To expect to keep my full car allowance even though I'm part time?

[PoppyBlunt]

I know most companies pro rata car allowance for PT employees.

I went PT (4 days a week) 4 years ago. When I did so my car allowance remained in full and was not pro rata.

I have recently been promoted and with the grade change have an increased car allowance. The grade I was at has an allowance of 5.5k pa and the new grade allowance is 7.5k pa.

HR have taken an age to send my contract and I was paid before receiving it. I was paid the 7k car allowance in full rather than pro rata.

My contract (yet to sign) is saying it is pro rata i.e. 6k.

AIBU to push back on my contract and state there is a precedent (as I was paid it in full for 4 years) and also that I've been paid for the full amount with my new package?

Anyone got any HR insight on this?

I’m assuming you need a car for work hence car allowance. The car needs to be paid for regardless of 4 or 5 days. You should get the full amount. YANBU.

You want to use a clerical mistake as the basis of stating there is a precedent? I would not expect that to be successful. It’s good to raise the question but it would not seem fair on those who are full time so I would expect it to be pro ragas down in accordance with policies (maybe check those?)

I’ve never seen it applied like this example in all the companies I have worked in and been eligible for a company car, always same full car or cash allowance regardless of hours worked.

If you accept they made a mistake why on earth do you think they’ll go back to continuing to make it now it’s been corrected?

‘push back’ 🥱

It's stuff like this that makes the Tories' "militant unions are part of the Anti Growth Coalition" narrative so despicable.

If you recognise they probably made an error and overpaid your car allowance in your PT role, surely you see it reasonable they correct the error in your new post.

Entitled thread of the year is now closed.

We have a winner right here.

I’m assuming you need a car for work hence car allowance. The car needs to be paid for regardless of 4 or 5 days. You should get the full amount. YANBU

It is not a car they are paying for. It is the car ALLOWANCE ie costs towards petrol, tyres, consumables etc

OP uses their car less due to working less
Working less = driving less
driving less = less wear and tear
less wear and tear = less costs

Part time workers keep full car allowance in my organisation. And my previous 2 companies have had the same policy for workers doing more than 60% FTE.

So no, YANBU

Car allowance pro rata’d here.

I think it’s fair (and was part time). I wanted the allowance not a car so not sure how it works for cars - I think our allowance amount is just paid straight to a leasing company so it might also be pro rata’d. I think there’s more argument there if you would have to top up.

that said nothing wrong with negotiating. Like it or not they have set a precedent by paying you full car allowance up to now. I think you can argue that if they want to pro rata your car allowance now they should put more on your basic salary on this occasion- they might at least meet you half way.

In my company someone pushed back against this as she said it discriminated against part time workers who were more likely to be female. They caved in and she gets full car allowance. As a previous person said, she either needs a car for work or she doesn’t 🤷‍♀️

Only on MN would people say be grateful for any scrap you’re given!

no one would say that to men and thats why women are always lacking.

push back OP.

when i went from full time to part time they tried the same with me, However I pushed back with HR and said i’d rather have a company car then and then finally gave the full allowance as it was cheaper than a car for them.

I saw so many male colleagues get away with shit because they were asking for it, if you don’t ask you don’t get!

Car allowance doesn’t mean you need a car allowance for your job. I have had car allowances and have never needed a car for my job. It is often a way to increase salary but make a percentage non pensionable.

Anyway OP, I think you might as well ask and indeed I think you can refer back to always having the full allowance previously. But in terms of you wanting an HR perspective, no it doesn’t set a “precedent” that they have to stick to. They and you can negotiate as you both see fit.

*car allowance doesn’t mean you need a car for your job

that should have said

Of course you push back and they’ll say ok! I’ve never heard of a pro-rate car allowance.

yi aren’t ‘lucky’ yoir working for money and benefits which you’ll earn and these are benefits. End of.

It's not unusual for companies to use promotions and role changes as an opportunity to rectify contractual anomalies or update terms and conditions of employment. The reality is that you've been offered a new role on new terms and it's up to you whether you accept the role on those terms.

You can try and negotiate a FT car allowance but I suspect it will be refused on the basis that it would put you on better benefits than others on the same grade.

Ultimately it will be a take it or leave it situation.

If you need a full car for a role and can't drive half a car down the motorway to meet clients then demand the full allowance. Get contractual certainty so there's no request to refund several years' of £1.5k? later. Negotiation is 'don't ask, don't get' not 'oooh think yourself lucky you're not slapped in the face., Know your place, woman.'

Have a mindset of - shall I email HR using your half a laptop. Or call them using half a work mobile.

Good luck.

@LimboLass I assume you're low paid if you accept what they 'give you' for your time, labour, IP, and skills?

What a crazy attitude. I'm genuinely quite shocked. What's entitled about negotiating the best deal you can for your services.

I think you certainly have a legitimate reason to push back; a precedent has been created for them paying you a full car allowance on a pro rated salary for four years. It’s not like they did it for two months and then rectified.

However, they’re not necessarily obliged to continue to give you the full allowance. So you might have to accept it.

It’s certainly worth a conversation though.

We can only have pro-rata car allowance if we are part time, not the car for this kind of issue.

But I don't need my car for work, it's a bit of an old policy and new people to my grade no longer get the car or allowance

I’m really surprised so many of you think it’s reasonable to expect benefits to be paid in full when working a PT contract. It’s a car ‘allowance’ that’s being offered, not a car itself. I’ve never known the car allowance not to be pro rated and I’ve been part time for 15 years.

Does everyone expect to receive full time employer pension contributions too?