Our FAQs

How long have you been in business?

We have been in business since 1986 and have remained a family company with real family values at heart.

Who can lease a car?

Companies and individuals can lease a car or a van. Many of our customers are businesses that lease cars for their employees as it is a simple and cost effective way to keep their team on the road without tying up huge chunks of capital. Private individuals or business owners can also lease a car, although that may be a different sort of lease to make sure it is tax efficient for you.

What else do I need to pay for?

You need to pay for fuel and the insurance of the vehicle. It must be comprehensively insured in time for delivery just the same way as if you were the owner.

You also need to pay for all the servicing and maintenance unless it’s already included in the contract. (This is an option in most cases.)

Any damage will also be your responsibility, in just the same way as if you owned the car or van, if you break a light glass or pick up a nail in a tyre for example, the cost to repair or replace would be down to you – even on a fully maintained contract.

What else do I need to pay for?

Yes. Most of the cars and vans we lease are new, and carry the full manufacturer’s warranty. Occasionally they are pre-registered so they may have been registered, say, two or three months before you take delivery to get a special price but they will still carry the balance of the manufactures warranty, which in most cases is three years.

Do you have to have a business to lease a car?

No, but a lot of businesses do lease vehicles for their staff. They lease vans to do a job of work, but you can lease a car as a private individual. So, no, you don’t have to have a business to take advantage of the benefits of leasing

What happens if I go over the Contract mileage?

It can be tricky to predict your mileage and it is great if you can be as accurate as possible. However it is hard to get it right, and life changes! To help with this Leasing Contracts have an excess mileage charge which is payable at the end of the term should you go over the Contract mileage. This is a pence-per-mile amount, which varies depending on the supplier of the lease and if maintenance is included or not. It is not designed to be penal, but rather to give you some flexibility.

We think it’s better for you to slightly underestimate your mileage rather than overestimate it, knowing you have the flexibility to pay for any excess mileage at the end of the contract. After all, it is difficult to predict and you don’t want to be paying for something that you might not use.

Can I take my car on holiday?

Yes, of course. ☺ Whether that’s in the UK or further afield. If you need to take the car abroad, you must have the permission of the leasing company. A call to your customer helpline will tell you exactly what you have to do, and what paperwork you may have to take with you. Be sure to allow sufficient time to assemble all the documents you need to take and check the requirements of the countries you will be driving in as they do vary. If you are booking on a ferry make sure that you know which car you’re going to take, and how big it is.

Where do I get it serviced?

Some of the leasing providers have a service line to call and they arrange the maintenance for you with their appointed garages. Others insist that you go to the Franchise Dealer. Your contract will explain exactly where you need to go in order to have the car serviced.

Do I have to clean my car?

Yes, of course. The leasing company expect you to look after the car in exactly the same way as if you were the owner of the vehicle. They want you to love and cherish it so on return it is in very good condition and is worth the maximum amount when they come to sell it at the end of the contract. That’s how they are able to produce very competitive rates. If you send the car back dirty and neglected there may be refurbishment charges to pay, and that can be expensive.

Can I change my car sooner than the end of the contract?

It’s important to understand that the agreements are not designed to be ended early. Much like a mobile phone contract, if you decide you want to upgrade or end the contract early there will be a termination charge. So if you are an impulsive sort of person that likes to pop into the garage and change their car on a whim, Contract Hire and Leasing may not be right for you. If you take out a two or three-year contract, then the book’s balance at the end of the period and although you can come out early there will be costs attached to this.

Can I keep the car longer than the contract?

That will depend on who is providing the Contract. Some of our suppliers will allow formal extensions from 3 to 12 months depending on the original term, the mileage and the maintenance budget. Others are very flexible and amenable and will just keep on taking your money all the time you’re happy to pay it. That gives you great flexibility – however it is not guaranteed and they can ask for the car to be returned at any time once the contract has reached the end. However, other lenders are quite insistent that the car goes back at the end of the period that you signed up for.

This is a little bit of a moving target and can change so we are not able to guarantee what will happen at the end when you take out a contract.

Can I get to choose the specification of the vehicle?

