Buying (and negotiating) at the end of a lease

[shapedraw]

Hi all,

My first post here!

I have a lease car through Alphabet (via the NHS scheme) and it’s ending soon. I would like to buy and keep my car and Alphabet have given me a quote.

Has anyone had any experience of, or does anyone know whether Alphabet are likely to budge on their offer price? Do leasing companies generally negotiate at all?

Can anyone offer me any tips? I’ve had a quick search but couldn’t see much about Alphabet.

Thanks in advance.

[zoolando]

I returned an VW Golf Alphabet lease around 6 months through an NHS scheme.

At the time there did not appear to be an avenue to negotiate the price as all communication went through NHS Fleet Solutions. Alphabet would not deal with me directly.

Having said that the quote was pretty competitive, around £1500 under retail price. I decided not to purchase and it appeared for auction at the Leeds branch of BCA a week later. Buying the car at auction might be another solution? Although this might not get you a better price!

Out of interest, how competitive is your quote?

[shapedraw]

It’s Alphabet that have contacted me directly, tho the BCA brand also appears on the letter. This is the first time i’ve really been in contact with them or seen their brand name in the 3 years. It’s mostly been through the CPCdrive website and their various contact numbers.

The quote looks pretty reasonable, to be fair. It’s just tiny bit over Parkers’ “private good” estimate.

[zoolando]

I would personally say take it as it sounds like a good deal, much less risky than a private purchase since you know the service history and previous owner/user!

I guess you could attempt a negotiation based upon mileage (if you are under) but they are likely to have already factored that into their quote.