Some great photos of the Volvo XC40 courtesy of our existing personal lease customer, from Warrington (Cheshire), which were sent to the CarLease team. As you will probably note from the many photos and blogs on our website, we encourage all of the customers who receive a new car to send the actual pictures to the team so we can use these to assist future customers with their car buying/leasing decision. We understand that the glossy digital photos online are often not completely reflective or accurate of what will physically arrive with the customer on delivery. As part of our commitment to treating customers fairly we want the customer see actual images so they can make an informed decision. 
When do I arrange my lease car to be swapped? As per the customer above, they had a an existing contract hire arrangement and knew well in advance of the contact end which vehicle they wanted. At CarLease we send a reminder circa 6 months before the end of the contact to ensure there are no surprises. An email similar to the below will get sent:
Just a quick update to inform you that your vehicle has now only six months remaining on its contract. As such, there are a few things for you to consider before the vehicle is returned, in particular:
- Servicing/Maintenance – whether or not the vehicle has been covered with a funder-maintenance package, please ensure that you have serviced and maintained the vehicle correctly before it is returned;
- Tyres – please ensure that the tyres have been changed in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions and that the vehicle will be returned with the tyres in the proper condition;
- MOT – depending upon the length of your agreement, please ensure that the vehicle has been issued with an MOT certificate.
Additionally, the BVRLA has made available to the public a fair wear and tear policy which our administration team can send to you upon request or which can be found at the following link (this is well worth a quick review)
The biggest complaints tend to arise around the collection and end of contract stages. For customers who are either uninformed, or who ignore the reminders, if they fail to maintain the vehicle properly, monitor the mileage or remediate the damage they are going to receive a bill. Much to the distaste of customers, it’s fairly clear that you are not entitled to abuse a vehicle. What we say to customers is that you have to imagine that if you were trading a vehicle in with a dealership or WeBuyAnyCar, they would appraise the vehicle in exactly the same way; you can’t part-exchange a vehicle with a number of issues and expect to receive a full CAP clean valuation for it. The idea of our 6 month reminder is to lessen, to the extent we can, any potential issues which may arise and, of course, to help the customer start preparing with their next vehicle.
Ordering a vehicle 6 months before the contract end is actually very rare. For bespoke/luxury cars, or for upcoming models (particularly electric and PHEV options), there are some long lead times which need to be accounted for. However, the leasing industry is known for offering great value stock vehicles. The finance companies we work alongside will help us to commit to a mass volume of cars, anywhere between 50 – 500 at a time, with a view that such vehicles need to be delivered asap. In many cases the vehicles will be registered when they arrive in the UK. Because a vehicle being registered begins the time for warranty/MOT, we need to deliver these very quickly – plus customers want their vehicle straight away. Many customer prefer the car to be as “new” as possible. Do consider that pre-registration does not mean you are having an old car or one which has been driven before. The car is literally registered with the DVLA and sits in a holding compound until it is ready for you.
For customers arranging their new vehicle, they will probably have to consider that unless something unique or bespoke is required, they will only need 2-3 months to organise the next car. Most customers operate to a certain budget, so will wait until a nice car arrives within the parameters. If they have an existing relationship with a leasing broker, it is easy to keep in touch and work towards a deal. For existing customers, so long as the finance company allows it, we can always keep them in the same vehicle for a short period of time (usually 1-3 months) on an “informal extension”. This is utilised when there are no suitable deals, or when a factory order time delays, so the customer is not left without a car. At all times we want a customer to receive the right car; organising one under pressure or duress is avoided as much as we can help it.
For any customers in a contract hire agreement, just diarise the contract end date and make sure you review all of the reminders. Don’t wait until a few weeks before the car is due off contract to organise its repair/remediation/replacement!
In terms of the car shown here, the Volvo XC40 ESTATE 1.5 T3 (163) R DESIGN 5door (Petrol/Manual), this is based on the following configuration:
- Thunder Grey Metallic Paint
- Contour sports leather/nubuck – Charcoal
- Cutting Edge Aluminium Inlays
- 20” 5 double spoke diamond cut matt black alloy wheels
As standard the car includes keyless start, cruise control, 18” alloys, floor mats, rear park assist, dark tinted glass for rear windows, rain sensor windscreen wipers, hill descent control, hill start assist, vehicle declaration control, Bluetooth, lane keep assist with driver alert control, oncoming lane mitigation, 12.3” active TDT display, 9” centre console portrait touch screen, auto dimming interior mirror, electrically adjustable and heated door mirror, DAB radio, front treadplates, steering wheel mounted controls, high gloss black features adaptive brake lights, LED headlights and fog lights, climate control, leather upholstery, city safety, run off road mitigation and protection, 60/40 split folding seats, first aid kit and anti-theft alarm/immobiliser.
In terms of additional options consider adding – winter pack, smartphone integration and the Harmon Kardon sound system.
On the technical-side company car and business users can note the P11d at £31,125.00 and CO2 at 142g/km. The 1477CC 6 speed manual petrol engine delivers 37.2 combined MPG (WLTP), 163ps and 0-62 times of 9.3 seconds.
So would the Volvo be your select car leasing option? Or would the Audi Q3, BMW X1 or Mercedes GLA be your choice
