Been negotiating with our company's leasing department today and the gits have stopped me dead in my tracks.

Aparently Skodas fall foul of our company car policy because they are

"not in keeping with a professional business image."

FFS!

Well pigged off now.

Talk about badge snobbery!

You have my sympathy, I wrote a 3 page document highlighting the benefits of a skoda over an audi, Top gear surveys, spec per pound. It was a stressful time. I managed to win. If I had the audi it would not have been the VRs equivilent just a 140 2.0.

Yes, but in most Surveys Skodas always appear in the top ten.

Beating most of the other business cars.

Tell them that....

Sorry to hear about their shortsightedness.

I'm on my third skoda company car now and when I joined the company I was the first to choose Skoda.

We now have 12 skodas out of a fleet of 46.

Most are Elegance spec with two L&K's.

Rest are mixture of Passats, few Audi A4s (a BMW and a JAG for the directors).

From this you can see the majority are VAG based. I think that says something.

If you are paying the p11d tax on the car, shouldn't you have a choice, maybe hold out for the new Superb:cool:

Thanks for your comments guys.

As with PhilL&K I am the first on the company to opt for a Skoda, although one guy does use his own car which is an Octavia vRS. I would go this route myself, but I don't have access to the necessary finance just at the moment.

I will argue the toss for as long as I can and try to change their minds. Already working on a reasoned case so we will see what turns up.

I'd keep trying to persuade them.

I was the first in our company to go for the 'winged arrow' (and took some stick at the time, lol) but I'm now on my second, and I'm no longer the only one with a Skoda either:rolleyes:

Like the old ad used to say ............. it might earn you more respect than you think ........... if you can just talk the short-sighted b------s round in the first place.

Been negotiating with our company's leasing department today and the gits have stopped me dead in my tracks.

Aparently Skodas fall foul of our company car policy because they are

"not in keeping with a professional business image."

FFS!

Well pigged off now.

This has got me thinking, I could sack a lot of the useless idiots at our place on this basis, - "not in keeping with a professional business image."

Whatever happened to freedom of choice?

try www.badgesnoblawyers4u.com

Keep insisting mate

Been negotiating with our company's leasing department today and the gits have stopped me dead in my tracks.

Aparently Skodas fall foul of our company car policy because they are

"not in keeping with a professional business image."

FFS!

Well pigged off now.

A nice base model 3 series for you then :thumbdwn:

Do they know anything about cars other than the badge on the nose?? :thumbdwn:

My in laws on SWMBO's temporary A4 while the vRS is off the road due to an accident: "Ooh that Audi you have is really nice, I bet you would love to keep it instead of that Skoda and I bet it's got more stuff in it".

Fight your corner mate.

Lol - I'll be really impressed if they put you in a mondeo or vectra.

Lol - I'll be really impressed if they put you in a mondeo or vectra.

I won't! :eek: Not having a godsdamn BMW either thankyou very much!

I still get to choose my own steed, but they get the ultimate yay or nay when it comes to signing off. I thought the rules were actually quite relaxed but the "unprofessional" gem can really be adapted to any car. "You can't have a Skoda they have a bad image." "You can't have a Type R they look to Chavish." "You can't have a 4x4 they are intimidating" etc etc.

The average car on our company is a BMW, an Audi or a Mercedes for those that can afford them. TBH, none of those interest me, except the Audi.

At the moment they are adamant but I will persist. The longer I argue, the more it will cost them in hire cars! :P

Assuming this is a company car - Is a straight cash allowance an option?

If so - if that is reasonable take the money, and get one on PCP

I think financial constraints have knocked that idea on the head.

Can you get an L&K demonstrator for the powers that be to look over, that might sway them a little. Either that or use it to run them over................

I can understand them not wanting you in a Type-R especially if you use it to turn up a meetings with clients and such like but a Skoda? in L&K trim??

I've had nothing but positive comments from clients when I turn up on site in mine.

Been negotiating with our company's leasing department today and the gits have stopped me dead in my tracks.

Aparently Skodas fall foul of our company car policy because they are

"not in keeping with a professional business image."

FFS!

Well pigged off now.

What a load of tosh - I'm a professional engineer with a large UK civil engineering consultancy, attend many meetings with Clients and others and often give them lifts etc. I have a 12 year old Mazda MX5, a 7 year old Fabia Estate and a new Octavia 4x4 Estate, all of which have been used for business purposes with Clients at one time or another, and not one of them have passed a detrimental comment. In fact most are quite inquisitive about the cars in general and positive with comments, the cars actually acting as an initial ice-breaker with new people!

Another consideration is that the more a car cost the more you pay in tax on the P11D value.

Silverware: Ultimately that will be my plan as it works out better financially for me, however it's not really an option this time!

dstev2000: I hadn't thought about throwing a demonstrator at them. I'll see what I can arrange. Thanks for the tip.

skomaz: I concur. Complete and utter tosh.

VRStu: Company car tax is always a worry, but that is one of the reasons I liked the Octavia so much, the tax isn't too bad.

Anyway, round two commences on Monday morning!

Blimey - do people really worry so much about stuff like that when turning up for business meetings?! Any meetings I have to drive to attend, I get the pick of the 'pool' cars which usually means an old style diesel Astra estate in brown or maroon, 80k on the clock, no A/C, cassette player and a dodgy clutch. Although, being in the Forces, a vehicle like that probably reflects our 'business' quite accurately at the moment !!!

Blimey - do people really worry so much about stuff like that when turning up for business meetings?! Any meetings I have to drive to attend, I get the pick of the 'pool' cars which usually means an old style diesel Astra estate in brown or maroon, 80k on the clock, no A/C, cassette player and a dodgy clutch. Although, being in the Forces, a vehicle like that probably reflects our 'business' quite accurately at the moment !!!

I know :eek: I can't quite believe it either, and I thought my managers were weird...

I was the first in my company to get a new Octy vRS TDI. I got a few laughs at first but our guy in Spain has now got one and so have a few in our Holland office.

You'll always get the die hard skoda haters.

As a result, many firms wont take the plunge in case the company car user leaves - no one will want the car!

Someone in our firm has a 4x4 octy. He wants a mondy, and I want an octy. But their making him keep it as he chose it, so he can live with it!

They know I like Octy's, have seen mine and accept they're nice cars and well equiped, but would rather go for a passat than the octy.

I don't understand the logic there. The Passat cost a whole heap more and the Octy is sooooo much better equipped. It just doesn't add up. I guess its just a throwback to the bad image of days gone by.

At the end of the day the joke is on them as they are paying over the odds for a lesser car IMHO.

On our company you get to choose which car you drive. There are certain rules to abide by, no soft tops, fair enough as they pose a security issue, no 4x4's, I guess thats a cost of running/repairing thing and it must have at least 4 doors and 4 seats. Fair enough too.

The point being, you only drive a Skoda if you choose to. Or not if your management team are "Skodaphobic."

The Passat may be worth more money at the end of the lease term which is reflected in the monthly payments.

Sometimes a cheaper car can cost more to lease than expensive equivalent (L&K Octavia vs Passat Sport or SEL).

This isn't always the case but it does happen.

thats right carry on argueing, that way you won't fit in and they'll end up just ordering you the car they want you to have and give you no chice at all

its only a car FFs and a free one at that!

I'll do what I can, obv to get another Octy.

Current car are std 56 Mondeo LX's estates. So I'm assuming I'll manage to scrape through an elegance spec?

its only a car FFs and a free one at that!

True, but you do get taxed on it, so you may as well try and get something you like and that's comfortable.