Should you order your new car online?

Where is the best place to look for a new vehicle?

At its height, the social lockdown measures imposed throughout the world to minimise the spread of coronavirus encouraged vastly different consumer behaviour. The whole world headed online in order to rally behind the need to stay at home and save lives while remaining connected to friends and loved ones. And, indeed, to look after our own desperate urges to keep busy and productive with little else available as entertainment.

The ease, convenience and practicality of these online transactions will likely have a resounding effect on our purchasing desires and expectations long into the future. The limits of what we can buy quickly and safely online knows no bounds and we are recognising these benefits in increasing volumes. But what about when it comes to choosing a new vehicle?

Statistics show that more than 57% of motorists choose to do their research online before choosing their new car. Plus, even before the COVID-19 pandemic, more and more of us were taking the extra leap and ordering our new vehicle online as opposed to scouring local forecourts.

There are many benefits to buying your car online and these are only heightened while close proximity purchases and non-essential long-distance travel are in a state of fluidity. To this aim, we take a look at some reasons why you should consider buying your car online (relevant during COVID-19 lockdown and beyond) along with addressing some of natural reservations we face when doing so.

1) Available anytime, anywhere

It is one of the biggest draws to the internet: it is there whenever you need it. You can access all of the information you need without even having to pick up the phone or submit an enquiry. You have vehicle data and statistics, multidimensional vehicle imagery and all finance details at your fingertips 24/7. Plus, with our handy digital garage, you can easily compare your shortlisted vehicles for lease price and technical features.

Then, if you’re ready to order, you can do so quickly and easily online.

Or, if you’d like a little more support, our expert team of leasing consultants are on hand via phone, email, live chat, social media or through our website.

Ultimately, when ordering your lease car online, you benefit from the same quality and depth of service as a physical transaction... but at a fraction of the speed and at your absolute convenience.

2) No haggling

It’s a common part of car buying, and one many of us dread. 

Are we expected to haggle? Will I get the best price without it? Just the thought makes me cringe – is there any alternative?

Haggling is a thing of the past when you lease your car online as we’ve already done the negotiating for you. As a leasing broker, it is our aim to agree vehicle price with our partnering dealerships and then lease terms with our available funders. We can secure great lease deals by doing so, and agreeing to secure certain volumes means we get cheaper rates than you'll find elsewhere. We will only advertise the options we feel are competitive and you will always get our best price first time.

Furthermore, to help you make sense of the cheapest rates based on lease contract terms, our site will always display the cheapest lease terms first. Therefore, if a lease deal is cheaper on 36 months as opposed to 48, you will know about it. You can then amend this to suit your needs without wasting time trying every possible variant.

3) More choice

Unlike physical dealerships, when buying online you are not restricted to the stock you see in front of you. You'll have your pick of the available makes, models and specifications out there from all over the country.

4) Delivery to your door

A factor that is hugely attractive at the best of times, but particularly so as we come to terms with our 'new normal', is that UK mainland delivery is included in the price of your lease (delivery outside of this area is available but may be subject to additional charges).

You will receive the car via driven delivery directly to your door, with procedures in place to ensure this is safe, secure and that social distancing is maintained at all times. The vehicle will be delivered by the supplying dealership and any delivery miles will not count towards your own mileage total for the lease period. 

The vehicle will also be collected from you at the end of your lease. It really is motoring at its easiest!

5) Get online prices

Last but certainly not least is the important point of price. Its resoundingly the biggest benefit of all of buying your car online: you are likely to find far better price for your vehicle online than you will on the forecourt.

Why?

Firstly, we can work with the UK's best funders and have our pick of dealerships from anywhere in the UK - this luxury of choice allows us to work only with those offering the best rates, and we do that searching for you.

We take the advertising costs away from the selling dealerships while committing to volumes that allow them to reduce the overall cost. We then negotiate rates with our funders based on this total, taking commission as our means to cover our costs. We are not subject to the overheads associated with any physical shopfront and pass the savings made by purchasing vehicles in high numbers onto our customers. 

Pair this with the product we are selling. Leasing is often the cheapest form of vehicle finance as you are not subject to interest on the full value of the vehicle. Instead, fees taken by the funder are related only to the depreciation of the vehicle over the same period as that is the cost you are funding. Plus, road fund licence is included for your full term.

Unavoidably, prices do fluctuate regularly within the leasing market and we are at the liberty of these prices. As a helping hand to ensuring you get the best rate without haggling, see these tips for finding the best lease deal.

The downsides...

Can you try before you buy?

Its a phenomenon that we are used to when buying online, and that is the inability to see and try the product we are buying. Whether clothes, phones or holidays, we are accustom to making this sacrifice when buying online at the benefit of choice, price and convenience. 

While test drives remain popular among some motorists, they have changed forever as a result of COVID-19 - if dealerships are allowing them at all, they will now be unaccompanied with only one occupant allowed. 

If you lease your car online you are unable to undertake a test drive. If you can and it is safe to do so you can try out the car by other means or utilise the wealth of information available to you online that offers everything other than getting you behind the wheel yourself. You could even head on over to our YouTube channel and check out our test drive reviews on some of the latest model releases. 

How can I be sure of service standards?

Naturally, without a physical shop to stride into and demand answers when something goes wrong, we put more time and consideration behind who and where we buy online. And rightly so!

Whether a physical or online shop, genuine customer reviews should form a vital part of our buying research. They guide not only the products we buy but where we buy them from. After all, we’re investing our hard-earned money in something so we want to make sure it does what it says on the tin. And this is only amplified with a high value product like a car.

Without a shop front, reviews are a window into the world of an online business. As with a physical dealership, reviews are a great indication of the service or product quality you can expect. Equally, they give the consumer the power to publicly celebrate service triumphs as well as driving areas for improvement. They are therefore a vital component of power that sits with the consumer in ensuring any queries are dealt with.

Click here to see our genuine customer reviews.

The verdict

Choosing to lease your new car online means you could place an order from the comfort of your own home and be in a position to take delivery in a matter of weeks. You can compare and review available lease deals at your convenience, anytime and anywhere, and order with as much or as little help as you require.

You'll get the same quality of service and often at a cheaper cost, without the effort or haggling involved in the more conventional car buying process. You won't be able to test drive the car prior to taking delivery so we would recommend extensive research to ensure suitability. But once you've found the right car for you, ordering your lease vehicle online is likely to prove to be the quickest, easiest and most cost effective procurement option.

If you're looking for the best deal and the ultimate in purchasing convenience without sacrificing customer service or product quality, its time to consider ordering your next vehicle online.

Start your search for the best car lease deal today