Specialist Vehicle Contract Hire/Leasing
Framework Description
ESPO's Specialist Vehicle Contract Hire/Leasing framework (reference 218_26) covers medium to long-term contract hire and leasing of specialist vehicles, with or without maintenance, from refuse collection vehicles and sweepers to gritters, buses and tippers. Split into nine lots, it was let under the Procurement Act 2023 as a standard framework rather than a DPS. It runs from 20 July 2026 to 19 July 2030, with no extension option.
Context & Use Case
Local authorities and other public fleet operators use 218_26 to lease refuse, street cleansing, winter maintenance and passenger transport vehicles rather than buy them, spreading cost and often including maintenance. A council can lease a single gritter or a mixed fleet. Awards can be made directly or after a further competitive selection process.
Scope of Services
Lot 1: Refuse collection vehicles (RCVs) Lots 2–4: Sweepers; winter maintenance vehicles; gully emptiers Lot 5: Buses and minibuses Lots 6–7: Tippers; loaders Lot 8: Other specialist vehicles Lot 9: Mixed specialist vehicle fleet
Lots
Lot 1 Refuse Collection Vehicles (RCV); Lot 2 Sweepers; Lot 3 Winter Maintenance Vehicles; Lot 4 Gully Emptiers; Lot 5 Buses and Minibuses; Lot 6 Tippers; Lot 7 Loaders; Lot 8 Other Specialist Vehicles (not covered above); Lot 9 Mixed Specialist Vehicle Fleet
Who Can Apply
Suits specialist vehicle leasing and contract hire companies, including those that maintain vehicles. 218_26 began in July 2026 and applications are closed, so new lessors cannot join until ESPO re-tenders, likely around 19 July 2030.
Buyer Benefits
Leasing lets councils renew refuse and highways fleets without large capital outlay, and maintenance-inclusive deals pass downtime risk to the supplier. The mixed fleet lot means a buyer can lease several vehicle types from one provider, reducing contract management and keeping servicing standards consistent across the fleet.
Next Steps
The framework runs to 19 July 2030, so the main opportunities for the next few years are call-offs. Appointed lessors should prepare whole-life cost models, maintenance and uptime commitments and replacement vehicle arrangements. Others should check the 218_26 page on espo.org and focus on standalone council fleet tenders until the re-tender.
How Athena Can Help
Fleet leasing competitions are won on whole-life cost and uptime guarantees. Athena's bid management and pricing support builds cost models and competitor scoring for 218_26 call-offs, so your lease rates win and still return a margin.
If you missed this framework, our tender support for councils can help you win fleet tenders councils run themselves, and our framework planning service puts the 2030 re-tender and other vehicle frameworks into a pipeline plan.
