Start 120 days out

Find the notice clause in your agreement. Most leases require written notice 60 to 120 days before the term ends stating your intention. Send it early, send it in writing, and keep proof of delivery.

If the deadline passes without notice, most agreements renew automatically — commonly for another twelve months at the same payment, on a machine whose cost you have already covered. This is the single most expensive mistake in copier leasing and it is entirely avoidable.

Option 1: return the machine

Available on fair market value leases. You arrange freight back to the lessor's designated location, typically $300 to $500 per unit, and the equipment must arrive in working order allowing for normal wear. Photograph the machine before it ships and record the final meter reading.

Option 2: buy it

On a $1 buyout lease you pay a dollar and the machine is yours. On a fair market value lease the lessor quotes a purchase price, usually 10 to 15 percent of the original equipment cost. Whether that is worth paying depends on the machine's meter, its condition, and whether firmware support continues.

Option 3: renew

Renewing deliberately, on renegotiated terms, is a reasonable choice for a machine that is running well and still meets your needs. Renewal payments should be materially lower than the original, because the equipment is now five years old. If the lessor offers the same payment, decline.

Option 4: upgrade

The most common outcome. The remaining obligation, if any, is rolled into a new agreement and the machine is swapped. Ask for the arithmetic in writing: how much of the old lease is being carried forward, and what that adds to the new payment. A clean upgrade at natural term end carries nothing forward at all.

Ask before you commit

Whichever path you take, get the final meter reading, a written release from the lessor confirming the obligation is closed, and confirmation that any service agreement tied to the machine has been ended or transferred. Service contracts do not always terminate automatically when a lease does.

If you are approaching an end of term now, our copier leasing team will review the agreement with you, including one written by another dealer.

Common questions

What if I miss the notice deadline on my copier lease?

The lease typically renews automatically, often for twelve months. Some lessors will shorten an automatic renewal on request, particularly if you are entering a new agreement with the same funding source, but they are not obliged to.

Who pays to ship a leased copier back?

You do, unless your agreement says otherwise. Expect $300 to $500 per machine. Dealers frequently absorb this cost when you upgrade with them — ask for it in writing as part of the new deal.