Answers
Frequently asked questions
Answered properly rather than in one line. If yours is not here, message us — we will answer it and probably add it to this page.
The basics
General questions
One month, on part of the fleet. Realistically most of what we hold sits on 3, 6, 9 or 12 month terms, and that is where the pricing makes sense. Below about three months the arithmetic turns against a fixed lease — you are still paying an up-front rental sized for a proper contract, spread across very few months — so a subscription is almost always the cheaper way to buy a few weeks of motoring.
Three to five working days is achievable on anything we physically hold, counted from the moment the order form is signed and the money has cleared, not from your first email. An existing credit line shortens that further. Where a vehicle is still inbound to us we are at the mercy of the supplying fleet’s timetable, and we would rather quote you four weeks and be right than quote one and be wrong.
One payment, larger than the rest, usually sized at one to three months’ rental. It is not a deposit and it is not held for you — it is rental, paid early, and it reduces nothing at the end. A refundable deposit is a separate matter: sometimes required, and decided by the underwriters on the strength of the application rather than by us. Whatever applies to you appears on the quotation in writing before you sign anything.
Because bundling it would cost you money and control. Keeping the policy in your own name protects your no-claims history, lets you set the excess and lets you shop the renewal. The one snag is that some mainstream insurers get uneasy about subscriptions and short leases; if yours does, we can point you at a broker who writes this class of business every day.
We come and get it. Nothing to advertise, nobody to haggle with, and no exposure to whatever the used market happens to be doing that month. Condition is judged against the standards we publish, which are our own rather than the BVRLA’s — with one exception. Pass eighteen months in the same vehicle and BVRLA fair wear and tear takes over. We work to the BVRLA code of conduct in every case.
Usually far longer than people assume. Once a subscription or flexible lease clears its minimum term it simply carries on, and you may keep that vehicle until the day it turns three years old. Nobody makes you swap into something else halfway through. Fixed terms can often be extended or rewritten if the vehicle is still free, which is a conversation worth having six weeks out rather than six days.
Anywhere on the mainland. Vehicles leave our sites at Derby, York and Leeds and travel to your address, and the same arrangement collects them at the end. What it costs depends on your postcode, and the figure sits on your quotation rather than being discovered afterwards.
The Financial Conduct Authority. We trade as part of Cocoon Vehicles Ltd under firm reference 711074, which you are welcome to look up on the Financial Services Register rather than take our word for. Personal data is handled under UK GDPR.
For companies
Business and VAT
For a VAT-registered business the usual position is half the VAT back on a car that sees any private mileage, and all of it on a van kept strictly for work. Any maintenance element inside the rental is normally fully recoverable. Those are the general rules; your own accountant is the person to confirm how they land on your return.
It depends which reporting standard you follow and how the agreement is written. IFRS 16 carries an exemption for leases of twelve months or under, which a good deal of short-term business falls inside. We are not accountants and this is not accounting advice — treat it as the question to put to yours.
No. A company with no filed accounts trips the automatic decline at most mainstream funders, and that rejection says very little about whether the business is fundable. It is routine work here, generally structured around a heavier first payment or a personal guarantee from a director.
It rules you out at a lot of lenders and rules you in here. A British company run from overseas, or owned by a parent overseas, is a structure we place regularly — the pages on overseas directors and overseas-owned companies set out exactly which documents get it done.
Practical
Living with the vehicle
No. Leasing and subscription agreements never end in ownership — that is fundamentally what makes them cheaper per month than a purchase product. If you want the option to own, you need PCP or hire purchase, which we do not offer.
Breakdown assistance is included on all our agreements. You call the number in the vehicle pack and it is dealt with. On commercial vehicles this includes commercial recovery, which matters when a van is loaded.
Usually yes, with prior written permission and often a VE103 certificate confirming you are authorised to take a hired vehicle out of the country. Ask us well before you travel, not the week before.
Yes. Additional drivers must be named on your insurance policy and meet the agreement's driver criteria. Tell us and tell your insurer before they drive.
Damage is an insurance matter. Repairs must be carried out to manufacturer standards — do not use an unapproved repairer, because a substandard repair will be recharged at the end of the agreement.
Delivery charges vary by postcode and are confirmed in writing before you commit. Collection at the end of the agreement is arranged the same way.
On a subscription, often yes. On a fixed lease it is usually possible to re-quote, though it may change the monthly figure. Tell us as soon as you realise you have got it wrong — it is much cheaper than accruing excess mileage.
Both, depending on the vehicle. Some come from our own fleet at Cocoon Vehicles; others are sourced from funders and supplying fleets. Either way you deal with us throughout.
Next step
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