Ending a lease early

[david106]

I'm 12 months into a 2 year contract hire with leaseplan I'm not sure I can justify paying another year on a car I'm hardly using
£230 a month
I want a van for a business plan so don't really want two monthly payments
I haven't contacted leaseplan yet so not sure how much it's going to cost me to get out of it
I've had the car a year Skoda karoq nice car but only done just over 3k
Any thoughts or options welcome

[2 sMoKiN bArReLs]

Have you read the terms and conditions? The answer will probably be there.

[anonymous-user]

Check your contract for the early termination charges. It’s likely to be at least 55% of remaining rentals. Other option is to adjust your mileage quota. You’ll hopefully see a reduction in the monthly cost.

[Wacky Racer]

Usually you have to hand the car back and pay half of the remaining payments, but the detail will be in your documents.

I handed my 36 month Mazda 6 back two months early and paid one months "rent".

Remember you will be liable for any scratches, dents etc in a thorough inspection, not just a five minute look round, but you can dispute their report if you don't think it is "fair".

[david106]

It's my third lease so aware of damage etc an have been lucky with no charges.
My mileage limit is 8k a year so I could try and reduce it but I got car mainly for long trips up north 3 or 4 times a year plus weekends away which hasn't happened since covid came along .

[GreatGranny]

Read your T&Cs or contact Leaseplan.

No one on here can say for sure what the penalties will be, only speculate.

I finished a lease early and had to pay 55% of remaining payments.

[MattyD803]

I've just finished the natural course of a 2 year deal with Alphabet on a MINI Cooper S JCW, which went back in December.

However, WFH was 'enforced' for me from September at my place of work, so I no longer had a requirement for what was almost solely a commuting tool.

I requested a 'early termination' statement from Alphabet back in September, expecting as mentioned above, a quote around 55% of remaining rentals. This would have worked really well for me, seeing as a £300 "Inspection" service was due in November.

Unfortunately, after nearly 2 weeks of waiting, they came back with the final statement. It was 100% of the final rentals, even though the vehicle only sat at 12k of the 20k allowance I had paid for up to that point. I assumed it was a mistake, queried this but they were having none of it. Very unaccommodating IMO, but I suppose it is hidden in the T&Cs somewhere, and that's life. Needless to say I kept hold of the vehicle for the duration but it would certainly lead me to checking small print in future and/or avoiding Alphabet.

Therefore, from my experience, just be warned that they may offer you zero movement in 'getting out'.....especially if they don't feel the vehicle will give them the return they expect if they take it back early.

(For Reference, my mini hasn't moved an inch from the BCA auction house parking area since it was driven away on 07/12/20 and it was immaculate in everyway, hence "auction ready" - so possibly an indication that the market for them is flat and they didn't want it back!)

[Mark V GTD]

Certainly the 55% rule applies to contracts with VWFS (VW, Audi, Seat , Skoda etc). I handed an A4 back three months early this year. As the other posted mentioned, the sting was then out as a £300 service that was coming up within a few weeks didn't have to be done so it effectively only cost £100 or so to end it early.