Car leasing.

[Midnight]

Morning all,

To save me a lot of time, does this work, is it worth it, what sort of deposit and payments, I appreciate it ranges from car to car but just after a idea.

Looking to get car for my better half so would have to fit 2 adults, 2 kids and kit in it.

Is leasing the way to go? What schemes are out there? Are there different companies who do it and who do you recommend.

Thanks

Midnight...

 

[Hacker Khan]

I've just come out of a company car scheme and will now lease a car for 3 years, probably with full maintenance. I'm in a relatively lucky position in that I'll get some money instead of a company car so I just pay for the lease with that. I did a bit of internet searching and these guys were the cheapest for the car I wanted. https://leasecar.uk/ I think carwow are also quite competitive, but you can't get the quotes straight away with them. https://www.carwow.co.uk/car-leasing

 

[Lord Tyrion]

I did it for 20 odd years, have just recently bought my last lease car as it stopped making sense tax wise, company car driver.

It can still make sense though. Things to look out for:

They try to reduce the monthly price by increasing the deposit. We always went 3 months up front, they will start with 6. Just be aware, adapt to what suits you not them.

The monthly price is heavily dependent on mileage. The more you do, the more you pay. Don't over estimate your mileage, although don't go too far the other way as you will pay a pence per mile amount at the end for any miles over your allowance

Be flexible on brand and model. Some car mfrs will push models out into the market and so you get great deals on them. I had 2 Volvos that should have been way out of my range as the deals were so good.

Go on somewhere like Lease Loco, use the filters to refine the cars that suit you. See what comes up, you may surprise yourself. https://www.leaseloco.com/

Also do not be afraid to go into a dealers and ask for pricing in this fashion as well. They will often be near enough to the internet sites and at that point I would rather use them, build up a relationship re servicing etc. The internet sites show you which cars are being promoted, which brand to head towards.

Leasing can be loads of fun and stress free.

 

[Jamesbrown]

Qashqai 310 a month 4 months down. 3 year term. 10k mileage a year on leaseloco.

 

[Dando]

I’m on my 2nd leased Tuscan and wouldn’t get a car any other way now.
I use nationwide vehicle contracts and they’ve been brilliant.
I’ve still got 2 years left on my deal and fancy a truck next

 

[Deleted Member 1156]

Look at the total cost when comparing different companies ie. all monthly payments plus up front cost plus admin fee. As mentioned try to slightly underestimate your mileage, no point overpaying because you don't get it back.

 

[Oxfordcomma]

I've been looking myself in the same way for the first time over the last few weeks, I hadn't intended to lease but a PCP deal fell through (seems Audi have no A4/A5 cars whatsoever until April!)

Agree with what the others have said, there are loads and loads of providers out there and they all appear to have varying deals so use a comparison site like Carwow. As well as clicking through from there on the best deal for the car I was searching for, what I've done is also then allow it to lead me to the providers' websites and spend a while searching through their offers/deals/in-stock cars. As Lord Tyrion said, being flexible on which car you are after can lead to some great deals.

I did find that it's worth a visit to the manufacturer's website for any candidate cars to get an idea on trim levels. A lot of offers seem to be on the basic models. And if timing matters to you then be careful on specific cars and their in-stock status, the leasing guys might be ordering direct from dealers for models not in stock and then you're back to my situation with Audi. Also be wary of headline prices, they'll always be based on 6x or 9x monthly payment up front, a 48 month deal, and an annual mileage of 5000 miles. I've been looking for a stopgap car with 3 months up front then a 24 month deal and the prices are wildly different. 36 months is the sweet spot, as far as I can tell.

I've had most success so far with leasecar.uk and nationwide that have both already been mentioned. Have spent a while on the phone with both and they were very friendly and helpful.

 

[KenL]

Qashqai 310 a month 4 months down. 3 year term. 10k mileage a year on leaseloco.

That sounds a lot. £12 400 for 3 years.
Would a pcp with a price sourced through the likes of Carwow with a deposit contribution from Nissan been cheaper?

 

[sunshine]

I've just come out of a company car scheme and will now lease a car for 3 years, probably with full maintenance. I'm in a relatively lucky position in that I'll get some money instead of a company car so I just pay for the lease with that. I did a bit of internet searching and these guys were the cheapest for the car I wanted. https://leasecar.uk/ I think carwow are also quite competitive, but you can't get the quotes straight away with them. https://www.carwow.co.uk/car-leasing

What's your rationale for leaving company car scheme? I had always imagined that company scheme would get better rates than a personal lease due to economies of scale - but is this not true?

