A lot can change in your life over the next three or four years so picking a company car which is versatile enough to suit the demands of everyday life is very important.
Estate cars offer a good mix of practicality and space for usually only a small premium over hatchback equivalants.
But with so much choice available, picking the right car which combines low monthly tax bills with good equipment levels, while still performing well on the road, is a hard balance to get just right.
To help we’ve picked our favourites, all of which cost less than £75 a month in tax for a 20 percent tax payer, are equipped with kit essential for company car drivers and have enough power to make pulling out of a busy junction in rush hour or accelerating up a slip road no bother at all.
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Practical and comfortable, the Skoda Octavia estate also offers excellent value for money and is the cheapest of our list to tax too.
The car is bigger but lighter than the model it replaced and offers plenty of boot space and more room inside for passengers than ever before.
Skoda’s ultra-efficient GreenLine III diesel engine not only offers the best CO2 emissions of the group but also keeps running costs low with an official fuel economy figure of 88mpg.
And the cherry on top is the Business SE trim aimed specifically at company car drivers with touchscreen sat-nav, DAB radio, Bluetooth, dual zone air-con and cruise control.
Figures at a glance
Engine and trim: 1.6TDI GreenLine III Business SE
P11d price: £20,900
CO2 emissions: 85g/km
BIK Tax band 2014/15: 14
Monthly tax costs:*£48.77
MPG (official combined): 88.3mpg
Power: 108bhp
Boot space: 610 litres
To read our full review of the Skoda Octavia Estate – click here
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New for 2014, the latest generation Peugeot 308 SW is larger and lighter than the model it replaces and is based on the award-winning 308 hatchback.
Only a fraction more expensive than the Octavia estate above, the 308 SW offers a slightly more powerful engine over the Skoda for the same CO2 emissions and impressive fuel economy figures.
Boot space is excellent and choosing the Active trim also means your car will come very well equipped indeed. Dual-zone climate control, touchscreen sat-nav, rear parking sensors, cruise control, DAB Radio, Bluetooth and 16-inch alloy wheels are among the highlights from the standard spec list.
Figures at a glance
Engine and trim: 1.6e-HDI Active
P11d price: £21,140
CO2 emissions: 85g/km
BIK Tax band 2014/15: 14
Monthly tax costs: *£49.33
MPG (official combined): 88mpg
Power: 118bhp
Boot space: 660 litres
To read our full review of the Peugeot 308 SW – click here
Volkswagen Golf Estate Bluemotion
The seventh-generation Volkswagen Golf estate is one of the best all-round cars you can buy. Being 307mm longer than its hatchback sibling and 28mm longer than the car it replaces means more available space for the people inside the car.
The boot is pretty big too, although not as practically designed as some other cars on this list and running costs will be low thanks to the ultra-frugal Bluemotion diesel engine which emits just 87g/km of CO2 emissions and has an official fuel consumption figure of 85.6mpg.
Standard kit is a little on the sparse side though. Sat-nav and parking sensors are key items missing from the standard specification list.
Figures at a glance
Engine and trim: 1.6 TDI Bluemotion
P11d price: £22,080
CO2 emissions: 87g/km
BIK Tax band 2014/15: 14
Monthly tax costs:*£51.52
MPG (official combined): 85.6mpg
Power: 108bhp
Boot space: 605 litres
To read our full review of the Volkswagen Golf Estate – click here
If you’ve had your eye on the new Honda Civic as your next company car but need more boot space then the Honda Civic Tourer could just be the car you are looking for.
Despite being one of the lowest and most compact estates in the segment and being just 235mm longer than the Civic hatch, the new Tourer offers an impressive 624-litres of boot space – only the Peugeot 308 SW betters it in our list.
As well as some good fuel economy figures and low CO2 emissions, the new Honda Civic Tourer also comes pretty well equipped, especially in SE Plus-T trim which includes sat-nav, 16-inch alloy wheels, dual-zone climate control, cruise control, rear-view parking camera, Bluetooth and parking sensors as standard. No DAB radio though.
Figures at a glance
Engine and trim: 1.6 i-DTEC SE Plus-T
P11d price: £23,450
CO2 emissions: 99g/km
BIK Tax band 2014/15: 15
Monthly tax costs:*£58.63
MPG (official combined): 74mpg
Power: 118bhp
Boot space: 624 litres
To read our full review of the Honda Civic Tourer – click here
Arguably the best looking car on our list, the Mazda 6 has been a huge success for the Japanese manufacturer when the current generation was launched a couple of years ago.
The most powerful on offer here, the Mazda 6 estate has the smallest boot of the bunch too with only 506 litres, though it’s still very roomy inside.
SE-Nav trim offers a good combination of equipment for the price with air-con, Bluetooth, cruise control, sat-nav and USB connection as standard.
Figures at a glance
Engine and trim: 2.2d SkyActiv SE-Nav
P11d price: £23,440
CO2 emissions: 110g/km
BIK Tax band 2014/15: 18
Monthly tax costs:*£70.32
MPG (official combined): 67.3mpg
Power: 147bhp
Boot space: 506 litres
To read our full review of the Mazda 6 Estate – click here
Need more information on company car tax?
If you’re struggling to decide which company car to go for and need to know how much tax each car is going to cost you, the Parkers Company Car Tax Calculator is the ideal place to find out – click here
* Monthly tax costs are based on a 20 percent tax payer