Car leasing companies will offer a range of services to be included in the contract and it is up to the Lessee (you) to choose (and pay for, within the rentals) what options you need.

The two basic options are "non-maintained" and "fully maintained" but these options cover exactly what it says in the contract, and I have known fully maintained contracts to have restrictions on, for instance, the provision of tyres, recovery and replacement vehicle whenever the car is off the road for mechanical or accident reasons. This latter option is covered by very few leases as the cost of it will add a considerable amount to the rentals. I have not sold such a service for over seven years!!

Yours is a non-maintained contract and will not include any of these options. This is the type of contract that is, obviously, the cheapest and, therefore, the type that is widely advertised. Your car was covered for the first 12 months for roadside assistance and recovery under the terms of the manufacturer's warranty and it would have been up to you to arrange cover after this period.

Interestingly, one of the largest leasing companies have stopped providing this type of lease to private individuals, probably because they get a lot of grief from lessees that don't know what they've bought. I will always explain, in simple terms, what my clients are contracting, but many brokers, car salesmen etc. sell on price only.

Normally, a manufacturer will supply a courtesy car, through their dealer, in the event of prolonged mechanical breakdown occurring during the warranty period. But each manufacturer has it's own rules on this. Most of them will only provide this service if the car is recovered to the dealer by their recovery service. Some will only cover the first 12 months.

It gets more complicated and I've said enough for now, but I trust that this has given you a basic understanding. My advice, as usual, is not to sign any contract until you know what you're buying. Unfortunately, this is not heeded by most individuals and leads to this kind of predicament.

Hi Peter.

I've not read your previous posting about your problems, so no idea about time scale, mileage etc. However, if you are claiming that the car is of unsatisfactory quality, then your case would certainly be against the supplier of the car, the leasing company. This would be exactly the same whether you are leasing the car or buying it under some form of instalment credit arrangement.

They would involve the supplying dealer who would then involve the manufacturer. Such an unwieldy chain is usually circumvented by you dealing directly with the dealer who has fixed ( or not as the case may be) your car following you putting your case in writing to the leasing company.

The vague legalities of unsatisfactory quality are far too complex to cover here, and I'm sure that Lucy is better placed than I to advise on such a claim.

As for your verbal assurance that a replacement car would be provided- this was probably made by a broker with whom you were dealing, rather than directly by the leasing company with whom you have a written contract. Have you been back to them to complain?