This guide explains all three clearly so you know what exists, what applies to you and where to go next. It covers sworn officers, PCSOs, civilian staff and all members of the wider police family.
One thing to be clear about upfront: the term police car scheme refers to a force-administered salary sacrifice lease. It is not a catch-all for every car benefit available to police staff. Personal leasing and the Motor Source police car discount programme are separate options, explained in full below.
The Three Ways to Get a Car as a Police Employee
As a member of the police family, there are three main routes:
- Police car discount. A negotiated discount on buying a new car outright. Available to all police staff with no force sign-up required.
- Force salary sacrifice scheme. A pre-tax arrangement where part of your gross salary funds a car lease. Requires your force to have opted into a scheme.
- Personal leasing. A lease arranged directly between you and a leasing company. No employer involvement required.
| Feature | Motor Source Police Discount | Force Salary Sacrifice | Personal Leasing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who owns the car | You | Leasing company | Leasing company |
| How you pay | Upfront or finance | Pre-tax salary deduction | Post-tax monthly payments |
| BiK company car tax | No | Yes (2% on EVs) | No |
| Affects police pension | No | Yes (PPS 2015) | No |
| If you transfer force or leave | You keep the car | Exit penalty applies | Exit penalty applies |
| Available at all forces | Yes, via Motor Source Group | No, force dependent | Yes, independent |
| Mileage restrictions | None | Yes, excess charges apply | Yes, excess charges apply |
| Typical saving | Average £7,500 off list | Varies by salary and car | No discount on vehicle price |
What is the Police Car Discount?
The Motor Source police car discount programme is the most straightforward car option available to police staff. It is a negotiated discount on the purchase price of a new car, available to all officers and police family members. No force sign-up. No HR conversation. No change to your contract. You buy a car at a discounted price and it is yours from day one.
Motor Source Group: the police car discount specialist
Motor Source Group is the UK's leading new car discount broker for police and public sector staff, and the provider behind the police car discount available through Blue Light Card. Officers and police family members who buy through Motor Source Group save an average of £7,500 off the manufacturer list price, across all major makes and models. Motor Source Group works directly with manufacturer dealer networks to secure police pricing that is not available through standard retail channels.
Going directly through Motor Source Group at police.motorsourcegroup.com gives you access to the full range of discounted vehicles and the complete fleet-level saving. The discount is applied transparently to the purchase price before any finance is calculated, so what you see is what you get.
"The police car discount is the option that works for every officer and member of staff, regardless of which force they serve or what their employment situation looks like. You save thousands off a new car and you own it outright from day one. No schemes, no penalties, no complications." – Steve Thornton, CEO, Motor Source Group
Police car lease through Motor Source Group
Not every officer wants to buy outright. Motor Source Group also offers a personal contract hire option, a personal lease arranged directly between you and the dealer network. This is not a salary sacrifice scheme and requires no force involvement. It gives police staff access to competitive lease rates regardless of whether their force participates in any scheme.
What buying outright includes
- Full ownership from day one
- No mileage restrictions
- No end of lease return conditions
- No early exit penalties. If you transfer force or leave the service, the car stays with you
- All makes and models available, including used cars
- Finance available: PCP and HP applied to the discounted purchase price
You arrange your own insurance, servicing and breakdown cover separately. These are not bundled into a monthly payment as they are with a salary sacrifice scheme.
What happens if you transfer force or leave the service?
Nothing changes. The car is in your name. There is no penalty, no clawback and no notification to your force required. This is the clearest advantage of the police car discount for anyone who may move between forces, take a career break, or leave the service.
Finance flexibility: your choice
1. Personal Contract Purchase (PCP)
- Lower monthly payments with optional final balloon payment
- Flexibility to keep, return or trade at end of term
- Typical: £250 to £350/month with £15,000 final payment option
2. Hire Purchase (HP)
- Fixed monthly payments throughout
- Guaranteed ownership at end of term with no balloon payment
- Typical: £400 to £500/month, yours after 5 years
3. Your Own Bank Finance
- Use your bank's personal loan, often at lower interest rates
- Complete term flexibility
- Motor Source still applies the police discount regardless
How to get a police car discount
- Browse deals. Search by make, model or budget at police.motorsourcegroup.com/new-cars.
- Request a quote. Motor Source Group confirms the discounted police price and checks availability through their dealer network.
- Arrange finance if needed. Choose PCP, HP or a personal loan. The police discount applies to the vehicle price before finance is calculated.
- Confirm your police status. Verify your employment. Motor Source Group handles this as part of the purchase process.
- Take delivery. Motor Source Group arranges delivery through the dealer network. Stock vehicles can often be delivered within days.
What is Force Salary Sacrifice?
