austaz

A general caution on MBFS leases for anyone considering a lease as they have really lowered their level of service.
MBFS no longer allows transfers.
MBFS no longer allows pre lease end inspections so you are stuck with what ever they determine wear and tear is on the car weeks or months after you turn it in.
MBFS is not processing dealer buy off letters in a way that allows another dealer to purchase the lease out, they are taking 4 days to generate and send the letters and in some cases the letter is only valid for 2-3 days after it is sent.

So buyer beware, they are locking in current and future lease holders without a realistic exit option and with a high risk at lease turn in for wear and tear (unless you commit to a new lease).

Yogibara

I turned in a MB lease in 2018 and had to fight them on all the added fees they tried to tack on to my exit invoice. I called MBFS and contested the charges and got them to drop everything but the 595 turn-in fee. And that was after I had my pre-inspection. In fact, i believe that's what saved me from paying those fees was because the inspection should have caught what they were trying to ding me for. My take away is that all dealers/financiers will be like that if you don't get in to another lease.

chassis

More evidence, to add to the large mountain, of Mercedes' poor customer treatment.

Yogibara

And yet we keep coming back. 😎

fabbrisd1

1. "MBFS no longer allows transfers" - meaning transferring your leased Mercedes from you as a private party to another qualified private party - correct "no transfer" has been the updated policy since May of this year - with the exception in the event the original leasee dies - the balance of that lease can be transferred to a surviing member of that family if they want - and the other exception are Connecticut leases which can be transferred under mandate of specific CT statute.
For me over the past 8yrs - I have had exactly two customers who choose to takeover the balance of a existing lease thru Swap-A-Lease.

2. "MBFS no longer allows pre lease end inspections" "you are stuck with what ever they determine wear and tear is on the car weeks or months after you turn it in"
COVID has thrown a wrench into the lease returns of about every car manufacturer - in the case of Mercedes - for perspective on what may be Excess Wear/Tear - in addition to the terms of original Lease Agreement - you can direct any questions BEFORE LEASE TURN IN to Mercedes Financial Services at (800) 873-5471
The most "common" issue is when your insurance company has replaced a broken/cracked windshield with a non-Mercedes aftermarket windshield - since your Mercedes Lease (and all other Euro luxury brand leases) require OE windshield.
If returning a lease MB - moving forward to a new MB - the $595 termination fee is waived - and MB dealers are allowed to waive worst case a additional $500 in excess charges - moving forward to a new MB thru that dealer can get you credit 3-6 months payments to move forward early = and if your "trade-in" MB dealer plans to "keep your car" for their inventory - that means no MBFS inspection will be done.

3. "MBFS is not processing dealer buy off letters in a way that allows another dealer to purchase the lease out, they are taking 4 days to generate and send the letters and in some cases the letter is only valid for 2-3 days after it is sent".
Well - that isn't the case - really. A "payoff to purchase" is available over the phone - it is a bit more technical on a dealer request since it is lease balance + termination - and YES if you are trading in at a non-MB dealer that quote is good to the end-date of your lease - so if non-MB dealer "payoff" is not received by your payment-date - yes, there are additional finance charges that will be due..

Jmarc

I was told by MBFS that AUTOVIN is now doing pre inspections again

hotspace

With all of the really aggressive trade-in offers has anyone traded in a leased vehicle in the last 12 months of their lease period? Any pros/cons/fees associated with doing something like this?