Van leasing and van contract hire are 2 of the most popular ways for businesses to finance their vehicles, but could looking for the cheapest van lease or contract hire deal be a mistake – could it end up costing much more in the long-run? Investing in a new van or fleet of commercial vehicles is one of the largest investments a business makes so it’s understandable that cost is a big factor in the decision of which van model to choose but here’s why the cheapest monthly cost might end up costing more:
Fuel Economy
Fuel prices continue on an upward trend and, actually, monthly fuel costs for the average van user are likely to exceed that of the monthly cost for a van lease agreement; so it’s surprising that so many forget to take fuel economy into account when selecting a van. Fuel economy should be one of the biggest considerations before selecting a model of van. For instance, spending a bit more on a newer van model, which is likely to be much more fuel efficient, could end up saving more money than it costs on a monthly basis.
Size Matters
Size is another factor that directly affects the running costs of your vehicle. Running a larger van is going to use more fuel and cost more to run so selecting the appropriate van for what the business needs it to do is important. A Mercedes Sprinter van may be on offer at a low monthly cost but if a business needs something much smaller and the van will be on the road half-empty most of the time it would still be cheaper in the long-run to invest in the smaller vehicle that has higher monthly van lease costs.
Insurance
Insurance may not be as much of a financial outlay as monthly fuel costs but it’s still big expense for a business – especially those running multiple vehicles. Again, a business should do its homework to find out what insurance band a van falls into before it makes that final selection and signs the van leasing or van contract hire agreement.
Creature Comforts
This may not be directly related to saving money in the long run but it’s an important point that many forget. A business owner or their employees are going to spend a huge amount of time in the van over the period of the van lease so investing that extra few pounds a week for Air Conditioning or other creature comforts might seem a frivolous expense now but comfort is all important when it comes to actually running the van on the road.
Businesses understandably want to get the best deal when signing a new van leasing agreement but calculating the overall costs including what it will cost to run and insure the vehicle can’t be left out or businesses may fond that great van lease deal ends up costing more each month. Equally, cutting back on features and extras may seem like a good cost saving measure now but comfort is all important for the business owner or employee spending the best chunk of the working week in their van.