How to get the best deal on your first EV lease

Leasing your EV rather than buying outright makes getting your first EV so much easier. But don’t be tempted to jump into the first leasing scheme you see.

To get the best deal possible, it’s important to shop around, read reviews of different leasing providers, and compare the benefits different leasing schemes offer.

Here’s what first-time EV drivers need to know.

If you’re looking for a personal EV lease, your two main options are:

• Personal Contract Purchase (PCP): You lease the car initially, with the option to purchase the car outright at the end
• Personal Contract Hire (PCH): You lease the car for a set period of time, before either renewing the lease or handing the car back

Both of these types of lease offer two key advantages: affordable monthly payments and the possibility of handing the car back after your initial lease period. This means that you’ll always get to drive the latest EVs with the smartest tech, and you’ll avoid being stuck with a heavily devalued car when the next massive EV innovation hits the market.

Ultimately, you get all the benefits of electric driving, without the hassle and financial risk of ownership – and you avoid an expensive upfront cash payment that dents your savings.

In a nutshell: the best EV leasing schemes save you time and money.

Your leasing package should take care of everything you need to make the switch to electric driving, whilst offering a package of benefits that make your life easier and save you some cash.

Included servicing, maintenance, and roadside assistance? Check.

Charging support, and discounts at home and on the road? Check.

Having everything included in your lease makes getting your first EV so much easier to navigate. And, if your leasing provider offers good customer support, you’ll always have an expert on hand to answer any questions about driving, charging, or maintaining your EV.

Bonus: some leasing schemes even sometimes offer free chargers - so keep an eye out!

Charging is your main ongoing expense when leasing an EV, so look for a leasing scheme that offers discounts in this area.

Octopus Energy’s Intelligent Octopus Go is an EV tariff that gives y smart EV tariff that gives you cheaper off-peak charging – and allows you to automatically schedule your EV charges via a handy app.

When you lease with Octopus EV’s personal leasing scheme, Intelligent EV, you’ll enjoy an exclusive discount on Octopus Energy’s Intelligent Octopus Go rate, with EV Saver - making off-peak electricity even cheaper. And, you can also enjoy 10% off all public charging via the Octopus Electroverse app – for the entirety of your lease. So you’re saving money when you charge at home and in public.

1. Use online reviews to check on customer service – you want support throughout your lease, not just until you’ve handed over that first monthly payment. Check ours here
2. Don’t overpay for mileage – track your weekly mileage for a few weeks before purchase to see how much you need. Adding a little headroom is sensible, but overestimating too much will increase costs unnecessarily
3. Plan ahead – you’ll need time to complete the paperwork, and your lease provider may need a few weeks’ lead time to order your EV from the manufacturer
4. Double check inclusions – if you’re unsure whether a particular feature or benefit is included in your lease, ask!
5. Take advantage of the Electric Car Grant Scheme – this could give you up to £3,750 off a new EV for zero extra effort!

At Intelligent EV, we help you save on charging and energy costs as well as on the car itself with leasing packages that include:

• An expert-picked range of the latest, smartest EVs
• Home and public charging discounts, via Intelligent Octopus Go and Electroverse
• Discounts on green energy tech via our sister company, Octopus Energy
• A host of other little goodies to bring a smile to your face – free coffees, cinema tickets and more

Great customer service makes a huge difference during your first EV lease.

The likelihood is that you’ll be leasing your EV for at least a couple of years, so you should be looking for providers that offer first-class, ongoing support throughout (rather than abandoning you as soon as you’ve signed the contract).

Use TrustPilot and similar sites to get a feel for how different leasing providers treat their customers, and shortlist those with the best reviews.

It’s easy to overestimate how much mileage you need on a day-to-day basis, but you may need less than you think – our drivers average just 167 miles per week.

Track your mileage over a few weeks to get an accurate sense of how much you need. Then, choose a lease that accommodates that figure. It’s fine to add a little headroom – but if you overestimate too much, you’ll be paying unnecessarily for mileage you won’t use.

It’s best to plan at least a few weeks ahead when taking out your lease – your lease provider might need to wait on the manufacturer to deliver your car, and you’ll need some time to complete the paperwork.

Remember: the latest, most popular models go fast – get in early if you want the hottest EV of the year.

Not all leases are created equal. Some include discounts and giveaways that others won’t, and vice versa. To make sure you’re getting the best deal possible:

• Ask potential lease providers about any inclusions you’re unsure about
• Compare each lease package’s benefits against each other to get the best deal

To compare leases, take a look at the total value of everything the package offers, and think about how much it will save over the course of your lease.

Remember to look at the bigger picture too – some benefits offered by leasing providers offer savings in the short term. Others build slowly over time, but may save you more money overall.

In July 2025, the UK Government announced the Electric Car Grant Scheme to encourage more people to make the switch to an EV.

You can find all the details of the scheme in our Guide to the Electric Car Grant Scheme, but the bottom line right now is that you could save up to £3,750 on some new EVs without having to lift a finger. Your leasing provider will apply the discount automatically to your monthly payments.

The scheme is set to run until 2029, but is funding-dependent – so now’s a great time to shop around for a bargain on your dream EV!