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Leasing gains as external risk factors increase

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Uncertainty in the UK caused by factors such as Brexit and the new car market’s shift away from diesel are combining to make the predictable fixed costs of leasing more attractive, experts claim.

Vehicle funding and fleet management specialist Arval says the current market highlights the fact that leasing removes the major financial worries that otherwise would affect companies if they still owned their cars and vans, such as exposure to residual value risk.

Shaun Sadlier, Arval head of consultancy, said: “Our view is that there has probably never been a more persuasive argument for leasing vehicles than the situation that currently exists.

“Forecasting future values is very difficult, even for a company like ourselves at the moment, even though we are able to spread the risk over many different types of vehicle.”

Sadlier said that the market was showing greater interest in leasing as companies and individuals seek to protect themselves from the potential impact of uncertainties ahead.

He added: “There has, of course, been a long-term shift towards leasing over many years but this has not been uniform and, in periods of economic uncertainty, there have been noticeable jumps. It could be that we are at another of those moments.”