Coronavirus

As the impact of coronavirus continues to be felt across the UK, you may have concerns about how it could affect you or your business so, we’ve put in place some additional support and information to help.

We are working hard to prioritise essential services to ensure that we can meet the needs of customers most severely impacted by coronavirus. Our key priorities are to keep essential workers mobile and to support customers in need of a payment deferral. We will continue to provide more updates and support here as and when new information becomes available.

Please see below answers to a number of common questions that customers may have at this time:

If you are a personal contract hire customer or a business with a fleet size of 20 or below and would like to defer your rentals for up to 3 months, please visit our secure online portal www.managemyvehicle.co.uk

You can apply for a Payment Holiday online to defer your rentals and we will let you know whether your request has been accepted.

If you do need to speak to us please call 0800 389 3690 and select Option 5 for Credit Control or *email us at customeraccounts@lexautolease.co.uk Due to high volumes of calls and emails we are currently experiencing, our call waiting and response times are longer than normal.

*Please note although we provide you with an e-mail address, you need to be aware that e-mail is not a secure way to get in touch. If you decide to e-mail us, do not quote any sensitive account information such as your account numbers, we won’t be liable for any lost data you supply.

Larger Fleets

If you have a fleet size of more than 20 vehicles please contact your Account Manager directly to discuss the options available.

We’ll get in touch with you towards the end of your payment holiday to confirm what payments you will need to make at the end of your contract. Please note this may mean that you will continue to make payments to us after you have returned your vehicle.

When your payment holiday has ended, you’ll receive an email to let you know the date your payments will start.  The email will also give details of how you can pay and options to repay early if you are able to do so.

If you have cancelled your Direct Debit you will need to make manual payments. Details of how you can set up a new Direct Debit will be found in our email to you.

If your vehicle is registered in Northern Ireland (NI) vehicle testing resumed on a phased basis from 20 July 2020. As testing resumed with limited capacity, with the DVA prioritising those categories of vehicles which are currently not able to avail of a Temporary Exemption Certificate (TEC) issued on vehicles where the MOT certificate expired after March 26. Please see the NI Governments website for more information about vehicle testing www.nidirect.gov.uk .

In all other areasthe Government reintroduced MOT’s from 1st August 2020. Drivers with an MOT due date before 1 August will still receive a 6-month exemption from testing. However, all vehicles must continue to be properly maintained and kept in a roadworthy condition. You are able to voluntarily get the MOT sooner should you wish, even if your vehicle is exempt from the legal requirement. You can read more information on the Government’s website. www.gov.uk.

If your vehicle's MOT was due before the government began issuing 6 month exemptions the MOT must still be arranged. You should check the circumstances for which you can drive your vehicle if the MOT expired prior to 30th March. All vehicles must be kept in a roadworthy condition and garages will remain open for essential repair work. Department for Transport: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-mots-for-cars-vans-and-motorcycles-due-from-30-march-2020 .

The Government has said that MOTs will be reintroduced from 1st August. This will result in a backlog of work for garages. To ensure timely MOTs, we encourage all drivers to book their MOT early. Drivers with a maintained contract should book their MOT with their local Kwik Fit centre or online at https://driver.lexautolease.co.uk/. When you make a booking, please let the centre know that you have a Lex Autolease vehicle. We will arrange to authorise the MOT and make payment.

For drivers that have a non-maintained contract, please book and pay for your MOT directly with your local supplier.

Many dealers and garages are open but are currently offering reduced services in line with Government guidelines. For example it is unlikely that collection and delivery services will be operating or that valeting will be offered. Services may differ depending on location and franchise.

In order to simplify the booking process we recommend booking directly with your preferred franchised dealer (franchise relates to the manufacturer). For example if you have a BMW please book with an authorised BMW dealer. When booking, please advise the garage the booking is for a Lex Autolease vehicle so they can send us a request for authorisation and payment. Once the booking is confirmed the garage will contact you to discuss specifics including an arrival time. You may wish to contact the garage the day before the booking to confirm any social distancing processes you need to know about.

In the meantime, please ensure you keep up basic maintenance. Please refer to the advice from the AA on how to maintain your vehicle when not driving regularly

https://www.theaa.com/driving-advice/laying-up#guidelines.

For further guidance visit your vehicle manufacturer’s website which contains specific vehicle information in light of the current situation.

