Common Mistakes to Avoid When Leasing a Car

Rather than buying your car like a majority of people, you might instead feel you’re much better off leasing your next vehicle. While there are plenty of advantages to leasing, there are also plenty of pitfalls that can trip you up and keep you from making the most of your leasing experience. Before heading to a leasing dealership, and while you’re in the car leasing comparison stage, be sure you’re knowledgeable of some of the more common leasing mishaps.  

Ignoring Gap Insurance

Both leased and bought cars are susceptible to depreciation. Also true is the fact that both leased and bought cars can be stolen or crashed. This means you don’t want to skip out on getting gap insurance when you lease your vehicle in case any insurance you originally purchased for the leased vehicle isn’t enough to cover extensive damage. Just like with a bought car, you’ll have to take care of the remainder of repair costs for anything your policy doesn’t cover. Do yourself a favor and get gap insurance before driving away in your newly leased vehicle.

Shelling Out Too Much Money Upfront

Even though it might seem sensible to make prepayments on your leased vehicle upfront, you have to think about the fact that your vehicle could be stolen or totaled not soon after you lease it. While the leasing company would be reimbursed, you’re unlikely to see any of the money you doled out up front, meaning you essentially washed money down the drain. While you can pay more in advance to lower your monthly payments, it’s best to not go over about $2,500. If you’re looking for ways to save money, you should also consider Toyota leasing special offers.

Making Modifications to Your Car While Leasing It

No matter how tempted you might be to change the paint color on your vehicle, modify the sound system or tint the windows, resist the urge. Even if you made modifications that improve the overall performance of your leased vehicle, they’ll be seen as damages, which you’ll have to pay for when you turn the car in. It’s advisable to get removable seat covers and other customizations that aren’t considered permanent. A good rule of thumb is to return the car in the exact same condition in which you originally leased it.

Not Knowing Your Driving Mileage

Before leasing, it’s good to have a solid idea of how many miles you usually drive your car. When you lease your vehicle, you’ll have a mileage limit. Go over that limit and you’ll be hit with a fee. Ask yourself how far and where you’re likely to drive while leasing your vehicle, taking into account you might have to make some unexpected trips. Also, bear in mind that your monthly lease payment will be higher the more miles you put on your vehicle, so be sure you’re as accurate as possible while making your estimate.  

Ending Your Lease Earlier Than Intended

Something else to do before heading to a leasing dealership is have a firm idea of how long you plan on leasing the vehicle. If you decide to turn in your vehicle before the lease is up, expect to pay an early lease termination fee. Think there’s a chance you may want to get out of your lease early? Look over your contract’s terms and conditions, and ask about your options for early termination if you think it’s a possibility.

Failing to Properly Maintain Your Leased Vehicle

Whenever you lease a vehicle, you’re better off pretending you bought it and that it’s yours, which means keeping up with the maintenance. While leasing companies expect normal wear and tear on vehicles, it should be minor wear and tear, which means nothing bigger than the size of a standard business card. This is something else best brought up before you sign the lease agreement. Additionally, be sure you keep up with all oil changes, tire rotations and other basic maintenance while you’re leasing the vehicle. Not only does such maintenance make the vehicle operate more efficiently, it reflects better on you.

With both buying and leasing, it’s always recommended to get a lay of the land well before signing anything. Ask questions, and never take anything for granted. Knowledge is most certainly power when it comes to avoiding common leasing mistakes.