Van Leasing Deals
Compare live van leasing deals below from an independent, whole of market broker. We place every lease across major funders including Lex Autolease, Novuna, ALD and Santander, so the prices you see are the sharpest we can source. Vans are treated very differently from cars for tax, which is a large part of why leasing one through a business works so well. Browse small, medium and large panel vans, pickups and crew vans on business contract hire.
72 models
Why Vans Are Different From Cars
If you already know how car leasing works, the useful thing to understand about vans is that the tax treatment is not the same, and the differences run in your favour. HMRC treats a qualifying commercial vehicle differently from a car in two significant ways.
First, VAT. On a car lease, recovery of the VAT on the finance element is restricted where there is any private use. On a van used solely for business, it can generally be recovered in full. That single difference is why leasing a van through a VAT registered business often works out considerably better than the equivalent car.
Second, the benefit charge. Where an employee has private use of a company car, the tax is a percentage of list price scaled by emissions, so an expensive or high emitting car costs the driver a great deal. For a van it is a flat annual amount instead, regardless of what the van cost. For most drivers that is substantially simpler and cheaper. Both areas change from one tax year to the next and depend on your circumstances, so confirm the position with your accountant rather than working from any guide, including this one.
What Counts as a Van for Tax?
This is where businesses get caught out, and it is worth checking before you order rather than after. HMRC's definition turns on payload, with the threshold at around one tonne. A vehicle that carries less than that can be treated as a car for tax purposes even though it looks like a van, and the favourable treatment described above then does not apply.
Crew vans and double cab pickups are the usual grey area, because adding a second row of seats reduces payload and changes how the vehicle is classified. If the tax treatment is part of why you are choosing a van, confirm the classification of the exact specification you are ordering with your accountant. It is a five minute check that occasionally saves a great deal.
Choosing the Right Size of Van
Small vans
Car-sized and car-like to drive, easy to park and cheap to run. The right answer for tradespeople working in towns and cities, or anyone whose loads are bulky rather than heavy.
Medium panel vans
The volume seller and the default choice for most trades. Enough length for standard sheet materials in longer wheelbase form, without the bulk of a large van.
Large vans
Maximum load volume and payload, in a range of lengths and roof heights. Worth checking height restrictions on the sites and car parks you use regularly before committing.
Pickups and crew vans
Useful where you carry people and equipment together. Both are the classifications most likely to fall outside the favourable van treatment, so check before ordering.
Choose on payload as well as load volume. A van can run out of weight capacity long before it runs out of space, and being over your plated weight is both an offence and an insurance problem.
Explore Van Lease Deals by Brand
Compare the major van manufacturers, from small city vans to large panel vans and pickups.
The Transit family covers every size from the Courier up to the full size Transit, and remains the UK benchmark.
View Ford van lease dealsWell built and comfortable over distance, and the usual choice where the van doubles as a car.
View Volkswagen van lease dealsCombo, Vivaro and Movano cover the full size range, with an electric version of each.
View Vauxhall van lease dealsCitan, Vito and Sprinter, with the Sprinter the long standing choice for high mileage operators.
View Mercedes-Benz van lease dealsKangoo, Trafic and Master, with a long history in the UK van market and a strong electric range.
View Renault van lease dealsPartner, Expert and Boxer, and the Berlingo, Dispatch and Relay, sharing platforms and offering keen value.
View Peugeot van lease dealsWhy Lease a Van with LetsLease?
Compare the latest van leasing offers with fixed monthly rentals and flexible contract options.
Van Leasing FAQs
Generally yes, in full, where the van is used solely for business, and that is the single biggest difference from leasing a car. On a car lease, recovery of the VAT on the finance element is restricted where there is any private use. On a qualifying commercial vehicle it is not. If there is some private use, recovery is apportioned, so confirm your position with your accountant.
Company car tax is a percentage of the car's list price scaled by its CO2 emissions, so an expensive or high emitting car is expensive for the driver. The van benefit charge is a flat annual amount instead, regardless of what the van cost. For most drivers that is both simpler and considerably cheaper. There is a separate charge if the employer also pays for private fuel. Rates change each tax year, so check the current position with your accountant.
HMRC's definition turns on payload, with the threshold at around one tonne. A vehicle carrying less than that can be treated as a car for tax even if it looks like a van, which means the favourable VAT and benefit charge treatment does not apply. Crew vans and double cab pickups are the common grey area, because a second row of seats reduces payload.
Leasing suits most businesses because it matches a fixed cost to a fixed replacement cycle and removes the job of disposing of used vehicles, which is a real administrative burden on a fleet of any size. It also means the funder carries the risk on what the van is worth at the end. Buying wins if you keep vans for a very long time, well past the point where any finance is repaid.
Choose on payload as well as load volume, because a van can run out of weight capacity long before it runs out of space. Small vans suit urban trades and bulky but light loads, medium panel vans are the default for most trades, and large vans give maximum volume in a choice of lengths and roof heights. Check the height restrictions on sites and car parks you use regularly.
Yes, and every major manufacturer now offers one. Electric vans suit predictable, route based work returning to the same depot each night, where you charge overnight and start every day full. They suit long unpredictable journeys less well, since public rapid charging is expensive and slower for a van than most drivers expect. Many electric vans are also eligible for the government Plug-in Van Grant.
Be honest and if anything generous, because working vans routinely cover more miles than the business expected when it ordered them. Excess mileage is charged per mile at a rate set out in the agreement, so understating it to reduce the monthly rental is a false economy. If you can see part way through the term that you will exceed it, speak to your funder, as some will look at adjusting the agreed mileage.
More often than on a car, yes. Vans work harder, cover more miles and go through tyres and brakes faster, so the wear items a maintenance package covers are closer to a certainty than a possibility. For a fleet it also turns a series of unpredictable invoices into one fixed cost per vehicle, which is easier to budget and to account for.
The van is collected and inspected against fair wear and tear standards, the same as a car, and if it is within the agreed mileage and condition there is nothing further to pay. Vans are assessed against commercial vehicle standards rather than car standards, which allow for the marks a working vehicle picks up, but damage beyond that is still chargeable. Racking, signwriting and any other fit-out normally has to be removed and the van returned to its original state, so factor that in before you have it installed.