Car Scheme Frequently Asked Questions
1. Who is eligible to join the scheme?
2. I am based in Cornwall. Am I eligible to join the scheme?
3. What is included in the quote from ALD Automotive?
4. What is not included in the quote from ALD Automotive?
5. What does the salary exchange calculator show?
6. Why do I have to pay an admin fee and how much is it for?
7. How long is the quote valid for?
8. How do I place an order?
9. Who should I contact if I need assistance in placing an order?
10. How long is my agreement for?
11. What annual mileage is my agreement calculated on?
12. I placed an order yesterday and have now changed my mind. What do I need to do?
13. What is in the driver’s pack?
14. How quickly after placing a quote will I hear anything?
15. How long after ordering will it take for the car to be delivered to me?
16. What is the excess on the insurance policy?
17. Am I covered for business travel on the insurance policy?
18. I have been given a courtesy car to use whilst my car is being serviced. What do I need to do about insurance?
19. Who can drive the vehicle?
20. Am I insured to drive other vehicles, for example if my friend asks me to drive his/her car?
21. How is the net cost of the agreement calculated?
22. Why will I receive a P11D?
23. Why am I not entitled to the University’s standard reimbursement for mileage?
24. Will the amount of my salary exchange be increased when the rate of VAT charged on the lease payment made by the University to ALD Automotive increases from 15% to 17.5%?
25. I do not pay national insurance (NI) because I hold an age exemption certificate. Does that affect the net cost to me?
26. I am a member of the NHS Pension Scheme. What are the implications to me?
27. My personal circumstances have changed and I no longer require a car. Can I return it?
28. I am leaving the University and have handed in my resignation. What are the early termination charges?
29. I have been made redundant. Do I have to pay an early termination fee?
30. I am currently on long term sick leave and am now on nil pay. Do I have to return the car?
31. I have received points on my licence for speeding. Do I need to tell anyone?
32. How do I book a service?
33. I have broken down. Who do I need to contact?
34. I have had an accident. Who should I inform?
35. I am planning on travelling abroad on holiday. Can I take my car?
36. I have a puncture. Do I need to pay for a new tyre?
37. What happens if I get a parking ticket?
38. How do I obtain new Tax Discs?
39. The scheme states that the vehicle needs to be returned in fair wear and tear condition. What does this mean?
40. My mileage is greater than I originally anticipated. What do I need to do?
41. My agreement is coming to an end and I want to know if it is possible to purchase the vehicle?
42. My agreement ends next month. What happens now?
1. Who is eligible to join the scheme?
The scheme is only eligible to employees on the University's payroll who hold a full valid United Kingdom/EC/EEA driving licence. Individuals engaged on a claims basis and Graduate Teaching Fellows are not eligible.
Normally, only employees with a minimum of 12 months continuous service with the University are eligible to participate, although the Director of Human Resources may agree to offer the benefit to other senior appointments as part of a recruitment package which will be detailed in the further particulars for the appointment.
In order to be eligible to participate, an employee’s current contract of employment (i.e. until the expiry of a fixed term contract or their contractual date of retirement) must run for at least as long as the agreement that they are signing up to, dated from the commencement of the agreement.
Employees will not be eligible to participate if the effect of the salary exchange arrangement - together with any other salary exchange arrangements which apply to their salary - would be to reduce their pay below the National Minimum Wage or the Earnings Threshold for National Insurance Contributions.
2. I am based in Cornwall . Am I eligible to join the scheme?
As long as you fulfil the eligibility criteria outlined in No 1, then you are eligible to join the scheme. Vehicles can be delivered to both Devon and Cornwall addresses/campuses.
3. What is included in the quote given by the salary exchange calculator ?
The vehicle, routine servicing, maintenance and repair, tyres, batteries and exhausts, Road Fund Licence, MOT, insurance and Breakdown & Recovery.
4. What is not included in the quote?
Fuel is not included. Any repairs beyond fair wear and tear must also be paid by the employee.
5. What does the salary exchange calculator show?
A calculation of the total monthly to the employee including insurance, VAT, benefit in kind and administration costs. The calculator shows the tax and national insurance savings made via salary exchange arrangements.
6 . Why do I have to pay an admin fee and how much is it for?
The University is offering salary exchange benefits on a cost neutral basis where possible. Because of the administration required to support the Car Scheme an admin fee of ￡5 per month will be levied. This will be deducted from your net salary and will show as a separate deduction on your pay slip.
7 . How long is the quote valid for?
Your online quote is valid on the date that you request it and will remain valid for 7 days. Vehicle lists are updated quarterly as standard and more frequently where they are significant model changes.
8. How do I place an order?
You are asked to place an order on behalf of the University of Exeter with the supplier after receiving pre-order confirmation from Human Resources. For a flowchart showing the ordering process please click here. The flowchart will need to be amended from Lombard to ALD Automotive and the quote validity from 28 days to 7 days, otherwise all OK.
9. Who should I contact if I need assistance in placing an order ?
ALD Automotive offer support via an experienced Customer Service Team on 01604 747XXX and a dedicated email address xxxx where the team act as a single point of contact for all employees’ quotation needs. This support includes, but is not limited to, specific quotations to include dealer fitted options and estimated lead time information.
10 . How long is my agreement for?
You can sign up for an agreement lasting either 24 months or 36 months. The choice is yours, however please also see question 1.
