Leasing for Business: The Ins and Outs of Fleet Leasing in the UK

Nationwide Vehicle Contracts provides insight into how businesses can benefit from leasing a fleet of vehicles.

If you're a business owner in the UK, you're likely trying to find ways to streamline your operations, and if your company relies on transporting people or goods, fleet leasing is a viable way to keep operations cost-effective and efficient. 

However, if you're new to fleet leasing, you might be unsure how the whole process works. 

No need to worry! In this blog, we'll delve into the ins and outs of fleet leasing, such as the benefits, the tax implications for your business, and how to manage a fleet. 

What is fleet leasing? 

Fleet leasing is when a business leases a group of vehicles to help with the day-to-day running of the company. The vehicles can vary depending on the needs of the business, such as company cars for salespeople, trucks for a trade business, or delivery vans for a B2C company. 

The number of vehicles you lease can vary depending on your business needs. Small businesses looking for a fleet might only need five vehicles, whereas larger businesses might need up to 50 vehicles. 

Fleet leasing is perfect for businesses looking to streamline operations, reduce overheads, and drive new vehicles every few years. 

The benefits of fleet leasing 

Fleet leasing has various advantages, such as significant savings, operational flexibility, and improved budgeting. 

• Lower upfront costs - Fleet leasing requires minimal upfront costs. Businesses will have to pay an initial deposit (which can be as little as three month's advance rental), followed by fixed monthly payments. This conserves capital that can be allocated elsewhere. 
• Fixed monthly payments - Following your initial deposit is a series of fixed monthly payments for the duration of your contract. As fixed payments, they can help make budgeting and financial decisions more straightforward. 
• Reduced depreciation risk - When a business owns a vehicle, it assumes the risk of depreciation. In fleet leasing, as you never own the vehicles, you don't have to worry about loss in value. 
• Access to newer vehicles - Fleet leasing allows businesses to access newer, more fuel-efficient, and technologically advanced vehicles. This can lead to increased cost savings through improved fuel efficiency and reduced maintenance costs while being great for company morale. 
• Flexibility - A fleet lease agreement is available on a contract hire or finance lease agreement, so you can choose based on which one suits your needs. It's also for a maximum of four years, so you can change vehicles to a newer model at the end of your contract. The decision is completely up to you. 

Tax implications 

There are various tax benefits involved with fleet leasing. 

If on a contract hire agreement, you can claim up to 100% tax relief, and when it comes to VAT payments, you can claim 50% on cars and 100% on commercial vehicles. You can also claim as much as 100% of the lease rental against corporation tax based on CO2 emissions. 

If you go for a finance lease, which is only available on commercial vehicles, you can claim 100% of VAT payments, and the complete cost of the rental can be offset against taxable profit. 

Fleet management 

Fleet management is essential to ensuring that everything with your fleet runs smoothly. You can choose to do this by yourself or outsource it to your leasing company, who will handle it. 

At Nationwide Vehicle Contracts, we offer vehicle management services such as purchasing new vehicles, delivery, roadside assistance, maintenance, and warranties. 

You'll also need to plan the day-to-day operations of your fleet. For example, if your lease fleet is for delivery trucks, you'll need to consider where they're stored, how drivers get allocated to a vehicle, and insurance. 

This can be a long and arduous process, but good fleet management is worth it in the long run, and if done correctly, your business will reap the benefits. 

Electric fleet leasing 

With the growing popularity of electric vehicles, many businesses are looking towards electric fleet leasing. An electric fleet looks great for a company, shows they care about the environment, and decreases fuel and maintenance costs. 

There's also a range of Government incentives for electric fleets, such as tax breaks and charging infrastructure grants to help with initial costs. Check out our Electric Fleet Leasing Guide for more information. 

Unsure about what vehicles to include in your fleet? Nationwide Vehicle Contracts is one of the UK's largest leasing brokers, offering a range of leasing deals on cars and vans to suit your every need. 

We've also produced two guides on the topic of fleet leasing, Fleet Car Leasing Explained and The Complete Electric Fleet Leasing Guide.