That’s where short-term business car leasing provides a convenient solution, giving you a car for a much shorter lease duration and ensuring you’re not stuck with a vehicle you don’t need. The car subscription service from Drive Fuze gives you a more flexible, cost-effective alternative to a short-term car lease, allowing your business to respond quickly to changing needs.
Understanding short-term business car leasing
A short-term business car lease makes sense for certain situations your business may encounter, such as seasonal demand, trial periods for new employees or project-based work where you only need a car for the duration of the project. Short-term business car leasing typically entails a contract period of three months to a year, though there may be shorter or longer lease periods available.
Very short leases – such as ones that last days – work like normal car hire, while short-term leases are much more like a traditional car lease. Like a longer lease, there’s an upfront payment to secure the car, and you’re usually responsible for the running costs, such as insurance. You’ll also be bound by similar terms and conditions to a longer lease, such as mileage limits and maintenance, though there may be a maintenance package you can opt in to.
At the end of a short-term lease, some providers may offer the option to extend your lease, or you simply hand the car back. There may be penalties to pay if you’ve exceeded the agreed mileage or damaged the car.
Financial considerations of short-term business car leasing
A short-term business car lease can be a cost-effective choice for your business if you only need a car for a limited time period. Although you’ll still need to budget for running costs on top of your lease payments, the fixed monthly payments make financial planning more straightforward. Another advantage is that you won’t have the large capital investment you would need to make to buy a car outright, freeing up budget for more business-critical needs.
There are some less obvious financial benefits, too. By leasing instead of buying, you avoid the worry of depreciation that comes with car ownership, as the lease provider remains the owner of the vehicle. Lease payments are also VAT reclaimable and tax deductible, so you can offset the costs against your tax bill. If you opt to lease an electric vehicle, you’ll also have the tax savings that come with this – not to mention the sustainability credentials.
Operational benefits of short-term business car leasing
The benefits of short-term leasing to your business aren’t just financial – it also makes operational sense. The flexibility entailed by a short-term lease means you can adjust the fleet size of your business as and when you need to, even if you only need a car for a short period. You’ll have less admin when you’re only keeping the car for a short period, with maintenance and servicing unlikely to be needed, simplifying your fleet management.
You’ll also have access to the newest vehicle models without any long-term commitments. This gives you the latest safety features and ensures your business’s modern, well-maintained vehicles make a great impression with customers.
Why is car subscription a better option?
While short-term business car leasing brings many benefits to businesses, there’s an even more convenient option: car subscription. With Drive Fuze, you’ll enjoy a customised, competitively priced subscription package that meets the specific needs of your business, without being tied into a longer term contract.
Instead, you’ll be on a rolling monthly contract, with a minimum commitment of just one month, so you’ll have the flexibility to hand the car back whenever you no longer need it. That means you can save your business money by only taking on vehicles when you actually have a use for them, rather than paying for cars that aren’t being used.
You’ll have a great choice of new or nearly new vehicles for your subscription, including eco-friendly electric and hybrid options, giving your business a professional image. You’ll also be able to swap or upgrade your vehicle any time without penalty, allowing you to adapt to changing circumstances with ease.
We’ll take care of all the admin for you – even handling Penalty Charge Notices – and you’ll have our top-tier customer support team on hand to ensure a hassle-free subscription from the moment you sign up to the moment you hand the car back.
How Drive Fuze’s car subscription works
- Choose your vehicle - browse our extensive range to find the perfect vehicle for the short-term needs of your business
- Simple sign-up - fill in a short form telling us your personal and business details, and we’ll give you a quick call to confirm them
- Fast approval - you won’t have long to wait, with quick approval times meaning you can be on the road in record time
- Convenient delivery - we’ll deliver the car to your business premises if you take out your own insurance, or to your home address if you go with ours
- Forget about the running costs - our all-inclusive subscription packages mean you won’t have to budget for expenses such as maintenance, insurance and breakdown cover
- Support when you need it our outstanding customer service team is here to support you throughout your subscription term, finding fast resolutions to issues or queries
Experience freedom with a Drive Fuze subscription
Commitment free
A monthly rolling contract for no long-term obligation
Hassle free
Select your personalised package, when you want from wherever you want to
Shock free
Transparent fees and upfront warnings
A full range of vehicles
Choose from new, used petrol, diesel and electric cars
Delivery in 7 days
Guaranteed delivery within 7 days of order confirmation
Browse our vehicles
What’s included in your monthly package?
