Over time I’ve made some references to the total-loss language in my Audi contract (signed June of 2023)…
Here’s the excerpt:
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Was always curious as to how a one pay reports on a credit bureau? Does it show as a paid auto loan since all payments are made up front?
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@djrabbi @WeakestLink Curious about something here.
Depending on which bureau’s data you’re looking at and the method by which you’re accessing the report, “Open” can be either an account status (contrast with “Closed”) or an account type (like a line of credit, as opposed to, say, Installment [like a car loan] or Revolving [credit card]).
Which is it here? It would seem unlikely to me that the account type is “Open” since the nature of the trade line is nothing like a line of credit, which you can spend and repay over and over and over.
If you aren’t accessing your reports directly from the bureaus, friendly reminder that the free “annual” reports can still be accessed weekly.
Also a friendly but overdue reminder to everyone that Kredit Karma is garbage if you really want to know what’s in your credit files. 
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Well. On credit Karma shows open but $0 balance.
I recently applied for another lease and they asked why I have a zero balance on an open lease. I said it was an old lease that’s been returned so they approved it. If I told them it’s open with current lease, wouldn’t approve lol
It’s impossible to know what’s actually in your credit files by looking at Kredit Karma (you only see a subset of the data for each trade line, and even that’s mapped for a dramatically dumbed-down presentation in a browser or a mobile app), but it’s more likely that the lease has a status of Open than an account type of Open when you look at your actual bureau reports.
I get emails from Kredit Karma all the time telling me about balance changes, and the emails routinely list credit limits that aren’t on my reports – either on the card they’re referring to, or any of my other cards. It’s like they’re using a random credit limit generator.
So if I understand correct…if I were to total a one pay lease before the term is over and assuming my or other parties insurance pays up…I would receive a refund of unused portion of lease? Or did I misunderstand it?
That is how most, but not all, lease contracts handle it. So yes, but be sure to read your contract before signing to verify.
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First, this is an Audi FS contract, so I wouldn’t assume that the terms are universal across lessors.
Over time I hope that people share in this thread the relevant clauses from other leasing companies.
With that said, this one doesn’t say “refund,” it uses “credit,” which could be interpreted as an equivalent dollar amount to use toward another Audi (doesn’t state purchase or lease).
But before that, it says a remedy is a “substitute vehicle” (which appears to require the consent of both parties).
Not sure mechanically how Audi FA applies the credit – or the replacement vehicle (for example, any Audi model?) in practice… hoping for real-life feedback in this thread from people with direct experience with various brands.
BUT the wild (and sometimes popular) speculation that you “lose everything” isn’t supported here at all.
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Reading the contract was a given…just was trying to get a general idea since i see so many Audi 12 month one pays.
I saw it was your Audi lease and never assumed all financial services from various makes have the same setup. I was just generalizing based on what i read. I saw the provision about the replacement car and was just basing my observation on a situation where that option wasnt being used for whatever reason.
I also figured you dont literally get back a refund since you are still under contract technically. My wording was incorrect and i meant a credit from Audi to apply towards something else.
Sorry if that came across as argumentative or dismissive; that wasn’t my intent.
Some of that was for anyone who stumbles on the comments in a day or a week or a year, for clarity.
I’m still hopeful that someone will weigh in with some real-world experience on whether there’s a layer of courtesy sitting on top of the plain contract language.
It’s possible that the credit is a refundable credit in current practice, even if it isn’t an explicit right.
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Not at all. I appreciate all the info I can get from everyone here. I hope I dont come off as defensive…I was just trying to explain my poor (or lazy) wording in my original response. I want to know more about the one pays myself and especially the things you pointed out since I live among some of the worst drivers here in NYC 
A dealer offered me a one pay lease to get me where I wanted to be on a Mazda CX-90 PHEV.
Just double checking for those who know about Mazda and Toyota (I think that Mazda uses TFS for leases)… what happens with a onepay if the car is totaled/stolen? Do they prorate your lease and give the money back? Do they put you into a similar car? Or am I out $12k?
Thank You
Pretty sure its a prorated return, but as always, verify the actual lease contract. Just ask the dealer to send over a blank copy for you to read through the contract language.
Thank You!
Audi one-pay and Audi Care refund:
Just wondering what happens if you total a pre-paid lease? Specifically with Lexus. Thanks
Prorated refund
Hey @Trevor to help with the education around here on this forum, would you mind first sharing what your assumptions would be around totaling a car where you’ve done a one-pay lease?
It would be interesting if you could show your thought process here, so the people with the answers can more precisely answer for you.
For example, if you did a $30,000 one pay lease for a 36 month term. What are your honest expectations as to what would happen if the car was totaled in the first month?