Alfa Romeo

The rate of VAT has risen from today to 20% from the previous rate of 17.5%. All contract hire rentals shown on the site will show both the base rental and the rental with the new VAT rate of 20% added.

If you are a business and are VAT registered, this VAT rise will affect the “Effective Rental” you will pay. Simply, if there is any private usage of your company vehicle, then there is a 50% VAT recovery restriction on the finance element of the vehicle. The service element of the rental still has a 100% VAT recoverability rate.

Once you have narrowed down your choices and have contacted one of our vehicle finance partners for a contract hire quotation directly, this will be clearly laid out on their quotations i.e. it will show the effective rental as well as the base rental before VAT.

The rise in VAT actually makes contract hire potentially an even more efficient vehicle finance method as the leasing company recovers the VAT on the purchase price of the vehicle on acquisition. This reduced asset cost is reflected in the monthly rental they charge you so before you buy your next car it is worth considering contract hire.

Personal contract hire users and non-VAT registered sole traders should look at the VAT inclusive rental as you cannot recover the VAT. If in doubt, speak to your accountant for further information or for further clarification and the full rules on this subject, visit the HMRC website.

Rearview mirror

The Fiesta is Britain’s best selling car and the new model year now offers Ford’s mirror mounted rearview camera screen as a cost option on all models. When selecting this accessory you will also benefit from automatic windscreen wipers, automatic headlamps and rear parking sensors.

Fiesta

If you opt for Titanium model you now benefit from a Sony radio with CD player, USB and Bluetooth as standard, as well as cruise control and automatic headlights. So far this year around 20 per cent of all Fiestas ordered have been the top-of-the range Titanium model.

Mark Simpson, Ford of Britain marketing director , said,”Fiesta has taken the top sales spot for small cars every month since the start of 2009. We know that whilst customers may choose a smaller car than before, perhaps for economy reasons, they still want the technology and comfort features to make their Fiesta a premium choice. Around 75 per cent of Fiesta customers add options to their car; the most popular choice is Bluetooth with USB”. There are a number of Ford Fiesta personal contract hire offers on the site at present and all are available with full maintenance cover included.

Visit the special offers section

FordOnline, one of the partners on Comparecontracthire.com, has loaded a batch of personal contract hire pricing onto the site today. One Ford personal contract hire offer that stands out is the Ford Focus 1.6 TDCi Zetec 5-door (11obhp) 5- door hatchback from only £258.49 per month including the VAT.

Best of all the Ford personal contract hire pricing also includes full maintenance and routine servicing costs as well so this is great value for money, on one of the UK’s top best sellers. This economic car also returns 62.7 combined mpg and only emits 1115g/km of CO2. The car is currently listed in the Personal Contract Hire Special Offers section

The Ford personal contract hire deal is based on the following;

- Non-maintained personal contract hire over a three year term at 10,000 miles per annum.

- Only three months rental in advance followed by 35 subsequent rentals. (38 equal payments in total).

- “With maintenance”, metallic paint and all other vehicle options can be added at an extra cost to the rental shown above.

- The image shown may not represent the exact model.

- Pricing is subject to change at any time and must be verified directly with each vehicle leasing supplier.

- Other terms and mileages available on request.

-  Pricing is subject to change at any time and must be verified directly with each vehicle leasing supplier.

Bugatti Veyron

Only 300 Bugatti Veyron supercars were made and one is coming up for sale at British Car Auctions (BCA) at their Blackbushe Auction Centre on Saturday the 5th June. This car sells new for more than £1 million and reaches 250+mph where legally permitted. It was registered in 2006 and only has 7,400 km on the clock.

If your budget doesn’t stretch of course there is always personal contract hire, which allows you to drive a brand new car at a very reasonable price. The Hyundai Classic i20 1.2-litre petrol is on the site on at a very reasonable £160.98 including VAT on personal non-maintained contract hire, three years at 10,000 miles per annum and at that rental is affordable and economical too. Have a look at the Personal Contract Hire special offers section for other models.

