covered the benefit you've had from it up 'til now.

I'd suggest that when you discuss this with your manager, you should also ask about the acceptability of fitting the with a child seat once you're back at work.

And give some serious thought to how you will manage to keep it clean to company standards if you've got a kid riding in it.

Arddon

Thanks for the comments folks.
I'll update you with the outcome when it becomes clear what is happening...probably next week

Dinkie

My company let you keep the car / phone, etc for maternity leave. However BIK on the car obviously goes up as your not doing the mileage.