[Stoots]

Dazmond (or anyone else)

With regards a finance lease on van.

Whats the crack with the balloon payment? ive been told you can sell to a third party then buy it back?
does this have to be a commercial third party do you know?

also do you know how you put it through the books for tax?

also did you go with vanarama? how were they ?

any regrets?

just weighing up some options

cheers

[britishwill]

Hi Adam

I got a VW van from Vanarama, it took about 6 months to get as I wanted additions like two sliding doors etc. All I can say is that Vanarama were excellent and I would get another van from them.
You will get an invoice every month from them with the amount of VAT you can claim back.
At the end of the term you can either hand the van back to them/buy back and either keep the van and pay the balloon or sell it back to them/third party and use the difference in money to put down on another vehicle as long as its worth more. I think it has to be sold to a commercial company so it includes the VAT, but not totally certain.

[dazmond]

Vanarama were great....

I get an invoice every month for tax/expenses purposes ....

As regards balloon payment.i can either sell it to anyone and pay off the balloon,hand it back and get another lease contract or pay off the balloon myself and keep the van....

[dazmond]

I had a brand new van on my drive within 4 weeks from my first contact with vanarama.....

[dazmond]

As for regrets......the only regret I have is that I didn't do it sooner instead of messing around with older vans that had been thrashed....

Incidentally I put up some of my prices to cover the £200 a month rental.....i just see it as a business expense now.....

[dazmond]

Just a word of warning Adam.....they charge you VAT on your road fund licence.which I didn't know beforehand.as it's a business finance lease so the road tax  attracts VAT but I'm not VAT registered so have to take the hit myself...

Also you need a good credit history to even get considered for vehicle leasing....luckily mine is well above average.....

[Stoots]

I've already been accepted for finance daz with them. I'm stalling a bit as the van I wanted they didn't have in the colour I wanted and I also want to take a look at a few vans in person before pulling the trigger.

Im also just trying to find out the tax implications etc before I go ahead.
Do you know if you can claim the payments as a rental like you would aa contract hire or does it have to go down as a capital expenditure and depreciated? (I do my own books)

I would rather HP a new van but don't want to stump up a deposit.

The balloon doesn't bother me as long as I have some options with it.

Regarding the tax, with a finance lease don't you get the tax included  only for the first year?

I have a van already that's decent but I want something for the family and big enough to run a 2 man system if needed.

I'm after a lwb vivaro double cab.

[Stoots]

Also am I right in thinking you can do what you want with it In terms of drilling holes in it, fibreglassing it out, signwriting etc?

[John Mart]

Why not buy on HP instead?

[Stoots]

Why not buy on HP instead?

Don't want to fork out a deposit and the monthly payments are usually higher (for an equivalent van)

Not decided yet mind, not in a rush.

[John Mart]

Why not buy on HP instead?

Don't want to fork out a deposit and the monthly payments are usually higher (for an equivalent van)

Not decided yet mind, not in a rush.

It’s usually just the VAT and yes payments are higher but you will have an asset at the end. I recently “bought” a vehicle on PCP which is pretty similar, but I wouldn’t do it again.

[Stoots]

Yes i realise that i wont have an asset  (unless i can pay the balloon)

The van i want is 17k plus VAT, been told i need about 5k deposit then 300 a month for 5 years

with a lease its about 275 per month then 8k balloon

the HP worked out at 24k total
the Finance lease 25k

all inc VAT

not much in it, although i agree HP would be better, i may get a tax advantage going with a lease (i need to look into it)

I could stump up a deposit, but would rather not tbh, i  would rather invest that money into growth or even sock it away for the balloon.

I dont know lol, i wont get one till June anyway as im away 2 weeks in May, better not spend all my holiday money lol

[dazmond]

Sorry Adam I've posted my reply in the "new tax year" thread by mistake !!!! 

[Stoots]

Sorry Adam I've posted my reply in the "new tax year" thread by mistake !!!! 

Yeh I know, I didn't have the heart to tell you...