How can we help?
What is a car subscription?
Car subscriptions are growing more and more popular as an exciting alternative to traditional car ownership or PCP. All of the running costs are included, meaning you’ll never be caught out by unexpected payments. All you have to do is add the fuel and hit the road.
What's included in the Drive Fuze monthly subscription?
Along with your chosen vehicle, you will also benefit from:
- Service and maintenance
- Breakdown cover
- 1,000 miles per month as standard
- Fully comprehensive insurance
- Road tax
What's not included in the Drive Fuze monthly subscription?
The following items are not included in the Drive Fuze monthly subscription and would be subject to additional charges:
- Delivery and collection fees
- Fines or penalties that you receive during your subscription
- Damage outside of BVRLA Fair Wear and Tear guidelines
- Insurance excess in the event of an accident
- Fuel or EV charging
What are the upfront costs of a car subscription and how does the monthly payment work?
At point of ordering, we will take an initial payment which will include:
- An upfront monthly subscription - this is your refundable deposit
- The costs to deliver the vehicle
A breakdown of your initial payment will be presented when you order so you always know what your upfront costs are before you order.
On the day of delivery, we will take the monthly vehicle subscription fee in advance and then every month thereafter until the vehicle is returned.
When the vehicle is returned, we will return the refundable deposit to you less any charges for damages as outlined in your subscription agreement.
How do I sign up or order a vehicle?
You can sign up as part of the vehicle ordering process or sign up and be ready for when you find your perfect vehicle. To sign up without an order, simply click the sign-up button on the top right of our homepage and follow the steps.
To sign up as part of the ordering process, you will need your driving licence, a proof of address and a credit or debit card. To ensure you meet our eligibility criteria and to ensure you are getting the right subscription offer, we will use the data provided in your application to verify your eligibility from a variety of sources.
This includes credit reference agencies and other external organisations which will also help protect Drive Fuze from fraud. We will use this information to verify your identity and ensure the vehicle subscription payment is right for you. We will look for things like CCJs (county court judgements for debt), bankruptcies, insolvencies, and credit searches by debt collection agencies. With that information, we’ll be able to make an affordability assessment.
Though not a hard credit check, a record of our search will be left in your history, but it will not affect your credit rating.
Once you have submitted your driving licence and proof of address details, you will select the day of delivery and submit your credit or debit card details. You will be presented with a Subscription Agreement that outlines all of the conditions of subscription and then that completes the ordering process.
We will then check your documents against our eligibility criteria and notify you of the decision. Once approved, we will contact you to let you know your vehicle is on its way.
PLEASE NOTE: We will not take the initial payment until your eligibility checks have been approved. In the instance we are unable to offer you a vehicle subscription, no payments will be taken and we will contact you to notify you of the decision.
How does delivery work?
As part of the ordering process, you will select a date for your vehicle to be delivered. Our delivery driver will call you on the day of your delivery with an approximate time of arrival. Should anything change the anticipated delivery time, we’ll call to update you.
We’ll need the main subscriber to be present for the delivery of the vehicle. We’ll need to see your driving licence to verify your identity.
PLEASE NOTE: If the vehicle cannot be handed over to the main subscriber or in the event that the driving licence is not available or failure to be there when the car arrives will result in an aborted delivery and may be subject to an admin fee.
Will I need to check the car on delivery?
Prior to delivery, our team check every vehicle to ensure its ready for your monthly subscription. On the day of delivery, our driver will check the vehicle again as part of the handover process with you.
We suggest you also check the vehicle to make sure you’re happy with its condition. Should you notice any damage, you can let our driver know or report it to us by calling 0330 118 0947 or emailing subscriptions@drivefuze.com
What if I want to amend my delivery?
If you want to amend your delivery, call us on 0330 118 0947 and we will reschedule. If you want to amend within 48 hours of the original delivery date, you may be liable for the original cost of delivery.
What if I want to cancel my delivery?
At any point before the subscription start date, you can cancel the subscription. The Initial Payment paid in advance will be refunded (refunds can take up to 10 working days to appear in your bank account). We shall retain £100 as a cancellation charge to cover the vehicle administration costs. If you want to cancel, contact us by calling 0330 118 0947 or emailing subscriptions@drivefuze.com
