Settle a lease argument please

[DSLiverpool]

Otherwise, very savvy mate is totally wrong on this but needs to see it from someone else.

You lease a car for 4 years.

The manufacturer's warranty is 3 years

The engine/gearbox/something big breaks after year 3

Possibly some goodwill from the maker but not 100%

He thinks the lease company is liable for the repair bill; I say no chance you are, except in very rare pre-agreed circumstances.

Who is right, please chaps,

[Latifisnc]

I always thought it would be the lease company's responsibility if no user error and you've serviced and used it as designed. Not an expert on these things though.

[paradigital]

I assumed the same. Leases tend to be all inclusive don’t they? Tyres, servicing, etc. Assuming you haven’t been negligent and have stuck to the service schedule, why shouldn’t this be the lease companies issue?

[wyson]

On my lease, the T’s and C’s explicitly state I am responsible for upkeep, maintenance and repair of the vehicle.

Edited by wyson on Tuesday 26th August 19:15

[raspy]

This is from 2022. I know I’ll be extending the warranty should I extend my lease beyond the 3 year factory warranty.

Drivers who have their car’s lease extended are facing hefty repair bills in the event of a fault, because the length of the warranty cover is not being increased at the same time.

“A shortage of new cars has meant lease extensions are being widely offered with no changes to monthly payments or terms.

In cases where the lease is extended beyond the car’s warranty period, however, the warranty is not automatically extended.

This means that, should a fault occur, the customer is left having to fork out for a repair on a car they don’t even own.”

https://www.autoexpress.co.uk/news/358839/extendin...

[Turtle Shed]

Brother has a lease car, it went wrong recently whilst still under warranty. (Ford Focus)

Lease company told him that anything not covered by the warranty would be his responsibility to pay for because he didn't take out a maintenance contract.

Luckily the problem was just a faulty battery (car 23 months old which is poor by any standards) and that was covered.

[BlueJ]

If you lease something and it breaks, you expect the lease company to sort it out (most likely provide an alternative whilst the leased vehicle / asset is being repaired). For example if you hired a campervan and it broke down, you wouldn’t expect to be liable.

If you HP or PCP something the responsibility probably shifts to the user.

Being responsible for maintaining a vehicle, or liable for a non-warranty failure, are not the same thing. It all comes down to the terms of the lease.

[raspy]

This is from 2022. I know I’ll be extending the warranty should I extend my lease beyond the 3 year factory warranty.

Drivers who have their car’s lease extended are facing hefty repair bills in the event of a fault, because the length of the warranty cover is not being increased at the same time.

“A shortage of new cars has meant lease extensions are being widely offered with no changes to monthly payments or terms.

In cases where the lease is extended beyond the car’s warranty period, however, the warranty is not automatically extended.

This means that, should a fault occur, the customer is left having to fork out for a repair on a car they don’t even own.”

https://www.autoexpress.co.uk/news/358839/extendin...

[IJWS15]

You can reduce the lease price by opting out of maintenance, tyres etc but the risk passes to the lessee.

[DSLiverpool]

IJWS15 said:

You can reduce the lease price by opting out of maintenance, tyres etc but the risk passes to the lessee.

That’s not the same as the engine blowing up out of warranty

[ZX10R NIN]

If the manufacturers warranty is for three years & you have a 4 year lease YOU (unless you have extended the warranty) are responsible for any repairs.

It says this in the T&C's tell your friend to have a good look at his T&C's it'll be in there.

[DSLiverpool]

ZX10R NIN said:

If the manufacturers warranty is for three years & you have a 4 year lease YOU (unless you have extended the warranty) are responsible for any repairs.

It says this in the T&C's tell your friend to have a good look at his T&C's it'll be in there.

Agreed and agreed.

[uktrailmonster]

I would have thought this was something to check under the lease terms. An out of warranty component failure is effectively a “maintenance” issue. I certainly wouldn’t want a lease car which wasn’t under full factory warranty or a maintenance plan covering anything which broke.

[uktrailmonster]

DSLiverpool said:

IJWS15 said:

You can reduce the lease price by opting out of maintenance, tyres etc but the risk passes to the lessee.

That’s not the same as the engine blowing up out of warranty

An engine blowing up out of warranty is just an expensive maintenance issue unless you can prove that the manufacturer is negligent.

[Z4MCSL]

As it's a contract unless there is some sort of consumer protection law / case law around this then it will be whatever it says in the contract

[uktrailmonster]

Z4MCSL said:

As it's a contract unless there is some sort of consumer protection law / case law around this then it will be whatever it says in the contract

Exactly. The main thing is to make sure you don’t expose yourself to any undue risk in a car you don’t own.

[JQ]

DSLiverpool said:

Otherwise, very savvy mate is totally wrong on this but needs to see it from someone else.

You lease a car for 4 years.

The manufacturer's warranty is 3 years

The engine/gearbox/something big breaks after year 3

Possibly some goodwill from the maker but not 100%

He thinks the lease company is liable for the repair bill; I say no chance you are, except in very rare pre-agreed circumstances.

Who is right, please chaps,

We’ve leased several cars and maintenance has always been our responsibility, hence we’ve only ever done leases for less than the manufacturers warranty.

Car leasing is just a finance structure, it’s not like renting a house.

The above assumes they’re not paying for a maintenance plan - we’ve never done one of those so never looked at the t&c’s. But if they haven’t then you are correct.

[ZX10R NIN]

Even if they've paid for a maintenance plan that has nothing to do with the warranty.

[ScoobyChris]

Asked this question when I was looking at our work salary sacrifice scheme and was told by the lease company that they would be responsible for resolving any issues with the car (inside or outside the warranty period), provided it’s been looked after and maintained as per the schedule.

No idea how that would work in practice though!

Chris

[uktrailmonster]

ZX10R NIN said:

Even if they've paid for a maintenance plan that has nothing to do with the warranty.

You would have to look at what the maintenance plan actually covered. I would guess they are pretty limited to routine service items and consumables.