If you get into an accident with your leased car, are you also responsible for any diminished value as a result of the incident? If not, then how does a dealership protect itself or do they just accept the loss?

Just curious.

 

If the car is a loss then your insurance pays the leasing company the value of the car, instead of you. However sometimes the insurance value will not be the same as what the car is worth & you have to come up with the difference.

If you just get into an accident & get the car fixed, the leasing company just takes it, just like a bank would if you were financing it. When you retun the car as long as it's in good shape, your within the milage limits, & there's no noticable effect of the accident, the leasing company will just take the car back.

 

In most cases, a leased vehicle comes standard with the Gap coverage which kicks in when the value of the vehicle is less than the amount owed, putting you upside down. Gap coverage pays for that difference.

In the case of Acura, their leased vehicles come with the Gap coverage at no extra charge.

 

All leased vehicles include GAP. Since the manufacturer and the consumer own the car jointly in a lease, the coverage is included to protect the manufacturers investment.

And as long as the accidents are repaired by an acceptable repair facility and you have the applicable receipts, their is nothing they can charge you for 'diminished value'. Now...if you tried to fix it yourself...watch out.

 

Is this GAP insurance only available for leased autos?

 

No. It's available for any auto purchase...usually about $200-600 depending on the amount of the contract.

However, on leased vehicles, the dealer will include it automatically to protect the vehicle manufacturers interest(Since they are technically a joint owner, the buyer really has no choice).