Car Leasing Delivery Dates & Delivery Lead Times

If you have decided to lease a new vehicle from Vertu Lease Cars, Congratulations! We are so excited to have you as one of our customers and we will look forward to looking after you for the duration of your lease and beyond. There is no doubt you will have plenty of questions about the estimated delivery date and delivery lead times of your new vehicle, and most of the time, everything goes to plan. But we need to make you aware of the potential issues that could arise regarding the delivery of your new car or commercial vehicle.

Lease Vehicle Delivery Times

There are lots of factors to take into consideration when estimating the time it will take to deliver your new car or van so we have put together a guide to help you understand how long it will take, what to expect, and what potential hurdles could push back your delivery date.

This guide covers:

Jargon buster – What does it mean?What is a lead time or estimated delivery date?The different types of order or stock statuses What factors can affect my estimated delivery date New factory order lead times Stock car delivery lead times How to find out the delivery lead time for a vehicle Why your delivery lead time may have been pushed back Options for delayed vehicles How to get a quicker delivery

Jargon Buster – What does it mean?

Lead Time - The time it takes from the factory receiving the vehicle order to it arriving from the manufacturer.

Factory Order – Vehicles that are ordered directly from the vehicle manufacturer to a specific specification.

ETA – Estimated time of arrival.

Scheduling – Assigning the production and build times of specific vehicles on the manufacturers production line.

Production Slot – Time allocated to a vehicle build usually associated to a build week in a calendar year.

Estimated Build Week – Represents an estimated week of the year a vehicle will be built, build week 25 is w/c 21st June.

Confirmed Build Week - Represents a confirmed week of the year a vehicle will be built, build week 25 is w/c 21st June.

Confirmed Build – The confirmed date the vehicle will go onto the production line.

Backorder – Delay due to lack of supply of parts or components required for a specific vehicle.

Stop Sale – Federal law imposed a stop on the sale of any new, undelivered vehicles and parts due to safety recalls.

In Build – Vehicle is on, or imminently due on, the production line.

Order Number – A number allocated to a vehicle so it can be tracked prior to having a unique chassis number.

SLI Number – Shipper’s letter of instruction number usually associated to the VAG Group of vehicles, VW, Audi, Skoda, SEAT and CUPRA.

VIN Number – Vehicle Identification Number, a unique code and serial number allocated to a vehicle.

Transportation Hold – The transportation of new vehicles is on hold; this could be due to a delay at the port or customs.

In Transit – Vehicles have left the factory and are waiting to be shipped or delivered to the dealership or PDI Centre.

Shipping – Vehicle is on route to the port or already on a ship travelling to the UK.

At Port – Vehicle is at the port either awaiting shipment to the UK or has landed at the port in the UK.

At Import Centre – Vehicle is at the holding or storage centre which can be in the UK or in Europe.

At PDI Centre – Pre-Delivery Inspection Centre where safety checks are carried out on the vehicle prior to delivery to the customer.

At Dealership – Vehicle is in stock at a UK dealership or retailer.

Recall – Issued by vehicle manufacturers or government due to potential safety or performance defects.

Residual Value – The predicted future value of a vehicle or what the vehicle will be worth in 1+, 2+ or 3+ years’ time subject to certain conditions and mileage.

What is a lead time or estimated delivery date?

The lead time is the amount of time it takes from the factory to receive the vehicle order and the vehicle being built and delivered to the dealership. The lead time gives you and us an understanding of an approximate date when you may be likely to receive your new vehicle, this allows you to plan and make any necessary arrangements such as extending your current lease or arranging collection/disposal of an existing vehicle. This is also the estimated delivery date stated on your order form.

Lead times and estimated delivery dates vary by vehicle make, model and specification.

The different types of order or stock statuses

Here's what some of the different types of order and stock statuses mean:

Build allocation slots:

When a vehicle is classed as a factory order, it is usually a brand-new order which is placed on the manufacturers order system by the supplying dealership. Most dealerships have an allocation of build slots across the various models. The number of build slots that are available depends on the time of year, availability of relevant parts and supply and demand.

Official release or launch date:

You may have ordered a vehicle that is not in the showrooms yet, vehicle manufacturers create a lot of hype and marketing prior to any new vehicle launch and sometimes this can be months in advance. If this is the case, you will have to wait for the official release date to pass before you can order your vehicle. The manufacturer may have a backlog of orders to work through which may impact the lead time of the vehicle.

Customer demand:

Sometimes customer demand for a specific vehicle is high, this can happen when certain vehicles become very popular due to a strong residual value which makes the monthly rentals very affordable or when a brand-new model year is released which includes additional specification above its predecessor. This can cause a backlog at the factory when unexpected demand is high, which may delay your delivery date.

Time of year or legislation changes:

Depending on the time of year, or changes in government legislation that affects vehicle emissions or taxation, vehicle manufacturers may switch focus and concentrate on building different vehicle models. If the manufacturers focus switches from a specific model or engine type (Petrol, Diesel or Electric) that you have on order, it may cause delays or even a need to change your vehicle order.

In Stock or Pipeline Stock:

Stock generally means a vehicle has already been built. Pipeline means a vehicle that is in the process of being built. Stock vehicles can be stored at various locations while waiting to be sold. The best-case scenario is when stock vehicles are physically located at one of our dealerships in the UK, but they could also be in a holding compound or storage compound, or they could be on a ship or at the docks. The holding compound could be in the UK, and it could also be at various docks across Europe and even further afield. The location of the compound or docks would determine the estimated lead time. This is explained in more detail a little further on.

Common Lease Vehicle Delivery Questions

How accurate are the delivery lead times?

