Hi. I have a van which I own and it is coming towards the end of its life. Does anyone lease a van? Are you allowed to fix the water tank to the base? Which companies allow this?
Depends on what you mean by leasing.
If you are talking Contract Hire then this would need further investigation. A large number of companies run fleets of vans, most of which are on Contract Hire. The Council van my brother in law drives is a rental with plumbing shelves and racks fitted.
As the van will never become yours on Contract Hire, most finance houses require the van to be returned to original, less fair wear and tear.
Most of these finance houses will have a book that will tell you exactly what they require of you during the hire period, as the value of the vehicle will depend on the condition they receive it back at the contract's end.
We would insist that any holes drilled in the van floor would be repaired. So the fitters who drilled the van floor would ensure the holes were treated to prevent rust. If the items were removed at the end of the contract it was okay for us to fit blank rubber grommets into the hole that was left. With WFP I would remove the plylined wood floor, paint it with protectacote, store the plylining and refit it at the end of the contract.
The other form of lease is a lease purchase or personal purchase lease. In these cases the van's resale value at the end of the lease is your risk, so if you treat it poorly, it will cost you in the end. With these type of leases, you own the vehicle at the end of the contract provided all the conditions are met.
As with anything, you need to communicate with the finance house BEFORE you sign anything so you know exactly what they expect of you. If they don't agree to what you want, then move on to a finance house that will.