Lease car can't be collected til weeks after lease ends
Discussion
Hello all,
I've got one of those Citroen C1s on lease that you see advertised for 10p/month or thereabouts. It's due up at the end of the week after two years (excellent little car, by the way).
My gripe is with the company that comes to collect said car - basically they can't collect it til the beginning of next month. Obviously I won't be paying for this excess time. They told me that if I liked I could simply drop it off at a Citroen dealer, which is just as handy for me as having it collected. Not true - the local Citroen dealer has flat refused to take it.
This leaves me in something of a quandry: the insurance runs out on the day the lease ends. I don't want to have to reinsure it. As far as I can see it's not my car, the lease has ended and it's no longer my concern. Why should I insure what is not my property?
Any advice here on what I should do? It's annoying as the car is 100% unmarked, freshly valeted, waxed etc and it's now going to end up sat outside for almost a month under trees until they turn up and inspect it.
I've got one of those Citroen C1s on lease that you see advertised for 10p/month or thereabouts. It's due up at the end of the week after two years (excellent little car, by the way).
My gripe is with the company that comes to collect said car - basically they can't collect it til the beginning of next month. Obviously I won't be paying for this excess time. They told me that if I liked I could simply drop it off at a Citroen dealer, which is just as handy for me as having it collected. Not true - the local Citroen dealer has flat refused to take it.
This leaves me in something of a quandry: the insurance runs out on the day the lease ends. I don't want to have to reinsure it. As far as I can see it's not my car, the lease has ended and it's no longer my concern. Why should I insure what is not my property?
Any advice here on what I should do? It's annoying as the car is 100% unmarked, freshly valeted, waxed etc and it's now going to end up sat outside for almost a month under trees until they turn up and inspect it.
It's not the tax etc; it's the insurance. The lease ends on the 13th. The can't collect the car til the 1st.
They expect the car to be insured BY ME for the intervening period, because THEY can't collect it.
Just had them on the phone - a pair of the most ineffectual, useless, thick, stonewalling bints I've ever come across.
They expect the car to be insured BY ME for the intervening period, because THEY can't collect it.
Just had them on the phone - a pair of the most ineffectual, useless, thick, stonewalling bints I've ever come across.
Dog Star said:
kapiteinlangzaam said:
Drive it to local Citroen dealer, leave in visitor parking and post keys back to lease company by recorded mail along with a covering letter.
Job jobbed.
Citroen Dealer in Leeds have refused point-blank to accept the car.Job jobbed.
I had similar situation a few years ago with a company lease car. i told them if they didn't collect it within three days I would charge them £20 per day storage. It was gone within 2 days.
ETA: Take plenty of time and date stamped pictures (or video) before its collected so you can prove that it was in excellent order when it left you as the leasing co tried to charge me for damage done after it was collected. Nice try but no cigar!
ETA: Take plenty of time and date stamped pictures (or video) before its collected so you can prove that it was in excellent order when it left you as the leasing co tried to charge me for damage done after it was collected. Nice try but no cigar!
kapiteinlangzaam said:
Drive it to local Citroen dealer, leave in visitor parking and post keys back to lease company by recorded mail along with a covering letter.
Job jobbed.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ +1Job jobbed.
Park it round the back with all the other cars that will be there for servicing etc....leaving a note in the windscreen of the lease companies name.
Happy days!
Dog Star,
If I were you I would ring up the finance company (Citroen Contract Motoring perchance?) and ask them to advise which local dealer you can leave the car with, along with a contact name and number for you to speak with at the dealer. It's not unusual for collections to take a bit of time - Lex for example require 5 working days notice of collection - but 3 weeks is taking the piss.
Under the terms of the agreement you are required to insure the car until the vehicle is no longer in your possession, I'm sure you are aware of this already.
If I were you I would ring up the finance company (Citroen Contract Motoring perchance?) and ask them to advise which local dealer you can leave the car with, along with a contact name and number for you to speak with at the dealer. It's not unusual for collections to take a bit of time - Lex for example require 5 working days notice of collection - but 3 weeks is taking the piss.
Under the terms of the agreement you are required to insure the car until the vehicle is no longer in your possession, I'm sure you are aware of this already.
Thanks for the ideas and suggestion rfoster et al.
Got it sorted - a very helpful and professional chap from another Citroen dealer called me back and couldn't have been more helpful - he's all ok to have it dropped off and inspected there. Like a breath of fresh air in comparison to the others I've had to deal with.
Got it sorted - a very helpful and professional chap from another Citroen dealer called me back and couldn't have been more helpful - he's all ok to have it dropped off and inspected there. Like a breath of fresh air in comparison to the others I've had to deal with.
Can you see if you can extend the insurance for a coupe of weeks and then drive the car lease free? Or, find out how much it costs to change the car details part way through an insurance year and take out a 12 month policy. Delay your replacement car until this one is picked up and if it costs you £50 to transfer your insurance you are still quids in.
Dog Star said:
Not true - the local Citroen dealer has flat refused to take it.
So the dealership have someone they know might be looking for a new car, might like citroens and is probably looking for a NEW car and they piss them off by not being willing to find somewhere to keep a car for a few days? Odd...I am in the same boat with Citroen. I was offered the chance of taking it to a Citroen Garage. However, as they are rubbish I can see there being problems. So I wrote to Citroen and told them that I will be charging them £50 a day for parking over the agreement. They wrote me a letter back just highlighting that I need to look after it until they pick it up and nothing about paying for my parking rate.
If they don't pay it I will take them to small claims as it is a right pain for me that they are picking it up late. But what I love is if returned it late to them they would charge me £255.
If they don't pay it I will take them to small claims as it is a right pain for me that they are picking it up late. But what I love is if returned it late to them they would charge me £255.
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