Car Leasing Options. Good idea?

Miss_J

I have had a salary sacrifice car through my job in the NHS for the last 8 years. This has worked brilliantly for me, Allowing me to drive a reliable car without any worry.

I'm moving on to a new job with a different employer on a fixed term contract so I will no longer have the benefit of a salary sacrifice car and I need to look at new options.

Do people think that private leasing through a leasing company or directly through the manufacturer are worthwhile? How easy are these to obtain? I have a "good" credit rating, not excellent but also not poor.

Previously I funded my cars through personal loans but would really prefer to have everything covered without too much worry.

wgl2014

Personal lease deals are common and don't appear to be too difficult to be accepted for. There are also some cracking deals available if you are flexible on what car you get.

I found the What Car webpage a good way of comparing deals.

However..... New cars are generally reliable and if you look at some brands will come with a 5 or 7 year warranty. You could buy a nearly new car via a 5yr personal loan and be covered for all that time (and own something at the end of the term)
I suggest doing the sums based on what you want and the deals that are available and seeing how much difference in £ it makes!

Goudy

You could enter into a discounted PCP purchase deal before you leave the NHS to tide you over the next three or four years.
All you need is your current NHS assignment number and perhaps a scan of your ID badge.

There are several discount schemes open to you if you haven't yet finished in the NHS. (or you could still chance your arm if you've left and have the details they need!)

FCA, which include Fiat, Alfa, Abarth, Chrysler and Jeep offer two different discounts for NHS staff, Privilege and Affinity for HP or PCP.
You could take a PCP for three years with a fairly large deposit contribution, money off and usually a lower APR than normal retail customers.

I have had a few cars this way, including my current one and generally save around 20% or more over normal retail deals, if fact I share an office and everyone in it has a car on Privilege at the moment, a couple of them also have husbands and wives with them too.

You need to ask the sales team member for the discount, they change quarterly, though details are on the internet on a police association website but they are usually out of date a little.

Renault do a similar scheme through a dealer network called Griffin, though the last time I checked they effectively took back the deposit contribution with a higher APR.

Another choice would be Motorsource group (search the internet).
They offer similar NHS discounted schemes as well as other public service employees on a selection of manufacturers models, some are better deals than others, so it worth being a little more open to different models, there were some massive savings on some run out models like the Toyota Auris hatchback Hybrid earlier this year.

We have one car at the moment on a PCP through them and saved around £4000 (20%) and a colleague bought one outright and saved a little more, we also shared some customer referral bonus which was nice.
Their customer service is great and the cars are supplied to you via the local dealer, usually under a corporate sale, so there's often some bonus things like full tank of fuel and free mats etc thrown in.

These schemes are usually open to family members as well, so if you're related to someone in the NHS, you can often still qualify.

Some people don't like PCP deals, but they are very similar to leasing but with a few more options at the end and usually with a cheaper monthly payment.

Pick the right model with the right trim and colour and don't fool yourself on the expected mileage, look after it well and you can often beat the GFV and take a chunk over to you next.
You can't do this with a straight lease.

I believe all these schemes offer different finance packages, so you could HP them or just buy them outright at the discounted price.

Miss_J

Thank you both so much. I had no idea that other leading options were available to NHS workers other than salary sacrifice schemes.

I am staying in the NHS but moving to another trust on a fixed rate contract hence why my current lease will end.

You both given me lots to consider so thank you so much.

Jodiddy

I have recently taken a job working in the community within the NHS. It appeared my cars wear and tear was not really covered by the mileage they paid me so I applied for an NHS lease car.. I got one and it costs me around 175 pounds a month. I usually get about 30 to 40 pounds a month mileage 11p a mile. However as I have just found out- the HMRC have sent me a letter saying they have changed my tax code to collect 1305 pounds before April. I have had the car since May and although its a lease car through work they are estimating this is what I will have to pay.

So I will be paying 200 a month extra in tax until April for a car I thought was a good deal.

Is this right. Could anyone shed any light on this subject as I truly know nothing about it. My colleagues said I should pay an extra 50/60 pounds monthly in tax.

AdrianC

Contact your HR people.

bigadaj

Jodiddy wrote: »

I have recently taken a job working in the community within the NHS. It appeared my cars wear and tear was not really covered by the mileage they paid me so I applied for an NHS lease car.. I got one and it costs me around 175 pounds a month. I usually get about 30 to 40 pounds a month mileage 11p a mile. However as I have just found out- the HMRC have sent me a letter saying they have changed my tax code to collect 1305 pounds before April. I have had the car since May and although its a lease car through work they are estimating this is what I will have to pay.

So I will be paying 200 a month extra in tax until April for a car I thought was a good deal.

Is this right. Could anyone shed any light on this subject as I truly know nothing about it. My colleagues said I should pay an extra 50/60 pounds monthly in tax.

If you post the make and model of the car and whether you pay tax at standard or higher rate someone can work out how much you'll have to pay.

What has probably happened this year is that you/ your employer hasn't notified Hmrc so they're taking the full years tax out of the remaining few months, so you're naturally paying more. Next year the monthly amount will reduce because you will be paying iver the full twelve months rather than the remaining five or six.

You should really have researched the relative costs before taking on the lease, it may be better or worse than running your own car depending on your useage.

parking_question_chap

Define "worthwhile".

Ectophile

Bear in mind that personal leases usually have a fixed term. Once you have signed the lease, it's very difficult (or expensive) to get out of it if your circumstances change.