Yes – although it is worth remembering that the most competitively priced leasing deals are the offers where we have a fixed batch of cars or vans allocated to a particular leasing supplier.

Occasionally we have offers on cars that are in the pipeline and we can change the spec – but in the main it’s usually a batch of vehicles that are in stock and they are fixed colour and specification.

However if you have your heart set on a particular vehicle, we can order it from the factory for you so that you can have exactly the dream car your heart desires. Our prices will still be competitive, and we always broker the deal – but it may not be quite such good value financially as taking advantage of one of our offers.

What’s the best deal this week?

That can change rapidly as Car & Van Leasing is a very competitive and fast moving market. You can join our VIP list HERE to receive the latest offers ahead of them being posted on the website. The offers are changing rapidly all the time so it is also worth keeping an eye on Lesley’s List on our website.

What is the best car to lease for high mileage?

That depends! It depends on your needs and preferences. How many miles you drive, the work you do, what you have to carry and how many passengers will travel in the vehicle. Cars are very good these days, and so I wouldn’t say that there’s a better car than another for doing high mileage. Comfort levels are very important especially for high mileage drivers, so I suggest that you have a look around, see what sort of size will meet your needs and think about things like seating position , whether you like to be upright and see over all the hedgerows or whether you prefer to be more laid back, and try some cars. It is really important if you are doing high mileage that you have good lumbar support, the car is comfortable and your visibility is good, and look at things like cruise control and all the techy gadgets that will really help to keep you safe while you’re driving.

Who owns the car?

The car is owned by the leasing company. You don’t own it and you never own it. It is rather like a long-term rental.

Should I run a diesel car if I am doing high mileage?

The answer to that is probably still yes, although there are moves against diesel vehicles because of air quality and their emissions, but that has to be your personal choice. Diesel is still very economical, and although there is a lot of bad press about it being a mucky fuel the latest euro six engines are as clean as they can be, and improving all the time. So whist there is negativity about diesel, I doubt that we will see diesel disappearing anytime soon because at the moment we don’t have the infrastructure in place to offer suitable replacements. However that will come – changes are afoot, so watch this space. It is also worth keeping an eye on the press and be aware of driving into towns where you may be made very unwelcome and penalized in the car park.

What is the best van to lease?

This is another one of those it depends questions! As it does depend on the job that has got to be done, what you’re carrying, how heavy it is, who’s driving it, and how many miles it s going to do. There is a vast range of vans on the market. We can supply all of them at very good rates from tried & trusted suppliers. So, do your research, have a good look online, decide what size you need to do the job, what fuel it should be – petrol, diesel, or electric, and go from there.

What is a V5?

V5C, registration document or the log book, is a document that registers a vehicle with the driver and the Vehicle Licensing Agency ( DVLA ) in the UK. It records the details of manufacture and keeps the record of the registered keeper, previous owners and a host of other information about the car or van.

Who keeps the V5 if the vehicle is on a lease?

The Finance Company are the legal owners of the vehicle on the V5 and they will retain the document. You may need to request a copy if you are planning to take the car abroad.

Can I use the car as a taxi?

No. Vehicles for taxi services are provided by special suppliers, and generally speaking the leasing companies that we work with don’t supply cars for private hire and taxi work.

Is it better to lease a car or buy one?

There is no right or wrong answer to this question. It depends what you want, how many miles a year you are going to do, whether you want to own a vehicle at the end, how long you want to keep it, whether you want the flexibility of ownership. There’s an awful lot involved in answering that question, and it will be different for different people with different needs. We will debate that more fully in a separate article.

Can my “significant other half ” drive my car?

Yes, providing the driver has the correct licence and is insured. The leasing companies don’t really mind who drives the vehicle but they are insistent the vehicle is comprehensively insured at all times. So that’s more of an insurance issue.

Why does my Finance Lease agreement show an excess mileage charge when I am responsible for the disposal of the vehicle?

Finance Lease contracts contain excess mileage rates for certain circumstances i.e where a vehicle has to be repossessed and the vehicle is over mileage.

Providing the contract terms are met, there will be no excess mileage charges.

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