Thank you to our local business leasing customer, from St Helens (Merseyside), for sending through pictures of their latest fleet addition – the recently amended Kia Sportage SUV.
Over the last 5 years, Kia have gone from being a peripheral manufacturer to one of the most trusted and reliable brands in the UK automotive market.
Traditionally, the Ford, Vauxhall and Renault were the mainstay brands for many customers. When Kia, and Hyundai, joined the market there was some nervousness and trepidation about this manufacturer and customers were very reluctant to jump across to an unknown equanimity.
What perhaps was one of the biggest changes to their fortunes was the introduction of the Sportage; a mid-sized SUV with style, space and incredible specification. The Nissan Qashqai and Ford Kuga were firmly put on the back foot.
To truly demonstrate their confidence, Kia introduced a 7 year warranty and Hyundai introduced a 5 year warranty to provide complete comfort to the potential customer database.
To confirm, with a warranty, you are covering any defects/faults which arise through no fault of the customer. This is not about servicing, maintenance and tyres! With a stylish car, and a bolstered warranty, Kia has grown significantly in the UK.
Another element, which we have been discussing recently, is the notion of company car choice and the impact on company car tax. When you take a company car (business lease), if you are an employee in a limited company then you are enjoying a benefit. As a result of this incentive, HMRC will require you to pay tax for this vehicle. This is known as Benefit In Kind (BiK) and is something which you must ask your payroll/HR department organise with you. Alternatively, visit the HMRC website on company car tax to ensure your calculations are accurate – Click Here…
When you are looking at a new car, you need to ask your credit broker or finance company for: 1) the P11d value of the vehicle (the list price plus any optional extras and the cost of delivery); and 2) the CO2 of the vehicle – shown as CO2 per km. These are instrumental for calculating your tax exposure (along with your own income bracket). Take for instance the car here, this is a diesel (diesel cars attract an additional BiK supplement), the P11d is £24,329.99 and the CO2 is 129g/km. For a 20% tax payer WITHOUT private fuel contributions the tax would be the below for the next three years.
| Tax Year | 2018/19 | 2019/20 | 2020/21 |
| Monthly Company Car Tax Total | £121.65 | £133.82 | £137.87 |
| Benefit in Kind Rate | 30% | 33% | 34% |
| Car taxable Benefit in Kind | £7,299.00 | £8,028.90 | £8,272.20 |
| Cash Alternative | – | – | – |
| Less Trade Down Before Tax and NI | – | – | – |
| Taxable Cash Alternative | – | – | – |
| Car/Cash Taxable Value | £7,299.00 | £8,028.90 | £8,272.20 |
| Less Private Usage Contribution** | – | – | – |
| Net Car/Cash Taxable Value | £7,299.00 | £8,028.90 | £8,272.20 |
| Car/Cash Tax payable | £1,459.80 | £1,605.78 | £1,654.44 |
| Monthly Car/Cash Tax payable | £121.65 | £133.82 | £137.87 |
| Monthly Private Fuel BIK Tax Cost * | – | – | – |
| Monthly Private Usage Contribution ** | – | – | – |
| Monthly Trade Down After Tax and NI | – | – | – |
| Monthly Company Car Tax Total | £121.65 | £133.82 | £137.87 |
For a 40% tax payer WITHOUT private fuel contributions the tax would be the below for the next three years.
| Tax Year | 2018/19 | 2019/20 | 2020/21 |
| Monthly Company Car Tax Total | £243.30 | £267.63 | £275.74 |
| Benefit in Kind Rate | 30% | 33% | 34% |
| Car taxable Benefit in Kind | £7,299.00 | £8,028.90 | £8,272.20 |
| Cash Alternative | – | – | – |
| Less Trade Down Before Tax and NI | – | – | – |
| Taxable Cash Alternative | – | – | – |
| Car/Cash Taxable Value | £7,299.00 | £8,028.90 | £8,272.20 |
| Less Private Usage Contribution** | – | – | – |
| Net Car/Cash Taxable Value | £7,299.00 | £8,028.90 | £8,272.20 |
| Car/Cash Tax payable | £2,919.60 | £3,211.56 | £3,308.88 |
| Monthly Car/Cash Tax payable | £243.30 | £267.63 | £275.74 |
| Monthly Private Fuel BIK Tax Cost * | – | – | – |
| Monthly Private Usage Contribution ** | – | – | – |
| Monthly Trade Down After Tax and NI | – | – | – |
| Monthly Company Car Tax Total | £243.30 | £267.63 | £275.74 |
With this in mind, some customers are exploring an electric car or petrol hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), as they offer considerably better CO2 statistics. As we will discuss in a later blog, procuring a vehicle like this can have an impact on company car tax, corporation tax, monthly budget and driving style/behaviour. When you are exploring company car vs car allowance, you need to not only consider your own personal income tax position but you also have to review the company car and fleet policy too. It is likely your company will enforce certain restrictions which might preclude your ability to take a certain vehicle.
In terms of the car shown here, the Kia Sportage Diesel Estate 1.6 CRDi ISG 2 5 Door (Manual), this is based on the following configuration:
- Dark Penta Metal Metallic Paint
- Premium Cloth – Black
- 17″ Alloy Wheels
As standard the car includes automatic rain sensing wipers, privacy glass (rear windows and side screen), tinted glass, emergency stop signal system, hill start assist control, trailer stability assist, apply/android car play, Bluetooth, cruise control, traffic messaging channel, lane keep assist, rear parking sensor, reversing camera, 7” touch screen, digital clock, satellite navigation, auto dimming rear view mirror, body coloured electric and heated door mirrors, DAB radio, steering wheel mounted controls, body coloured externals, rear spoiler, roof rails, automatic headlights, follow me home headlights, LED daytime running lights and indicators, leather steering wheel, premium cloth upholstery, 17” alloys, temporary spare wheel, immobiliser, deadlocks and heated front/rear seats. It is not possible to add additional manufacturer options to the car other than change the colour. With Kia you can upgrade to a:
- 4 – 19” alloys, 8” touchscreen, LED bi-function headlights, leather upholstery, JBL sound system, 10-way driver power seat, panoramic sunroof
- GT-Line – 19” alloys, black leather with red stitching, dual exhaust, stop/start button with smart entry system, black headlining
On the technical-side, the car shown has a P11d of £24,300.00 and CO2 at 129g/km (use HMRC to assist with BiK and tax as per above). The 1598CC 6 speed manual diesel engine delivers 57.6 combined MPG, 134ps and 0-62 times of 11.2 seconds. Service intervals on a diesel Sportage are every 12 months or 20,000 miles, whichever lands sooner.
So would the Sportage be your select car leasing options? Or would the Hyundai Tuscon, Vauxhall Grandland X, Ford Kuga or VW Tiguan get your vote?
Find the webs latest lease deals on the awesome Kia Sportage here @CarLease UK – you can also read more SUV reviews below…
