No surprises
What's included — and what isn't
The single most useful page on this site. Everything that is covered by your monthly payment, everything that is not, and the grey areas in between.
On a subscription or flexible lease, the monthly payment covers the vehicle, servicing and routine maintenance, road fund licence (road tax), manufacturer warranty and breakdown assistance. On a fixed short-term lease, maintenance is not included as standard — it is optional on the majority of agreements. In every case you arrange fully comprehensive insurance, fuel or electricity, and any congestion or parking charges. Short-term vehicles are assessed on return against our own return standards, not BVRLA fair wear and tear — BVRLA standards apply only beyond 18 months.
Line by line
Subscriptions and flexible leases
Maintenance and servicing are included as standard on these agreements.
Included in your monthly payment
- Use of the vehicle for however long the agreement runs
- Scheduled servicing, plus the repairs that come with ordinary use
- Vehicle Excise Duty, taxed throughout
- Whatever remains of the manufacturer’s warranty
- Roadside and recovery cover
- Bringing it to you anywhere in mainland Britain, and taking it away again
You arrange separately
- Your own comprehensive policy — we do not insure the vehicle
- Whatever you put in the tank or the battery
- Emissions and city-centre charging schemes
- Anything a camera or a warden issues in your name
- Damage, and condition worse than our published standards allow
- Miles driven past the allowance you contracted for
Line by line
Fixed short-term leases
The important difference: maintenance is not included as standard on a fixed short-term lease. It is optional on the majority of agreements, and your quotation states which.
Included in your monthly payment
- Use of the vehicle for however long the agreement runs
- Vehicle Excise Duty, taxed throughout
- Whatever remains of the manufacturer’s warranty
- Roadside and recovery cover
- Bringing it to you anywhere in mainland Britain, and taking it away again
Not included as standard
- Servicing and repairs — an extra on a fixed lease, though most can carry it
- Your own comprehensive policy — we do not insure the vehicle
- Whatever you put in the tank or the battery
- Emissions and city-centre charging schemes
- Damage, and condition worse than our published standards allow
- Miles driven past the allowance you contracted for
Detail
The grey areas, spelled out
- Maintenance
- Standard on subscriptions and flexible leases. Not standard on a fixed short-term lease, but optional on most — your quotation states which.
- Tyres
- Included on some agreements, optional on others. Where included, cover is for reasonable wear only — accidental damage is excluded and excessive wear is chargeable.
- Windscreen and glass
- Normally an insurance matter rather than a maintenance one. Check your policy's glass cover and excess.
- Wiper blades and bulbs
- Consumables. Generally the driver's responsibility, though often replaced at service.
- AdBlue and screenwash
- Yours, like fuel.
- Racking and shelving on vans
- You fit it, you remove it, and you make good any damage before return. Agree it with us first.
- Signwriting and wraps
- Vinyl is usually acceptable by prior agreement. Permanent paintwork is not. Ask before committing to a livery.
- Towbars and accessories
- Ask first. Some are acceptable if professionally fitted and removed; others are not.
- Home EV charge point
- Not included. Installing one is your arrangement, and worth doing before an electric vehicle arrives.
- Public charging
- Not included. Electricity is your cost, exactly as fuel would be.
- Excess mileage
- Charged at the pence-per-mile rate quoted at the outset. There is no new rate at the end.
- Refundable deposit
- We may take one. Whether it is required is subject to status, and the amount is set by the underwriters.
- Return condition
- Short-term vehicles are assessed against our own return standards. BVRLA fair wear and tear applies only where a vehicle is kept beyond 18 months. We follow the BVRLA code of conduct at all times.
A deliberate choice
Why we do not include insurance
Some subscription providers bundle insurance and present it as a benefit. We deliberately do not, for three reasons.
- It is usually more expensive. Bundled cover is priced for a broad pool of drivers, so a good driver subsidises a poor one.
- You cannot build no-claims. On a bundled policy you are typically a named driver, so years of clean driving earn you nothing you can take elsewhere.
- You lose control. Your excess, your cover level, your named drivers and your claims handling are all decided for you.
If arranging your own cover is difficult — because of a short agreement, a leased vehicle or a thin UK insurance history — our partner eInsure writes cover specifically for this. More on insurance.
Answers
Frequently asked questions
Next step
Any questions before you commit?
Ask us anything about what is covered. We would far rather answer it now than have you find out later.