Vehicle fair wear and tear guide

Vehicle fair wear and tear guide

All Vehicle Contracts is a member of the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA) and subscribe to the standards recommended by them. These standards are widely recognised as a benchmark in the vehicle industry for all major contract hire and rental companies.

Below is a generalised guide as to what is acceptable and what is unacceptable as recommended by the BVRLA in relation to contract end vehicle fair wear and tear.

Acceptable vehicle return standards

Windscreen and windows - Surface chips with no spreading cracks, professionally repaired minor chips

Paintwork - Stone chips on forward-facing panels which are consistent with the age and mileage of the vehicle, scratches that can be polished out, small areas of chipping including door edge chipping provided that the base coat has not been penetrated and there is no corrosion, light scratches and abrasions up to 25mm long are acceptable, as long as they have not penetrated the base coat

Door Mirrors - Small marks not through to base coat or primer,

Lamps/Lenses - Small areas of surface chipping

Wheels and wheel trims - Light scratches limited to less than 50% of the wheel rim, corrosion not caused by wheel rim damage, light scuffs on the rim edge of wheel trims, minor scuffing to the outside edge of alloy wheels and trims

Interior - Normal wear and tear to carpets, trim, upholstery and seat cover/trim, repairs of a high and acceptable standard, vinyl or hard plastic repairs of a high and acceptable standard

Bumpers and trims - light scuffing to non-painted parts including the rear bumper from loading/unloading, minor damage/distortions up to 25mm with no paintwork damage

Tyres - Correct size and speed ratings, minimum 2mm tread depth across all treads including the spare, returned with a spare wheel or space-saver spare wheel fitted with tyres that carry the European Standard ‘E’ mark (or a complete tyre inflation kit), the minimum legal standard for tread depth and sidewall condition, tyre type, size and speed rating recommended by the vehicle manufacturer including spare

Mechanical condition - No sign of abuse or neglect, brake discs free from damage caused from worn-out pads, up-to-date service history, with no coolant or other warning lights active, clutch, engine and gearbox with no excessive noise suggesting that a mechanical fault is present, free from damage to the underside of the vehicle, serviced and maintained by a main franchise dealer or authorised repairer as soon as the service light illuminates

Unacceptable vehicle return standards

Windscreen and windows - Scratches and cracks in glass, stone chips with signs of cracking, windscreen scratches caused by faulty wiper blades

Paintwork - Excessive chips that affect the vehicle's appearance, scratches affecting the vehicle’s appearance, previous body repairs with poor colour match, ripples, preparation marks, visible over spray, masking lines or excessive dirt in paint, dents on high-profile panels such as bonnets and wheel arches, underbody damage that affects the vehicle’s structure or warranty, unprofessional repairs, damage caused by contamination such as bird lime, scratches longer than 25mm

Door Mirrors - Missing, cracked, badly scuffed, damaged or not working correctly

Lamps/Lenses - Broken, damaged or holed lenses with minor chips affecting the vehicle’s appearance or the lamp’s performance
Wheels and wheel trims - Scoring and other damage to the wheel surface, bad scuffs and dents to alloy wheels or wheel covers, damage to the main body of the wheel, cracked or split wheel trims

Interior - Unclean and stained upholstery, including boot linings burns, tears or damage, smoking, pet animal odours or damage to trim from cigarette smoke or pet animals of any kind, damage caused by removing phone kits, burns or cuts to trim, seat covers, headlining and floor coverings, stains or permanent discolouration, removal of original/retro fitted items, for example DVD screens, all original in-car entertainment equipment must be intact and operate correctly, optional extras fitted by the manufacturer or dealer should be returned with the car unless otherwise agreed with the leasing company

Bumpers and trims - Scratches, cuts, gouges, poor smart repairs, distortion that affects the vehicle’s appearance,
Boot - Missing spare wheel, jack and other tools, if originally supplied, not stowed properly and not in good working order

Tyres - Uneven wear, incorrect speed rating, remoulds or tyres without a European Standard ‘E’ mark, any bulge, gouge, crack, cut, plugged or torn sidewall, under minimum 2mm tread depth across all treads, including the spare, incorrect tyre type or speed rating
Mechanical condition -

Not maintaining or servicing the vehicle in accordance with the manufacturer’s recommendations, work done by non-manufacturer’s authorised service centres, presenting an incomplete service history

Mechanical condition - Not maintaining or servicing the vehicle in accordance with the manufacturer’s recommendations, work done by non-manufacturer’s authorised service centres, presenting an incomplete service history