If you have a non-maintained contract we understand that the lockdown means you may have been unable to adhere to the manufacturer’s servicing guidelines and recommend that you contact your usual service provider and have the work completed as soon as possible. In the interim, please refer to the AA website above.

If you arranged your vehicle(s) through a Broker please give us a call on 0344 879 66 33 option 5.

If you arranged your vehicle(s) through a Dealer please give us a call on 0344 879 63 33 option 5.

Please note if you wish to return your vehicle(s) early you might need to pay early termination charges in line with your terms and conditions.

You will have to pay any charges that may be due if you exceed the mileage allowance or for any damage on the vehicle outside of fair wear and tear. The BVRLA Guide on Fair Wear & Tear is accessible via this link: https://driver.lexautolease.co.uk/Login/WearAndTearGuide

You will find your mileage allowance and excess mileage rate detailed in your contract. We will invoice any charges that are due after the vehicle has been collected.

If you would like to keep using the vehicle beyond the end of your contract you have 2 options

Formal Extension Period

Apply to use your vehicle for a little while longer by formally extending your contract (subject to status and credit application). You could extend your contract as long as the full contract term from the original start date (including the extension) does not exceed 60 months. You may also be able to request an amendment to your contracted annual mileage. Your monthly rentals may change.

For more information or to request a formal extension please email* our customer service team customer.services@lexautolease.co.uk

Informal Extension Period

If you do not arrange to return the vehicle or apply to formally extend your contract, your contract will automatically enter into an informal extension period. You do not need to contact us if you wish to choose this option. You will continue to pay monthly rentals but these rentals may be more than what you pay today. Please refer to your contract and the section “Rentals payable after the Minimum Period” to find out what you will pay (alternatively you can check your terms and conditions). The contract terms and conditions will continue to apply. You can contact us to make arrangements to end your contract at a later date when you no longer wish to use the vehicle.

Our preferred tyre supplier is Kwik-fit, the largest UK tyre fitter with more than 600 individual locations and around 100 mobile tyre fitters. Kwik-fit locations remain open, however are operating with reduced capacity to ensure social distancing can be maintained for employees and customers. Mobile tyre fitters are continuing to operate.

Priority will be given to repairing vehicles for key services and workers.

Please contact your nearest Kwik-fit directly to arrange your tyre replacement and advise them that the booking is for a Lex Autolease vehicle so they can send us a request for authorisation and payment. You can book using their website: https://fleetbookings.kwik-fit.com/

Within the initial warranty period any breakdowns are referred to the vehicle manufacturer’s preferred breakdown provider.

Outside the warranty period, for contracts that include maintenance, our preferred supplier for breakdowns is the AA.

The AA have contingency plans in place to provide continuity of service for our customers. We will redirect any breakdown requests within the warranty period from other providers to the AA should these alternative providers be unable to provide service.

You can still order a home charger from Pod Point but due to COVID-19, all installations are subject to remote risk assessments and will only proceed if classified as lower risk. For all existing orders, Pod Point will contact you to arrange an installation date, if your install is deemed lower Risk. Pod Point will inform you if the installation falls into a higher risk category and cannot go ahead for the time being. Learn more

The Office for Low Emission Vehicles and Pod Point have confirmed that anyone who had an installation booked prior to 1st April which was cancelled due to COVID-19 will still be eligible for the £500 installation grant, despite the installation being delayed past 1st April.

If you have any questions about this please email* Pod Point direct: lexautolease@pod-point.com

*Please note although we provide you with an e-mail address, you need to be aware that e-mail is not a secure way to get in touch. If you decide to use e-mail, do not quote any sensitive information such as your account numbers, we won’t be liable for any lost data you supply.

We have now transitioned almost all of our colleagues to home working and made changes to our office environment to ensure the ongoing safety and well-being of our colleagues. As a result, we are in a position to re-open our phone lines from Monday 8th June.

We’ll continue to prioritise and support critical workers, so unless your query is urgent please get in touch with us via email. If you’ve already sent us an email query, we’re working to respond to you as quickly as we can so you don’t need to contact us again. For support with the services below please email* the relevant mailbox shown below:

Document Management - Mailbox Address: albhfleetadministration@lexautolease.co.uk covering:

Parking Permit letters
Authorisation letters for lost / stolen keys and number plates
Copies of V5’s for Insurance companies or to release impounded vehicles
Authorisation to register with TFL (Transport for London) for the Congestion Zone

Help and Support

Frequently asked questions