January is often a financial reset for small businesses. After the expense-heavy end of the year, cash flow can feel tight, fuel bills remain stubbornly high, and every outgoing comes under closer scrutiny. For businesses that rely on cars, vans, or light commercial vehicles, driving and fuel costs are often one of the easiest places to make meaningful savings if you know where to look.
With 2026 underway, now is a smart time to review how your business manages fuel, vehicles, and driving behaviour. Small changes made early in the year can deliver savings month after month, without disrupting day-to-day operations.
What this guide will help you do:
Before we dive in, here’s a simple checklist outlining exactly what this blog covers. If you’re looking to cut costs this January, these are the areas worth reviewing:
Identify hidden driving costs that quietly inflate monthly fuel spend.
Improve fuel management without adding admin or complexity.
Learn practical ways to cut fuel costs across cars and vans.
Reduce unnecessary mileage and inefficient journeys.
Encourage more cost-effective driving habits across your team.
Make smarter vehicle and fuel choices for long-term savings.
Each of the tips below is designed to be realistic for small businesses, no specialist systems, no significant investment, just straightforward actions that can reduce fuel spend and improve efficiency.
1. Review your current fuel spend
Before you can start cutting driving costs, you need a clear picture of where your money is going. Many small businesses underestimate their actual fuel spend because costs are spread across multiple cards, receipts, or expense claims.
Take time to review the last three to six months of fuel spending. Look at the total cost, average price paid per litre, and how much fuel each vehicle uses. This baseline makes it far easier to measure improvements and spot areas where costs are creeping up unnecessarily.
Clear visibility is the foundation of effective fuel management.
2. Cut unnecessary journeys
One of the simplest ways to cut fuel costs is to drive less. Short, avoidable journeys, especially in winter, use more fuel and increase vehicle wear.
Encourage route planning, job clustering, and realistic scheduling. Combining multiple visits into a single journey can significantly reduce mileage over the course of a month. Even small reductions add up quickly when applied across a fleet.
For office-based staff, consider whether some meetings can be held virtually. Every avoided trip is money saved.
3. Encourage smarter driving habits
Driving style directly affects fuel consumption. Harsh acceleration, speeding, and excessive idling all increase fuel use.
Simple guidance can make a difference:
Accelerate smoothly and anticipate traffic.
Maintain steady speeds where possible.
Avoid unnecessary idling.
Change gears earlier in manual vehicles.
These changes don’t slow drivers down in any meaningful way, but they can reduce fuel use by up to 10–15% over time.
4. Keep vehicles properly maintained
Poor vehicle maintenance is a common cause of higher fuel consumption. Under-inflated tyres, dirty air filters, and overdue servicing all force engines to work harder.
Regular checks on tyre pressure, oil levels, and engine health can help keep fuel efficiency where it should be. January is an ideal time to schedule servicing and inspections, particularly for vehicles that may have been underused or driven on short winter trips.
Well-maintained vehicles cost less to run and are far less likely to break down.
5. Choose fuel stations wisely
Not all fuel prices are equal. Drivers often default to familiar stations, even if they’re consistently more expensive.
Planning routes around competitively priced stations or using tools that show average fuel prices can help reduce the price paid per litre. Over a whole year, paying even a few pence less per litre can result in substantial savings. Having a fuel card can help lower the average cost per fill-up.
This is where good fuel management practices start to make a noticeable difference.
6. Use a fuel card to control spending
For many small businesses, fuel cards are among the most effective tools for reducing fuel costs. They simplify fuel payments, reduce admin, and provide transparent reporting on fuel usage.
With all fuel spending in one place, it’s easier to track consumption, identify inefficiencies, and spot unusual activity. Many fuel cards also give access to fixed or discounted pump prices, helping protect your business from price volatility.
Better visibility leads to better decisions and lower costs.
7. Reduce admin time linked to fuel claims
Time spent processing receipts and expense claims has a real cost, even if it doesn’t show up directly on a fuel bill.
Streamlining fuel management reduces paperwork, cuts errors, and frees up time for more valuable work. Fewer receipts, fewer reimbursements, and clearer records also make VAT reclaim simpler and more accurate. This is where fuel cards come in, helping reduce admin and monitor expenses.
Cutting driving costs isn’t just about fuel; it’s also about efficiency behind the scenes.
8. Match vehicles to the job
Running larger or less efficient vehicles increases fuel consumption.
Review whether each vehicle is the right size and type for its role. A van that regularly runs half empty or a car with poor fuel economy may be costing more than it needs to. Downsizing or switching to more efficient models can deliver long-term fuel savings without compromising capability.
This is especially relevant when vehicles are due for replacement.
9. Reduce cold-start fuel waste
January driving often involves short trips and cold engines, which are among the least efficient combinations.
Where possible, plan routes to allow engines to warm up properly and avoid repeated short journeys. Even small changes, such as starting the day with the most extended trip first, can help reduce fuel consumption over time.
It’s a subtle yet effective way to cut fuel costs during the winter months.
10. Review fuel management regularly
Fuel prices, mileage, and business needs change throughout the year. What worked last year may not be the most cost-effective approach in 2026.
Set time aside each quarter to review fuel spend, mileage, and driving patterns. Regular reviews help ensure savings are maintained and prevent bad habits from creeping back in.
Consistent fuel management is far more effective than one-off cost-cutting exercises.
Final thoughts
January is the ideal moment to reset and reassess. By focusing on cutting driving costs early in the year, small businesses can protect margins, improve efficiency, and reduce financial pressure long before fuel bills become a problem.
Whether it’s improving driving habits, tightening fuel management, or using more innovative tools to control spend, knowing how to cut fuel costs doesn’t require drastic change; it just requires informed, practical decisions that deliver steady savings throughout 2026. Using our savings calculator can help with forecasting future savings. For more information, contact us now.
