Should I buy van in personal name or Limited company?

Hey everyone,

I am just about to buy my first van, (not vat reg).

Just wondering if its better to buy the van in my personal name or put it in the limited company name?

As a new company I would be lending the company money as a director to purchase the van.

I would love to get your thoughts on this.

Thanks

If you intend on going limited it ain't what it used to as in it isn't as tax efficient as it was 2 years ago,

My accountant mentions it to me once in a while, I might be £1k better off a year going ltd 

Why buy it in your name, what benefit would you get by doing that. Are you going to rent / lease it to your company? If your Ltd company buys it you can get something like 130% capital expenditure. 

Speak to your Accountant, that's what you pay him for.

What are we talking about here, buying a van outright, or HP?

laddergarder said:

What are we talking about here, buying a van outright, or HP?

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I actually purchased a van yesterday, outright purchase.

which I believe I can put in the company name and be owed the money as a director.

seeitcleanaylesbury said:

I actually purchased a van yesterday, outright purchase.

which I believe I can put in the company name and be owed the money as a director.

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I have been using my van for 4 years and never thought I could get money back by selling it to my company.

seeitcleanaylesbury said:

I actually purchased a van yesterday, outright purchase.

which I believe I can put in the company name and be owed the money as a director.

Click to expand...

OK, so let's say you go with that.

Get the company name on the vans v5.

The company goes under, you could loss the van.

If your sales aren't much in the first year,  you may want to consider putting it through as a capital asset but you would be getting an accountant to sort that who should advise you further. But there is a tax benefit.

Or keep it in your name, then you protect the asset potentially, but you wont get anything through as a capital asset then.

You could potentially charge your business a rent, but then you'll need to declare the rental income on your personal tax return.

See an accountant, the value of the van, your likely sales etc will bear weight on the best approach.

laddergarder said:

OK, so let's say you go with that.

Get the company name on the vans v5.

The company goes under, you could loss the van.

If your sales aren't much in the first year,  you may want to consider putting it through as a capital asset but you would be getting an accountant to sort that who should advise you further. But there is a tax benefit.

Or keep it in your name, then you protect the asset potentially, but you wont get anything through as a capital asset then.

You could potentially charge your business a rent, but then you'll need to declare the rental income on your personal tax return.

See an accountant, the value of the van, your likely sales etc will bear weight on the best approach.

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Thanks for this, I really appreciate your help.
 

I’ve got a meeting with an accountant this coming week and we will what the best option is to do.

seeitcleanaylesbury said:

I actually purchased a van yesterday, outright purchase.

which I believe I can put in the company name and be owed the money as a director.

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You're talking about a directors loan. You've essentially lent the business money to purchase a van and you can take that money back at a later date. It becomes a liability for the business.

laddergarder said:

The company goes under, you could loss the van.

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@laddergarder has a very valid point here. It comes down to the likelihood of that happening. My 'company' has no debts and public/employers liability insurance in place. If we go under I would have bigger concerns than the van. However if the company were to go bust with several debts the van as an asset would be liable to being sold and split across creditors.

As others have said being limited isn't all it's cracked up to be anymore. The additional accountants costs often outweigh the small increase in net. It does however remove a lot of liability from yourself.

seeitcleanaylesbury said:

I’ve got a meeting with an accountant this coming week and we will what the best option is to do.

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Surely you should have spoke to your accountant before purchasing the van. 

Iron Giant said:

Surely you should have spoke to your accountant before purchasing the van. 

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Agreed I should have for clarity ?‍