Leasing has a reputation for being complicated, and the industry has largely earned it. So here’s the whole thing, start to finish: what happens when you lease a car with us, what you pay and when, and what happens on the day it goes back. Our leases run from one month to eighteen, so nothing here involves signing up for three years to find out how it works.
Most of the people reading this are doing it for a business — a new starter who needs a car before their company vehicle arrives, a contractor between placements, a finance director who would rather not tie capital up in a depreciating asset for four years. Prices are quoted excluding VAT for that reason.
That’s how car leases work here, whether you take one month or eighteen. The term changes; the process doesn’t.
You’re not buying the car, and you’re not working towards owning it. You’re paying to use it — and underneath that, you’re paying for the value it loses while you’ve got it. That’s the part nobody explains.
A car worth £30,000 today might be worth £24,000 in a year. Your monthly covers that gap and the cost of running it, not the £30,000. It’s why a lease costs what it costs, and why the car dropping in value is our problem rather than yours. Nothing to sell at the end, nothing to haggle over, no watching the used market and hoping.
Three things at the start:
Then one thing every month: the same amount, by Direct Debit, on the same date, for the length of your term. It doesn’t move.
There’s no delivery charge, no collection charge, and nothing further to pay at the end if the car comes back as it should.
Every lease has a mileage allowance, set per month and agreed before you order. Along with the car and the term, it’s one of the three things that decides your monthly price — more miles, higher monthly, because more miles means the car is worth less when it comes back.
Cars on terms up to nine months come with a choice of 1,000 or 2,000 miles a month. Twelve and eighteen month agreements start at 833 a month, which is 10,000 a year, with higher allowances available. Vans get 2,000.
Go over your allowance and you pay for the extra miles only, at a fixed rate set when you order: 65p a mile plus VAT on one and three month agreements, 40p plus VAT from six months upward. Vans are 40p plus VAT. There’s nothing to discover at the end.
Two things worth knowing. If you think you’ll cover more ground, say so before you order — building the miles into your monthly is cheaper than paying for them afterwards. And you can raise your allowance part-way through the term with a phone call; you just can’t lower it.
Servicing and maintenance, road tax, breakdown cover, the manufacturer’s warranty, and free delivery and collection — all in the monthly price. Punctures aren’t covered, and we don’t supply a car while yours is in for work, though the manufacturer usually will for anything under warranty. Each term page sets out the detail for that length of lease.
Insurance you arrange yourself, and we’d rather you did — a policy priced to cover every driver would cost you more than one priced around you. It needs to be comprehensive, and it needs to start the day we deliver rather than the day after. Your insurer will want to know the car is registered to us and on lease to you. We’ll set out exactly what’s needed well before delivery.
Servicing works the same way round: we pay for it and we book it, at an approved service centre, but you have to tell us it’s due. Every modern dashboard counts down in days or miles to the next service — when yours starts counting, ring us and we’ll arrange it around you. We can’t see your mileage from here, and a car left more than 500 miles past a service is out of warranty, which is an expensive place to be for both of us. It’s one phone call, and it’s the only bit of looking after the car that stays with you.
Charges you pick up while driving stay with you — congestion and clean air zones, tolls, parking and fines. Because the car is registered to us, the notice comes to us first. Where the issuer allows it we name you as the driver so it transfers and you can appeal it yourself; where they don’t, we pay it to stop it escalating and recharge you. Either way there’s a £40 admin fee plus VAT.
Taking the car abroad is fine, with a bit of notice. Tell us where you’re going, when you’re leaving and when you’re back, and we’ll sort the paperwork — including the VE103B, the document that proves you’re allowed to take a hired vehicle out of the country. Ask before you book the crossing rather than the week before you sail.
Plans change, so a lease should bend with them. Need the car longer? Tell us before your term’s up and where possible we’ll extend it — same car, same terms, nothing restarting from scratch. Want something different? Swap at the end of your term or talk to us mid-term and we’ll do what we can.