11 . What annual mileage is my agreement calculated on?
At the point when you place an order you will be asked to state your annual mileage Vehicle lists are shown at 10,000, 15,000 and 20,000 miles per annum. If your mileage varies significantly from these values, please contact the fleetdesk on 01604 747xxx to arrange an individual quote.. If you go over this mileage during the agreement you will be charged an excess mileage charge. Please see Question 36.
12 . I placed an order yesterday and have now changed my mind. What do I need to do?
You must contact the Customer Services team on (01604 747xxx (TBC)immediately. Prior to delivery there may be an option to cancel an order, however, this may be subject to a cancellation fee. This will be based on whether you have ordered any non standard customisations – e.g.. a vehicle ordered with yellow leather seats is likely to be subject to a higher cancellation fee than a standard vehicle as it will be more difficult to sell. Once vehicle delivery has taken place the only method to cancel would be via an early termination fee.
13 . What is in the driver’s pack?
The following is included as standard – carpet mats, tax disc holder, driver card and key fob.
14 . How quickly after placing an order will I hear anything?
Once you have decided upon a vehicle you can email the fleetdesk on xxxxx or telephone on 01604 747xxx with make, model, and any extras you require. The Fleetdesk will provide an estimate of the lead time for that vehicle. An order confirmation email will then follow within five days to confirm that the vehicle has been ordered and to advise of the expected date of delivery
15. How long after ordering will it take for the car to be delivered to me?
Delivery time can take between one week (if a vehicle with the specifications you have requested is at a dealership) and 6 months (if it has to be built at a factory). Five days after placing the order ALD Automotive will send an email with an estimated delivery date.
16 . What is the excess on the insurance policy?
The standard excess is ￡250. However, the following additional excesses apply:
Drivers under 21 years: ￡250
Drivers under 25 years: ￡150
Drivers over 25 years with a provisional licence or with a full licence for less than one year: ￡100
17 . Am I covered for business travel on the insurance policy?
The policy covers the use of the vehicle by the employee for social, domestic and pleasure purposes only, including commuting to and from work, and for University business travel by the employee. It also covers the use of the vehicle by close family members of the employee for social, domestic and pleasure purposes only, including commuting to and from work (which may not be connected to the University) but does not cover business travel by close family members.
1 8 . I have been given a courtesy car to use whilst my car is being serviced. What do I need to do about insurance?
It is your responsibility to ensure that you are suitably insured to drive a relief/courtesy car.
19. Who can drive the vehicle?
As well as the employee, their partner and close family members (children) may also drive the vehicle, with the permission of the employee, provided they have the same residence as the employee. There are no age restrictions (however there is an additional excess to pay for young drivers or those who hold a provisional licence). The employee must hold a full, valid driving licence; additional drivers may drive the vehicle with a provisional driving licence provided they are appropriately accompanied.
20. Am I insured to drive other vehicles, for example if my friend asks me to drive his/her car?
If you need to drive someone else's vehicle, the University's motor insurance policy will provide cover to meet your legal liability to third party persons or property but it does not cover any damage to the vehicle you are driving. In other words, were you to hit another vehicle and be at fault, the damage to the vehicle you hit would be covered but not the damage to your friend's vehicle. The vehicle must, of course, only be driven after obtaining the permission of the owner. In view of the limitations of this cover, in the event that you are given permission to drive another person's car, you are advised that you should ask to be added to his/her policy as a [temporary] additional driver.
21 . H ow is the net cost of the agreement calculated?
You contract to reduce your salary by an amount equivalent to the cost to the University of leasing the car from ALD Automotive plus the cost of the University insuring the vehicle. Since your salary is reduced you will pay less tax and national insurance but since the car is being provided to you by the University there will be a taxable benefit based on the list price of the vehicle, its fuel type and CO2 emissions. Therefore the net cost to you is the salary forgone less the reduced tax and NI charge, plus the tax due on the taxable benefit associated with the vehicle. You can calculate this by using the salary exchange calculator: please click here.
22 . Why will I receive a P11D?
The University car is made available to you under a salary exchange arrangement whereby in return for you agreeing to receive a lower salary the University provides you with a car. The car is a “company car” for tax purposes and the University is required by law to advise HMRC that it has made the car available to you. Since the car is a benefit in kind, tax law also requires that you are notified annually on a P11D of the amount of the taxable benefit. HMRC would normally adjust your tax coding to ensure any tax due on the car benefit is taken by deduction under PAYE during the tax year.
The University submits information about Benefits in Kind to HMRC on P11D forms in July each year. HMRC use this information to adjust tax codes and in our experience, they have often not done this until the following autumn, so you may find that any additional tax due as a result of these changes is not paid until much later in the new tax year. Unfortunately, this is beyond the control of the University.
23 . Why am I not entitled to the University’s standard reimbursement for mileage?
The car is “owned” by the University and is a “company car” for tax purposes. HMRC specify the maximum mileage rate that can be claimed (without an associated tax benefit), which relates solely to reimbursement of fuel costs and is calculated in relation to the engine capacity and type of fuel used by the car. See c.gov.uk/cars/advisory_fuel_current.htm
24 . W ill the amount of my salary exchange be increased or decreased if the rate of VAT charged on the lease payment made by the University to ALD Automotive changes ?