Jul 4, 2008

Avoid the Auto Lease Overage Blues

Excess mileage charges are the bane of the leased-vehicle driver. Millions of Americans who drive leased cars and trucks live in fear of the often-exorbitant fees that leasing companies charge drivers who go over their predetermined mileage limits before returning the car. Unfortunately, tracking and managing miles has always been a nuisance, especially to the mathematically challenged, meaning that leasees frequently pay hundreds or thousands of dollars in unexpected fees when they return their cars.

Most auto leasing companies charge between 10 and 25 cents per mile when a vehicle’s mileage goes over the limit, meaning that drivers who put just 2,500 extra miles per year on their cars over a five-year lease can pay more than $3,000 in penalties when they return their vehicles. Now there’s a way to avoid that money pit by being warned before you build up the extra miles.

A mobile phone application called Miles to Go by RiffWare has the ability to warn Verizon Wireless subscribers when their driving patterns will lead to an overage, allowing them time to adjust their habits and avoid expensive charges. Miles to Go can be downloaded for $2.99 from Verizon Wireless Get It Now compatible phones.

“For today’s hardworking American families, every dollar counts,” said Rob Witman, CEO of RiffWare. “The reality, however, is that many people who lease fall into the trap of committing to yearly mileage constraints that are incompatible with day-to-day use of the vehicle. Miles to Go is a personal finance tool that takes the guesswork out of overages and gives drivers ample time to adjust their habits, before it’s too late to do anything about it.”

Now if they had a similar premarriage tool, the world would be a better place.