Hyundai ix35 SUV

The Hyundai ix35 is the new SUV from Hyundai and offers a family a great alternative to the normal hatchback or estate car. Hyundai personal contract hire for the highly specified SUV starts from only £296.10 per month (includes VAT) for the Hyundai ix35 Style 2WD.  Combined MPG is 51.4 and CO2 emissions are only 147g/km making this an economical and attractive option.

Hyundai contract hire terms are based on the following;

- Non-maintained personal contract hire over a three year contract at 10,000 miles per year – total 30,000 miles.

- Only three month rentals in advance followed by 35 subsequent rentals.

-  This totals 38 equal payments

- “With maintenance”, metallic paint and all other accessory options can be added to your vehicle at an extra cost to the rental shown above.

-  Please note the image we have shown may not represent the exact model.

-  Pricing is subject to change at any time and must be verified directly with the vehicle leasing supplier.

Vauxhall Zafira

Most of the partners on the site have now loaded their pricing updates this month and another car leasing special offer that catches the eye is from Pendragon Contracts, on either business or personal contract hire. The Vauxhall Zafira is a great family car and the particular model in question is the Vauxhall Zafira 1.8 Exclusiv 5dr Easytronic (semi-automatic gearbox) which is being offered from £253.53 inclusive of VAT on personal contract hire (£220.46 before you add the VAT). The car has a CO2 output of 172g/km and offers a combined mpg of 39.2 mpg on the combined fuel cycle.

The terms are a three year contract at 10,000 miles per annum, non-maintenance personal contract hire with a payment profile of three rentals followed by thirty five subsequent rentals. Other variations on the car leasing contract can be offered i.e. adding the maintenance for example and further details on this can be obtained from Pendragon Contracts via the site contact button. The picture shown may not represent the exact model.

Audi A3 Cabriolet

At this time of the month, many of the Comparecontracthire.com partners load their new pricing files and special offers on to the site. One of our partners, jamjarcars.com, has loaded an Audi A3 Cabriolet 2.0-litre TDi Sport Manual on a really attractive personal car leasing rental. This car has a manufacturer list price of £23,705 so it is incredible value for money.

The offer is as follows

- Non-maintained personal contract hire (or personal car leasing as it is sometimes called).

- Three year contract at 10,000 miles per annum

- Monthly rental including the VAT is £302.76 (£263.27 excluding VAT)

- Payment terms are three months rental in advance followed by 35 subsequent rentals.

£302.76 x 12 = £3633.12 per annum – divide this by 365 days and that’s £9.95 a day so pretty good value for a convertible car that has a combined fuel consumption of 53.3mpg as well.

This is the Sport version as well so it comes with the usual bodykit. If you are interested in this special offer just fill out the Contact form off the site, once you have quoted on this model. You can also add full maintenance cover as well if this is of interest so just ask jamjarcars.com to re-quote with your exact specification.

Please note fuel costs and insurance cover are NOT included and the picture above may not represent the actual car.

Nissan Pixo

Jamjarcars.com, one of the partners on the Comparecontracthire.com site, has loaded a superb personal car leasing offer on the Nissan Pixo 1.0 Visia 5 Door hatchback. The personal car leasing rental, including the VAT, is only £107.70 per month (or £93.65 before the VAT if comparing prices elsewhere), which is a fantastic offer if you are looking for a cost effective ”runaround car”. Please note the image shown above may not represent the actual car.

-Terms are based on non-maintenance personal contract hire.

-Three year contract at 10,000 miles per annum.

- A payment profile of three months initial rental followed by 35 subsequent rentals.

- All private individuals should always look at the VAT inclusive rental, as this is what you will pay.

This petrol car has a CO2 output of only 103g/km and the combined fuel consumption is 64.2mpg. Add to this a radio/CD, ABS, PAS and an Immobiliser and you are getting a clean, green, value for money option. If you want to add ”full maintenance cover” as well, just ask for this in the message box on the Contact Form and jamjarcars.com will re-quote for you.

