You’ve come to the end of your printer/copier lease and decided to upgrade your equipment, signaling the start of a new lease agreement.
Because you’re working with the same vendor, you assume the previous billing process will remain the same.
When the first invoice comes in for the monthly lease payment, you pay it the same as always, foregoing attention to the minute details of the invoice.
What you missed during that passive look at your printer bill was that your leasing company changed, which means the address you’re supposed to send the payment to has changed, as well.
So, the payment you sent in the mail was shipped to the old address instead of the new one, causing an unfortunate situation based on a minor mistake.
Why did your leasing company change? How does this affect you? What do you do if your copier/printer leasing company changes?
These types of questions will be answered in this blog because even though a change in leasing companies is not a huge ordeal, it’s something that you should be fully aware of if you opt into a new lease agreement with a vendor.
As a print vendor that partners with Xerox, we know how confounding this seemingly inconsequential change can be and want to use our expertise to guide you through the issue.
What Is an Office Equipment Leasing Company?
First off, let’s establish what a leasing company is to make sure you have a basic understanding of what they do.
Think of leasing companies like banks that you borrow money from to finance your printer.
You agree on a term length, usually around two to five years, and the leasing company is the one that finances the office equipment you lease.
Most printer-seekers opt to lease machines rather than purchase them outright because it reigns as the more affordable option.
Once their initial lease agreements end, most of them will opt for an upgraded machine with newer technology, which starts a new lease agreement.
A lot of times, a leasing company will be chosen by your vendor based on a myriad of factors, including which company offered the best rates at the time you purchased the machine.
In most cases, the only thing you, as the customer, need to worry about with leasing companies is where to send your payment every month and who to contact if you have questions, which is something we will go over in subsequent sections.
Read our blog on what to do once you reach the end of your printer/copier lease to learn more about the options you have once your lease agreement ends.
Why Would Your Leasing Company Change?
So, if your previous leasing company worked fine the first time, why would it change to another company the next time you enter into a lease agreement?
The answer is not always black-and-white, but usually, it’s because your vendor, who is charged with finding a leasing company to finance the machine you just purchased, found a better leasing rate at another company.
There are many leasing companies out there, and if a vendor finds a company that can offer you a better rate for the same machine on a new lease, they will usually go with the company that offers the best rate at the time of purchase.
Some vendors also might choose a leasing company because of uniformity purposes.
If your vendor found a reputable leasing company they want to use consistently, but you’re with a different leasing company than the one the vendor now uses, they might switch the companies upon your new lease to the one they prefer.
How Does a Leasing Company Change Affect You?
This is the crucial question on the topic of a change in leasing companies: How does it affect you?
The answer is simple; a change in leasing companies only truly affects where you will send your monthly payments to or who to contact for billing concerns.
Most lease offerings are the same, but if your leasing company changes, the billing address will likely be different, even if it’s through the same company.
For instance, Xerox recently changed its own financing company from Xerox Corporation to Xerox Financial Services.
Those are two different places entirely, but because both are Xerox-branded companies, it’s easy to assume that there will be no difference in where you send your bill at the end of the month.
Because they are under the same brand, customers have mistakenly sent bills to the Xerox Corporation address rather than the Xerox Financial Services address, which has caused billing problems and accounts payable confusion.
It’s a perfect representation of why it’s paramount to check your invoice upon a new lease agreement, something we will go further into detail about in the next section.
What To Do If Your Leasing Company Changes
As mentioned previously, there could be many leasing company options that operate under the same brand but are different entities.
The number one thing you can do to avoid sending your printer lease payment to the wrong place is to thoroughly look at the invoice you receive on your recently purchased equipment.
Don’t assume that you’re sending the bill to the same place as your previous leasing company. Carefully look through the invoice, paying close attention to the leasing company and their address.
The vendor you leased the equipment from should notify you of a leasing company change, but even still, it’s a good practice to pay attention to your monthly invoice and make sure there are no major changes in billing procedures.
Checking your invoice to ensure your bill will be sent to the right place should eliminate logistical headaches you may encounter if you accidentally send it to the wrong company.
For other content about printer lease agreements, read these blogs:
Have You Been Affected by A Change in Leasing Companies?
A change in leasing companies is likely item number 50 on your top 50 list of priorities to take care of, but it is necessary to be aware of which leasing company you have for your new lease agreement.
If you don’t, it can cost you time and even late fees if you don’t resolve the situation fast enough.
To safeguard against a wrong payment, pay close attention to the leasing company on your new lease agreement; if the company changes, make sure the address you send the payment to is the correct one.
If you’ve recently undergone a change in leasing companies and have further questions, reach out to us and we will do our best to assist you.
