What seems to be less well understood, based on some recent conversations I have had, are the insurance requirements for lease vehicles.

Leases don’t include insurance! Unless the company you are leasing from has offered to provide insurance, your lease vehicle won’t be insured and it will be your responsibility to get it insured, just as with any car or van you own yourself.

You should check whether there are any specific insurance cover requirements with your lease company, but as a general rule you should expect to have to provide comprehensive cover for any lease vehicles you are responsible for.

When taking out the insurance, you will have to specify that you are not the owner and tell the insurance company whether you are the registered keeper of the vehicle or not. You will probably also need the lease company’s details so the insurance company know who owns your van or car.

If you are an individual or a small company, everything else is probably the same as you will be used to. Most insurance companies cover lease vehicles but always check if unsure and always be honest with the answers to any questions asked by the insurance company.

At the top of the list for the third year running was the Ford Transit. In second place was the Vauxhall Astravan with Ford’s smaller Transit Connect taking third place. Rounding out the top 5 were the Mercedes Sprinter and Volkswagen Transporter – all good, high-quality choices. Reliability was measured based on breakdowns per 100 vans of each model.

Interestingly, there are no Fiat, Renault, Peugeot or Citroen vans in the top 5 – despite the vast numbers that are in circulation. Peugeot did manage to scrape into the top 5 most reliable manufacturers, in 5th place behind Ford, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen and Vauxhall.

If you’re interested in learning more about van leasing or in getting a free, no-strings quote on a lease van, check out our new Van Leasing page for more information.