Lease Return - Out of State Concerns

Folks - have a general question for those that have gotten a leased vehicle out of state. How have you guys dealt with returning that leased vehicle? Most people just say speak to your local dealer but it seems as this is a entirely judgmental call on their part.

My dilemma - planning on getting family a LX from here in the NY, shipped down to TX but don’t want them to have to deal with shipping it back to NY to return at lease end.

I’ve taken over leases on several out of state cars. I’ve never had a local dealership refuse to take it. I have it inspected ahead of time by whatever company they use, drop the car off, and I’m out with the paperwork in under five minutes. Your contract is with the leasing company and not the originating dealership.

Appreciate the quick response, but did you have to call the dealership ahead of time to drop off? Was getting the inspection done ahead of time helpful in avoiding such issues or at least in your opinion?

I’ve run into this issue in the past, had a hard time returning my Chevy suv to a local dealer (I think I reached out to 3 in the area), ended up driving it out to where I got the lease from.

Thanks you!

Most leasing companies will have a company such as AutoVIN that does their inspections. I have found that scheduling it about 30 days out and getting the report has avoided any costs related to repairs, missing items, etc. I would highly recommend it. It only takes 20-60 minutes depending on the vehicle, and they come to you.

I called the dealerships where I returned the vehicles in advance. All of them have told me that I didn’t have to make an appointment. I just needed to find a free sales person, turn in the keys, have them get an odometer reading, and then I got a sheet of paper with all the details signed by them. I used that to get a credit for plates in my state and apply it to any new vehicle.