 

[Jamesbrown]

What's your rationale for leaving company car scheme? I had always imagined that company scheme would get better rates than a personal lease due to economies of scale - but is this not true?

I think it’s because if he was on salary sacrifice scheme the offerings are slim unless you want an EV or low emission hybrid due to BIK tax changes and I’ll assume he’s now given a car allowance instead giving wider better choice. But I’m interested in the response too.

I’ve just entered my works scheme because I wanted an EV so worked out a great deal for me with 0 tax and just add fuel (electric).

 

[Lord Tyrion]

I think it’s because if he was on salary sacrifice scheme the offerings are slim unless you want an EV or low emission hybrid due to BIK tax changes and I’ll assume he’s now given a car allowance instead giving wider better choice. But I’m interested in the response too.

I’ve just entered my works scheme because I wanted an EV so worked out a great deal for me with 0 tax and just add fuel (electric).

The way the govt have worked the BIK system is killing diesels, nearly killing petrol and not great for non plug in hybrids. All fair people may say but not so much if the alternatives do not exist.

In your case, an EV, you have scored big time but your employer will be paying way more for the lease than they would have done previously for a diesel.

If someone is taking a car allowance then the logic move is still largely diesel or petrol depending on the mileage you are doing.

Which car did you go for? What sort of mileage do you so?

 

[BrianM]

Leasing is the way forward in my opinion, check pistonheads lease deal thread ?
My Volkswagen Touareg was 16k over 3 years for a 55k car.
After 3 years it would only be worth between 18 and 23k, so you aren’t hit with the depreciation.
Leaseloco is a good comparison website for leasing.

 

[Hacker Khan]

What's your rationale for leaving company car scheme? I had always imagined that company scheme would get better rates than a personal lease due to economies of scale - but is this not true?

It just did not add up financially. The taxation for company cars strongly pushes you towards hybrids and electric vehicles. And on my allowance the range of hybrids I could get was limited. So the combination of my allowance, the rules my company imposes when you get a company car and wages basically meant I could get a much better quality of car if I did it privately and took the money instead, than if I stayed in the company scheme. As if you go private you do not need to worry about company car tax.

Also my company makes everyone get a quote for 30,000 miles a year if you are getting a company car, hence the cost of leasing a car on that basis is expensive. Where as privately I only needed a max of 12,500 a year. And in some cases that meant the quote for an identical car was nearly 200 quid a month cheaper if I did it on 12,500 including maintenance than 30,000 as my company makes me do. Yes you need to add on VAT for private leasing but still, it is a big difference.

I am sure big companies can get a lower rate for the same vehicle than a private buyer will and if it was a just the case of finding the cheapest rate for say an identical Audi A4 on the same mileage and lease length. But the difference is dwarfed by other considerations such as tax and mileage in my case.

But it is horses for courses as my wife is in a company car scheme and has a nice BMW hybrid, as financially that was best for her and not taking the money instead to fund her own.

 

[Jamesbrown]

The way the govt have worked the BIK system is killing diesels, nearly killing petrol and not great for non plug in hybrids. All fair people may say but not so much if the alternatives do not exist.

In your case, an EV, you have scored big time but your employer will be paying way more for the lease than they would have done previously for a diesel.

If someone is taking a car allowance then the logic move is still largely diesel or petrol depending on the mileage you are doing.

Which car did you go for? What sort of mileage do you so?

I went for the e208 with the gt spec. I wouldn’t pick a Peugeot but over two years was a good deal along with free 50kw charging at work and in two years keeps me moving with the technology and not get too broody for a new car whereas my 1st choice 330e would push me to three years financially and a £100 more a month.
I do a 16 mile round trip to work with a mixture of roads. Any long distances mrs has a Golf.

 

[PIng]

Recently leased a Hyunai Ioniq electric via the work's scheme, costs me about £215 a month which covers insurance and servicing etc, and only about a penny a mile to run (my home charger uses the night-time tariff). Saving about £200 a month in fuel so it pays for itself. Best car I've ever had, loads of bells and whistles, goes like lightening, virtually silent and nearly 200 miles range.

Only drawbacks are a small boot due to the batteries (I can just about get clubs and trolley in) and the pain of having to use public chargers on long trips (they really need to make all chargers accept debit cards - having to load an app for each company is a major ballache).

Overall, I'm absolutely delighted with it.