Best car leasing deals

If you're looking for the cheapest car leasing deals in the UK right now you've come to the right place. We round up the best value car leasing deals we've found online.

Car leasing may not be that familiar to UK buyers used to seeing mentions of PCP, but leasing is hugely popular in the US, and is becoming more and more popular this side of the Atlantic. 

Leasing a car is essentially a longer term version of your holiday hire car, except rather than giving you flexibility for your two weeks in the sun, a lease agreement is a long-term rental, usually ranging from one to four years.

It's also called Personal Contract Hire - or PCH - which is used interchangeably with leasing. So rather than buying the car over several years, you simply lease it and then hand it back at the end of the contract. Unlike PCP, there's no option to own the car you've leased. Instead, you're paying for the convenience of having a new car on your drive on a regular basis.

When you take out the lease deal, you’ll agree to a maximum annual mileage limit and you’ll need to return the car without exceeding this figure. If you do so, you’ll pay a penalty, usually a certain amount per mile on top.

Unlike your holiday rental, it’s worth remembering that a lease deal will most likely will include car tax, but doesn’t usually cover servicing, although package deals are available. It's the same for insurance, too.

At the end of the PCH term, you return the car and it will be inspected. Fair wear and tear for the age of the car is completely acceptable and exactly what this means should be covered when you sign the PCH agreement. However, anything more than this can and will be charged for, and this bill can be considerable.

After more deals on new cars? Check out our round-up of all the best new car deals around. 

Personal Contract Hire Deals - A-Z by Car Maker

Here's a list of carmakers that frequently offer competitive leasing deals that are well worth checking out if owning your car isn't a priority, but saving money is top of the list.

Is leasing a car financially worth it?

Taking out a PCH agreement is very much dependent on your personal circumstances and preferences. The major advantage of leasing is that it removes a lot of the hassle of owning a car, especially if you add a maintenance package to your lease. The monthly cost can also work out cheaper than a PCP.

If your priorities are having a predictable, affordable monthly payment, no worries about a car's depreciation or selling it on after your PCH finishes, and you like to drive a new car every couple of years, then a lease could well be an affordable way to motor on your terms.

If mileage limits, wear and tear fees and not being able to own the car are an issue for you, then outright purchase or HP/PCP are perhaps better options.

What's the difference between PCH and PCP?

Although it's important not to confuse Personal Contract Purchase (PCP), which uses financing to help you buy a car, and Personal Contract Hire (PCH), they work in a similar way. You pay an initial payment, which is often a multiple of the monthly rental cost up to around 35%.

Monthly payments will then be calculated, depending on the size of the deposit and length of the hire agreement, plus any additional services like maintenance or insurance you may wish to add. At the end of the lease, you give the car back, simple as that - no balloon payment to consider as with a PCP.

If you want the convenience of driving a new car and have no interest in owning it, then PCH makes sense. However, if you’re after a little more flexibility and might want to buy outright, then keep your options open with PCP instead.

Why should I lease a car rather than buying one?

Leasing or hiring a car means that you will be driving a new car that you get to change every one to four years, depending on your deal. That means you’ll always be driving a car that meets your needs and available budget, plus it'll conform to the latest safety standards and meet any environmental restrictions.

Once the deal is over, you’re also free to walk away without having to worry about the car’s depreciation, or finding someone to sell it to. A lease deal also means your costs are fixed each month, allowing you to better plan your finances. In addition to road tax, which is usually included in leasing deals, you can add maintenance and sometimes insurance, too. It's possible that arranging these separately might be cheaper, but if you're looking for maximum ease and simplicity, then it's another benefit to leasing.

What happens if I exceed the agreed mileage when I return the car?

When you sign your lease agreement, your monthly payments will be influenced by how many miles you plan to drive while you have that particular car. It’s worth putting some serious thought into this to ensure that you have enough flexibility in your lease deal to drive the miles you need to without incurring excess mileage costs. Likewise, you don't want to overstate the miles you'll do, as this will push up your monthly payments.

Whatever the price for exceeding your mileage is, this figure will be in your lease agreement as a charge per mile, usually around 10p. It’s worth getting in touch with your lease provider if you’re driving more than you thought to mitigate any extra mileage fee.

Can I leave my car lease deal early?

Cancelling a lease is usually possible. However, while circumstances do change unexpectedly and there’s no other option, cancellation is something you should think long and hard about doing this as it’s often expensive.

These deals are not meant to be broken after all, and often any cancellation can only take place once at least half of your lease term is completed. There will usually be some sort of cancellation fee, and you won’t get any money back that you’ve already paid. You are also not permitted to pay off your remaining car lease early, as the lease agreement binds you to making those monthly payments on schedule.