Cheers 

[Spruce]

The taxman changed the rules on claiming capital equipment depreciation in 2011 (if I remember correctly.) At one time you could either write off the full van cost in that tax year or apply a depreciation percentage to the value each year. Now you can only claim the full van value in the tax year you bought it.

A  lease will allow you to claim the monthly repayments as an expense so spreading the 'depreciation' over the period you lease the van. Of course, if you decide to pay the final payment and the van put into your name, then that final payment amount has to be claimed in that tax year in full.

You take on the risk when you lease a vehicle even if the vehicle is registered in the Finance House's name.  So you can do what you like with it but the risk is that if you hand the van back in leiu of the final payment, the finance house will add additional rectification charges to your bill. So its in your interests to look after your van.

Different finance houses will have different rules as to what you can and can't do. In our business we would generally be advised to remove the ply flooring which would be put back when you hand the van back. Any holes drilled in the floor should be filled with blank rubber grommets and that should keep most finance houses happy provided you haven't made a botch of the floor. I would have painted the bare flooring with Protectakote and rubber mats which will protect against scratches and rust.

If you decide to hand the van back either get the van valleted or do a good job yourself. Pay more attention to the cabin and cargo area as it shows you have cared for the van. T cut of the body is also a good idea and a bit of tyre paint goes a long way. Its all about first impressions.
.
 

[Dazzler3370]

Just to put my opinion across.
Just handed my van back to Vanarama after 4 years. Gave me wrong date so I got over charged for end of contract.
Had it in a body shop for all minor scratches and dents. I've got OCD and I really looked after it by the way
Final bill £541
I would never lease again. I've just bought a new van. If you've got good credit history I'd get a loan and purchase the newest van you can afford.
 

[Plankton]

I wouldn't recommend them as they messed me about to the point I put a compliant in and the manager never bothered his arse to reply, nor would he come to the phone! Seen some reviews saying much the same.
As for the contract running over it's down to the finance company what the cost per month is and nothing to do with the broker, it should be around the same price as your contract hire. Make sure you go round the vehicle with the collection guy and get a copy of the paper work, they tried to charge me for a missing key which I think was around £180 but I got it refunded.

[Tom-01]

Just to put my opinion across.
Just handed my van back to Vanarama after 4 years. Gave me wrong date so I got over charged for end of contract.
Had it in a body shop for all minor scratches and dents. I've got OCD and I really looked after it by the way
Final bill £541
I would never lease again. I've just bought a new van. If you've got good credit history I'd get a loan and purchase the newest van you can afford.

That's what I was worried about when I looked into it. In the end I bought a VW t6 LWB Highline. Paid the VAT and little extra  upfront (£5k), which I've claimed back.

The price of the van was £20k via a broker, VW wanted £24k! Over 5 years total it will cost will be £25k, so £5k in interest.

So it costs me £5k per year, which is fine considering what it earns. And at the end of the term I have a van which will still be worth a good price.

IMO buying is better than leasing.

[John Mart]

Just to put my opinion across.
Just handed my van back to Vanarama after 4 years. Gave me wrong date so I got over charged for end of contract.
Had it in a body shop for all minor scratches and dents. I've got OCD and I really looked after it by the way
Final bill £541
I would never lease again. I've just bought a new van. If you've got good credit history I'd get a loan and purchase the newest van you can afford.

That's what I was worried about when I looked into it. In the end I bought a VW t6 LWB Highline. Paid the VAT and little extra  upfront (£5k), which I've claimed back.

The price of the van was £20k via a broker, VW wanted £24k! Over 5 years total it will cost will be £25k, so £5k in interest.

So it costs me £5k per year, which is fine considering what it earns. And at the end of the term I have a van which will still be worth a good price.

IMO buying is better than leasing.

That's a lot of interest. With the last van I found that although the price was higher from the dealer, with 0% it worked out a much cheaper deal than with a van broker.

[Stoots]

Thanks

I'm off to look at some vans this afternoon
I know own which one I want now

If I can get HP finance I'll probably go that route, will just need to save up a deposit.

I don't need one just yet so