Ending early is the one to think about before you sign rather than after. The rentals left on your agreement are still due — end a six month lease in month four and months five and six are payable. It’s the main reason to pick your term honestly rather than optimistically. If you’re genuinely not sure how long you need a car, a rolling monthly does the job without the question.
We come to you — home or work, anywhere on the British mainland outside the Highlands, free.
The car is looked over against BVRLA fair wear and tear standards, which allow for a car that’s been driven rather than one kept under a sheet. Light scuffs and stone chips are expected. A cracked screen or a kerbed alloy isn’t.
If the car is within those standards and within your mileage, your deposit comes back in full. If it isn’t, we’ll tell you what’s coming off and why before anything is deducted. No handover fee, no end-of-contract admin charge, no surprises in the post.
Six lengths, one process. The longer the term, the lower the monthly tends to be.
Still weighing it up? The short term lease offers page compares every term side by side. Vans work the same way, on their own terms.
How does car leasing work?
You pay a fixed amount each month to use a car that isn’t yours to keep, then hand it back at the end. Ours run from one to eighteen months. Servicing, road tax, breakdown cover and delivery are in the monthly price; you arrange insurance and fuel.
How does short term car leasing work?
The same as any lease, over months rather than years. Pick a car and a term from one to eighteen months, apply online, and we deliver free to your door in around 10 to 14 days — anywhere in mainland Britain, excluding the Highlands. When the term’s up we collect it, and you extend, swap or stop.
Do I own the car at the end of a car lease?
No — you don’t own the car at the end of a lease, and there’s no option to buy it, no balloon payment, nothing that gets you there. That’s the point of leasing rather than financing: you use the car, we carry what it’s worth at the end.
How is my monthly car lease price worked out?
Your monthly car lease price is worked out from three things: the car, how long you keep it, and how many miles you need. Longer terms and lower mileage bring the monthly down. There’s nothing to negotiate — the price on the vehicle page is the price.
What’s the difference between a car lease and a car subscription?
Very little, and the two words get used interchangeably. Subscription usually describes a shorter, rolling arrangement with more bundled into the price; lease usually describes a fixed term. Ours run from a rolling month to eighteen, with maintenance, road tax and breakdown included — which is why you’ll see both words used about us.
Is leasing a car the same as hiring one?
No — a car lease isn’t the same as car hire. Daily hire is priced by the day and gets expensive quickly across weeks. A short term lease is priced by the month, gets you a newer car for less, and has servicing and road tax built in. Hire is the right tool for a few days; from a month upwards, leasing is.
How does car lease mileage work?
You agree an allowance before you order, set per month. Go over it and you pay a fixed rate for the extra miles only, at a rate shown before you order rather than after. You can increase your allowance during the term but not reduce it. The allowance and rate differ by term and are published on every term page.
Can I end a short term car lease early?
You can end a short term car lease early, but the rentals left on the agreement are still due. If you’re not certain how long you need the car, start on a rolling monthly instead — it does the same job without the commitment.
What happens if my lease car needs servicing or repairs?
Tell us and we’ll arrange it — servicing and maintenance are already in your monthly price, and we book the work at an approved service centre. The one thing we need from you is a call when the car says a service is due, because we can’t see your mileage from here. Punctures aren’t covered, and we don’t supply a replacement while yours is in, though the manufacturer usually will for anything under warranty.
Is there anything to pay at the end of a car lease?
Not if the car comes back within your mileage and within fair wear and tear — your deposit is returned in full. If there’s excess mileage or damage beyond fair wear and tear, it comes off the deposit, and we’ll tell you what and why before it does.
Something we haven’t covered? There’s a fuller list on our car lease FAQs page.
Whether you require a car or van for one or twelve months, Drive Subscribe provide an alternative to traditional car ownership, offering you the convenience to access a vehicle without the long-term commitment.
