Help: taking company car abroad

[tentative3]

Not sure if anyone will be able to help but the situation is this:

OH has a company car which he is entitled to use for personal use too. He gets unlimited petrol. He is taxed on this as a benefit in kind.

Earlier this year we booked a trip which involves taking the car to Europe. OH's line manager had said this would be fine. Now the company has said he cannot do this (the leasing company is fine with it). Long shot perhaps but does anyone know the legalities of the company restricting the usage of the car when he's paying tax on it as a benefit?

It will come down to what is in the contract. Mine says I can take it abroad for up to 60 days a year, for example.

I assume he wouldn't be able to use the petrol card abroad and would have to pay his own way for that.

Petrol is fine, we'd fill up before leaving plus it's a hybrid but anything above that we'd be happy to pay for ourselves. He's away with work at the moment but I'll get him to check the contract, thanks. Any views on what happens if it's not mentioned either way?

Do the company also pay the insurance? Perhaps they don't have European cover for it. Same for breakdown.

If it's a company car, he is not the legal owner, so it's a difficult one. The company still set the parameters so the contract is all encompassing. Tax liability is a red herring as whilst he is paying tax for the benefit for its use in his personal time, it's granted with conditions.

Thanks for the advice, I'll get him to check the contract but I suspect it'll mean an expensive hire car instead.

What reason have they given so far for not allowing him to take it abroad?

Just a blank refusal at the moment. He's asked for clarification but no response, and knowing the company they will just ignore. It's just frustrating as the trip was planned around being able to take a car and we specifically checked with his manager. Hey ho.