A BLACKBURN vehicle hire firm has been named as one of the country's most successful in an industry list.

MNH Vehicle Contracts, Haydock House, Pleckgate Road, is listed at number 45 in Fleet News Magazine's analysis of the top 50 contract hire and leasing companies.

MNH is alongside firms like BMW Financial Services and Lloyds TSB Autoklease, and puts its success down to growing over the past 12 months.

Mark Hindle, joint managing director, who founded the firm, said: "We are delighted that once again we have grown in stature.

"Recognition such as this shows that we are now competing with the really big names. Some of the companies we are rubbing shoulders with are incredible, but I think we have earned our right to be there."

Recently MNH has seen its fleet size grow by 10 per cent. Fleet News is one of the most respected magazines in the trade, and covers the whole of Europe.

John Maslen, supplements and events editor of the publication, said: "Our findings provide a clear signal of just how tough the market has been in the past year.

"Not only is the level of competition more intense than ever, fleet decision-makers are also using their expertise and negotiating experience to drive incredibly hard bargains that really squeeze profits."

Despite these conditions, MNH managed to enjoy further growth and saw its fleet size increase by almost 10 per cent.

The Fleet News reports a particularly productive year for MNH, which supported ex-World Champion Colin McRae in a Rally Masters event and saw a team of employees pick up Honda's Powerhouse award in off-road driving.