Travelling Abroad With Your Lease Vehicle

When driving abroad, you’ll need to prove (if challenged) that the vehicle is yours. To do so, you’ll need a vehicle log book (V5C). 

However, if you’re leasing a car, the vehicle is legally owned by the finance company - which means they will keep hold of the V5 document. 

Before you travel abroad, you’ll need to request a VE103 “Vehicle on Hire” form from your finance company. 

The VE103 is the ONLY legal alternative to producing the original V5 Vehicle Registration Document. 

When providing the VE103, your finance company will also provide you with a letter of authorisation. 

This states that the finance company (as the legal owner of the vehicle) gives permission for you to take the vehicle outside of the UK. 

When requesting your VE103, you may be asked to produce the following details:

• Driver’s name
• Telephone number
• UK address (as displayed on your driving licence)
• What date you will be leaving the UK
• What date you will be returning to the UK
• What countries you will be visiting 
• The names of any other people who will be driving the lease car during your trip

Remember to request the VE103 and letter of authorisation at least 14 days before you intend to travel! And if you’re travelling abroad with your lease vehicle to Liechtenstein, Mexico, or Somalia, you must take an International Certificate for Motor Vehicles (ICMV) with you, too. 

The consequences of not having this document with you when you travel vary between countries. 

The British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association says if you are stopped in a leased vehicle and you don’t have a VE103 certificate, you could be fined, and your vehicle could be impounded. Your journey could also be significantly delayed.

Once you have the VE103 form, it’s valid for 12 months and covers you for all travel abroad during this period. 

However, finance companies have different rules on how long a lease vehicle can be out of the country. 

Even if your VE103 is valid for 12 months, you might only be allowed to take your lease car out of the UK for 60 days within this 12-month period. 

So, before making travel plans, check your contract to see what restrictions are in place. 

Make sure you have insurance cover in place for driving abroad. Some finance companies might say you have to be insured by a certain insurance company. 

Otherwise, you will need to call your own insurance company and ensure your policy covers driving abroad. 

Most leasing agreements include some form of breakdown cover. But you’ll need to check if this cover extends outside of the UK. If breakdown cover abroad is not included, you’ll have to arrange separate cover for your trip. 

Charges may apply

Many finance companies will charge a fee for providing a VE103 certificate and any associated insurance or breakdown cover. The charges for this vary between companies but are usually between £12 to £15.