When you order a new vehicle from Vertu Lease Cars, we get an estimated delivery date from the manufacturer which we quote as a “Estimated Delivery Date”. This date is the ‘best possible estimate’ that we can give you based on the information we have been given by the vehicle manufacturer, at the time you order the vehicle with Vertu Lease Cars. We try our very best to make sure the estimated delivery date is as accurate as possible, and on many occasions it’s accurate, but also, on rare occasions, it can take longer than expected due to the multiple factors we talk about here.

If the vehicle you have ordered is not physically in stock at one of our dealerships, there is a chance the estimated delivery date could fluctuate, if this fluctuation causes a delay in your estimated delivery date, we will let you know as soon as possible and let you know what options are available to you.

Please be aware that Vertu Lease Cars has no control or influence over the manufacturer’s lead times, so we cannot accept any responsibility for any losses or inconvenience caused by a delay from the manufacturer. But we will always do our best to help and advise you in the best way possible.

How long does it take for a factory order to be delivered?

This depends on the make and the model, if you order a vehicle that you have specified certain colours and or options, then the lead time can vary between 8 weeks to over 12 months and in some cases over the last few years, we have seen some vehicles taking up to 2 years to be delivered to our customers. Certain Jaguar and Land Rover models, if factory ordered, are still taking nearly 15 months to be delivered.

Generally, the more bespoke your order and specification, the longer the time it takes to be delivered to you.

How long does it take for a stock vehicle to be delivered?

If the vehicle you have ordered is a stock vehicle, it means it has already been built and it will be held at the dealership, manufacturers central stock or their holding compound. If the central stock or compound is in the UK, then we can usually offer you a delivery date within 3 to 4 weeks. If the vehicle is in stock but at a holding compound in Europe, in transit to the UK or awaiting shipment, then delivery can take up to 6 to 8 weeks.

If you are a Limited Company and you order one of our vehicles that is in stock and physically at one of our dealerships in the UK, we can deliver your vehicle to you in as little as 5 to 7 days subject to correctly completed finance documents and any additional documentation that the finance company have requested.

If you are a private individual taking out a Personal Lease, then we may not be able to deliver your new vehicle until the statutory cooling off period has passed, which is currently 14 days, this can be up to 17 days with some finance companies. This means that generally, if taking a Personal Lease, the earliest delivery we can offer even if the vehicle is physically in stock in the UK is 3 weeks subject to, all required finance agreements are signed, proof of ID, address or insurance required by the finance company have been provided.

What are the different lead times of vehicles?

If you are looking for a new factory order vehicle, then the manufacturer’s websites usually show the lead times for their different models. If you are looking at one of Vertu Lease Cars’s many special offers, then our website gives you an indication of the estimated lead time. You will see a banner that will display the estimated lead time which will be correct on that day and based on the information we have been provided on that day and subject to the various scenarios we have talked about here.

As global demand for new vehicles increases, it puts added strain on the supply chain. We have seen this over the last few years on electric vehicles, for example which has increased the use of metals like lithium and cobalt that are used in batteries. Vehicle manufacturing has also been affected by the war in Ukraine, the conflict in Israel and climate change as unprecedented weather conditions can cause fire and floods in vehicle manufacturers factories across the globe. This means there is always a danger of delivery dates changing, and sometimes these changes can happen very quickly and without notice.

You can keep up to date with the latest news around vehicle lead times and potential delays by following some of the automotive news sites like Auto Express and Car Dealer Magazine who report daily on delivery lead times and potential manufacturer delays.

How can I get a quicker delivery?

The best way is to take advantage of any of our offers that are marked In Stock on our website, and even better, look for vehicles that are marked as “Pre-Registered” Pre-registered vehicles that we have on offer have already been registered by the manufacturer, or finance company and are almost definitely physically in stock at one of our dealerships in the UK. You can read more about Pre-Registered vehicles here.

What are my options if my vehicle is delayed?

If your vehicle has been considerably delayed due to one or several of the issues we have talked about here, you have some options available for you to consider.

Continue with your order:

Most of our customers choose to continue with their order and wait for a new delivery date to become available. This means you can still take advantage of the original leasing rental you have been quoted as potentially, the price of the vehicle you have on order may have increased since your original order date.

We will always keep you up to date with any updates we receive from our dealer network and vehicle manufacturers, and we can work with you to keep you mobile by giving you help and advice on your options like:

Extending your current lease vehicle

If your current vehicle is also on lease which was arranged by us, you may be able to extend your current lease by either:

An informal extension which means you do not return your vehicle to the finance company, and you keep paying your current monthly rental and your mileage will be pro-rata for the additional time you keep your current lease.
A formal 6- or 12-month extension can be requested and accepted by most finance companies, some of our finance companies also offer a small discount on your current lease rental if you formally extend.

Order a new model year or a different vehicle

On rare occasions, the vehicle manufacturer will cancel all outstanding orders on specific models due to production constraints or natural disasters like floods or fires. If this is the case, we can re-price your lease based on the latest similar model or specification that is still available. Prices for new and different vehicles will be different to your original order or quotation and lead times may still be considerably longer than originally quoted but we will advise you on the best possible options available to you or you could look at one of the offers we have available on a different vehicle at that time.

Cancel your order

The last resort would be to cancel your order completely. We would of course not want this to happen as we value your business greatly, but we do understand that in certain circumstances, this may be your only option. If this is the case, please follow our Cancellation Policy. You can also read our full Terms & Conditions here.

If you still have questions?

We understand that sometimes things go wrong, and if they do, they can cause you worry and excess stress, which is something we always want to avoid so please speak to one of our team who will do their utmost to help and advise you on all the options available to you.

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