What Happens If I Get A Ticket In My Lease Car?
Getting a speeding ticket is a surefire way to ruin your day.
It’s always the one moment you’ve gone over the speed limit in your journey and of course, there just so happens to be an unmarked police car down the road. Tough luck!
As you’re not the registered keeper of your lease car, you won’t actually receive the fine to your door.
We’re going to explain the process of what happens when you get a speeding ticket in your business or personal contract hire car, and also touch upon what happens with parking tickets!
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Who does the speeding fine go to?
As the ‘registered keeper’, your leasing company receives all notifications from the DVLA in regards to fines and penalties.
Here’s typically how the process works, from speeding to receiving your ticket:
- You drive a 55 in a 50 and are caught by a speed camera - receiving a nice fine for your troubles.
- Once the vehicle is identified and the registered keeper (your lease company) confirmed, a penalty notice will head into the mail.
- This penalty notice is called a Notice of Intended Prosecution (NIP). This will be sent to the registered keeper within 14 days of the offence.
- Your lease company will receive the ticket.
- They may pay it and add it to your monthly payments. Alternatively, they will pass it on to you to pay directly.
- In most cases, you will have to pay an administration fee to the lease company for the trouble.
At the end of the day, you’re getting the fine - whether it takes an extra 2 days or not doesn’t really matter! If you don't pay promptly, you can rack up more fees from the leasing company, resulting in lease car return charges.
Will I receive penalty points?
The government is cracking down on speeding offences, and the new minimum fee reflects that. The absolute minimum fine you will face is £100 and 3 penalty points - ouch! You also might be required to go on a speed awareness course.
Depending on your speed, you could be charged up to £2500 (if speeding on a motorway, £1000 on regular roads) and receive a driving ban.
If you received a driving ban, you’d still need to pay the finance provider for the leased vehicle until the contract is up - so drive carefully!
Remember, if you receive penalty points on your license, you need to let your insurance company know. These points will stay on your license for 4 years, with your insurance no longer being affected after 3.
What about parking fines?
Parking tickets are a little bit simpler to deal with than speeding tickets. You won’t get points on your license, which you probably will if you get caught speeding (unless you get a verbal warning from a police officer at the side of the road).
When you receive a PCN (Penalty Charge Notice) on your car, you need to pay it within 28 days, or the fee will double. If you believe you received driving penalties unjustly, you can contest the decision.
Note though, that if you fail, you’ll have to pay double the fee you would if you paid it instantly.
If you receive a PCN on your windscreen, you can pay it immediately using the parking ticket details. You don’t need to be the registered keeper of the vehicle. Anyone could pay your parking ticket if they were feeling charitable.
However, if you receive a fixed penalty notice by post, this is going to go to the registered keeper. This scenario will follow the exact same steps as receiving a speeding ticket.
Summary
Summary:
You’ll probably receive a ticket, whether for speeding or parking, at least once in your driving life.
It happens to the best of us, so shake it off and learn from your mistakes!
If you’re leasing a car and receive a speeding ticket, your car leasing company will pay it and foot the bill to you later. This is the same if you receive a parking ticket by letter.
If you receive a physical PCN (Penalty Charge Notice) on your car, you should pay it directly. You don't need to be the registered keeper - so no need to contact your finance company.
Check out our handy guide for more information on precisely what the "registered keeper of a lease car" means.
If you need any more information on how car leasing works, please check out our guide! And if you're ready to start your car lease comparison journey, let Lease Fetcher help! We have compiled leading UK broker deals for personal car leasing and business car leasing so you can do your search more simply!