Using best practice is something we could all do better. But particularly, it seems, when it comes to being a small business and running business cars efficiently.

Even though a scary one in every 56 businesses will cease trading this year – an increase of 59% according to accountants and business advisors, BDO Stoy Hayward LLP – small businesses appear less inclined to follow some of the best practice from larger enterprises.

And while larger companies favour contract hire as a means of providing company cars, most small businesses are still wedded to the idea of ownership. And some 33% don’t even have a company car policy.

Now, while I’m a great believer in having and financing the cars that suit your business, I believe strongly that not all small businesses are aware of the alternative funding methods out there available to them.

For example, a canny small business might be quite happy purchasing used cars because: a) they save on the depreciation;  b) it provides them with an opportunity to have a smarter car than they could afford new. For example, my landlord, Peter Edney, runs his own small accountancy practice, but purchases used Mercedes. His latest is a very smart 11-year-old SL V8.

But I bet many small businesses aren’t alive to the fact that ownership of new cars ties up capital that could be more readily used in the business – especially now, when cash flows are so tight.

On the other hand, leasing a car – whether through contract hire or personal contract hire – gives you access to a brand new car for a fixed monthly sum, while keeping other lines of credit (bank loan, overdraft and so on) open for purely business use. At the end of the two-, three- or four-year term, the car is returned. And a new lease on a new car started. Small businesses should talk to their local dealer business sales or a BVRLA approved contract hire company for more on the benefits of leasing.

The forgetful zone

While we’re on the subject of research, I came across this from Continental Tyres: on average a third of most people’s journey will be zoned out. In other words, unaware or inattentive of the actual traffic conditions around them.

The research found the average driver is on the road for 45 minutes a day and that they are in their own little world for 17 minutes of this time. They make an average of three trips in their car each day. They are distracted at least three times on each journey and for at least four seconds each time. At just 40 mph a car will travel over 18 metres every second.

I spoke to Continental’s Guy Frobisher about the results. “Our fast-paced lives can mean little time to fit everything in, but driving is no time for multi-tasking,” Guy explained. “Our advice is to avoid distractions like eating or drinking or making a phone call, even if hands-free. You could prevent an accident.”

I couldn’t agree more.

For the record, here are the most common driver distractions. But the one that scares me the most is number 11. If your small business doesn’t have a company car policy – particularly for mobile phone use – then now is probably the time you should.

TOP 20 DRIVING DISTRACTIONS

1.     Re-tuning the radio/inserting a CD into the player

2.     Talking to a passenger

3.     Looking at scenery

4.     Eating

5.     Listening to loud music

6.     Reaching into the glovebox

7.     Looking at houses

8.     Drinking

9.     Other drivers in cars next to you

10.    Passengers asking questions

11.    Texting

12.    Trying to unwrap a sweet

13.    Talking on the mobile phone

14.    Looking at a hot girl/bloke

15.    Shop windows

16.    Kids in the back seat shouting, or playing up

17.    Trying to read a map

18.    SATNAV

19.    Looking at billboards

20.    Singing

Ralph Morton – Editor of www.BusinessCarManager.co.uk

Business Car Manager is a business motoring website dedicated to small businesses. You can access it for free by logging on to www.BusinessCarManager.co.uk.

Honda Civic

Honda Finance has loaded their special offers on to the site and one that catches the eye is a Honda Civic 1.4-litre i-VTEC SE 5 door hatchback manual. This version of the Civic has a great specification including climate control air conditioning, ABS, EBD, brake assist and much more. CO2 emissions are 135g/km and the petrol car offers a respectable 47.9 combined mpg figure.

This Honda car leasing offer is based on the following parameters.

- Non maintained contract hire car leasing

- Three year contract at 10,000 miles per annum.

- Payment terms are three months initial rental followed by 35 subsequent rental payments.

- Personal contract hire rental is £265.65 including the VAT.

Other terms and variations on this personal contract hire special offer can be obtained from Honda Finance via the contact form off Comparecontracthire.com