In the UK, car leasing accounted for 7% of the new car retail market in 2015, according to data from the Finance and Leasing Association (FLA). This market share is forecast to increase in 2016 and 2017 and expected to hit 10% of all car retail sales in the UK by 2020. The market seems to be moving the way of Europe ( In Germany, private leasing accounts for 20% of the market, while the figure is even higher in France (21.7%) and the US (where 34% of people now lease their vehicles. In states such as New York and Michigan have found this figure is above 50%) ContractandLeasing.com, 2016
Benefit Overview
My Benefits World have been working with our lease partners to provide employees with access to some great rates when leasing a car. The advantages of leasing a car include lower monthly payments, you can drive a better/safer car for less money with more predictable running costs as the vehicle is nearly always under factory warranty.
Your employee can choose to take the lease over a 2, 3 4 or 5 year period. There is a wide range of models to choose from leading manufacturers such as: Alfa Romeo, Audi, BMW, Citroen, DS, Fiat, Ford, Hyundai, Jaguar, Mercedes, Mini, Nissan, Peugeot, Seat, Skoda, Smart, Toyota, Vauxhall, Volkswagen and Volvo
This benefit is open to all employees, there are no restrictions on getting a quotation but the employee would be subject to a credit check if they wish to take out a lease agreement.
How is it paid for ?
The lease agreement is between the employee and the lease company. There is no involvement whatsoever for the employer, your business is simply facilitating access to some great lease rates.
Why consider this benefit ?
From April 2017 the tax savings on the traditional employee car salary sacrifice schemes were removed from all cars except ultra low emission and electric vehicles, In addition, many companies we have worked with over the years said they would love to put a car salary sacrifice scheme in place (a “wow” factor benefit) but the financial risk to the company of an employee leaving and/or having the value of the vehicle sat on their balance sheet was simply too great. It is possible to mitigate through insurance this risk but it tends to push the monthly payments up and reduce savings. The advantage with this lease scheme is you can offer your employees access to a top quality car scheme without any risks to the business. It doesn’t cost your business a penny but adds great additional kudos to your benefits package.