Force salary sacrifice is a car arrangement where you give up part of your gross salary in exchange for a car lease. Because the payment comes out before income tax and National Insurance are applied, your monthly cost is lower than a standard personal lease for the same car.
Salary sacrifice schemes are not available at every force. Each police force makes its own decision about whether to join a scheme and which provider to use. There is no single national police salary sacrifice provider in the way that NHS Fleet Solutions operates for NHS trusts. Check with your force HR or federation rep to find out whether your force participates and which provider they use.
How salary sacrifice works
The monthly lease cost is deducted from your gross salary before tax. Your taxable income falls and you pay less tax and National Insurance each month. The saving is largest for higher rate taxpayers and for electric vehicles, which carry the lowest BiK rate of any car type (currently 2% to 5% depending on the tax year).
A typical EV on salary sacrifice can save a basic rate taxpayer £150 to £250 per month compared with a personal lease. A higher rate taxpayer saves more. For petrol or diesel cars, the saving is smaller because BiK rates are higher.
Watch out for inflated lease prices. A common concern raised by police officers is that salary sacrifice schemes can appear cheaper on paper due to the tax saving, but the underlying lease price may be set higher than what you would pay on a standard personal lease for the same car. Always compare the actual net monthly cost against a personal lease quote for the same vehicle before committing to a force scheme.
What happens if you transfer force or leave the service? Early exit carries a financial penalty. Because the car is leased in your employer's name, leaving or transferring before the lease ends triggers an early termination charge. This is passed to you. The amount depends on your provider and the point in the lease at which you leave. Ask your force HR or the scheme provider for the exact penalty schedule before signing.
Other things salary sacrifice affects
- Police pension. The Police Pension Scheme 2015 is a career average scheme that calculates your pension on average annual pensionable pay. A salary sacrifice reduces this each year it is in place. Given the generosity of the police pension, this impact is worth taking seriously before signing.
- Maternity and paternity pay. These are earnings-based. A sacrifice in place during parental leave reduces the amount you receive. Check with payroll before signing up if you are planning a family.
- Mortgage applications. A reduced gross salary on your payslip can lower what a lender will offer. Check with your lender if you are planning to apply.
- National Minimum Wage floor. The sacrifice cannot reduce take-home pay below NMW. Lower-paid civilian staff and PCSOs with existing salary sacrifices should verify eligibility with payroll before proceeding.
How to get a car through force salary sacrifice
- Confirm your force participates. Ask HR or your Police Federation rep whether your force offers a salary sacrifice car scheme and which provider they use.
- Get your access code. HR will provide a code or portal link to access your force's scheme.
- Build your quote. Browse vehicles and see the monthly salary sacrifice amount and estimated tax saving for your pay grade and tax band.
- Sign the variation of contract. Salary sacrifice requires a formal change to your employment contract for the lease duration.
- Take delivery. Once the car arrives, your deduction begins. Insurance, servicing and BiK are typically covered in the monthly amount.
Does Your Force Offer Salary Sacrifice? How to Check
Unlike the NHS where a national framework exists, police salary sacrifice provision varies significantly force by force. Some forces offer well-established schemes; others have no scheme at all. Here is how to find out where you stand.
How to check
- Search your force intranet for 'salary sacrifice' or 'car scheme' on the staff benefits page.
- Ask your HR or payroll team directly: does our force offer a salary sacrifice car benefit?
- Ask your Police Federation representative, who will know which schemes your force has signed up to.
Important: If your force does not offer a salary sacrifice scheme, the Motor Source police car discount is available to you regardless. No force sign-up required. Available to all officers, PCSOs and civilian police staff.
What is Personal Leasing?
Personal leasing is a contract hire arrangement made directly between you and a leasing company, with no employer involvement at all. You pay a fixed monthly amount from your post-tax income, drive the car for an agreed term, and return it at the end.
Personal leasing does not offer a discount on the vehicle price and payments come from post-tax income, making it less cost-efficient than either the police car discount or salary sacrifice. It suits officers who want job flexibility above all else and do not want to commit to ownership.
Key advantages
- No force tie-in, full job mobility between forces
- Lower monthly payments than buying
- Drive new cars regularly
- No depreciation concern
- Predictable costs during the lease term
- No pension impact
Considerations
- Deposit required (typically 3 to 6 months of payments upfront)
- You never own the vehicle
- Mileage restrictions with excess charges if you go over
- Insurance and maintenance are separate costs
- Early termination fees if your circumstances change
- No tax efficiency as payments come from post-tax income
- No discount on the vehicle purchase price
The Pension Consideration
For police staff on the Police Pension Scheme 2015, salary sacrifice has a significant consideration: it may reduce your pensionable pay each year it is in place.
The key word is may. Some forces have structured their salary sacrifice schemes specifically to protect pensionable pay, meaning the sacrifice does not reduce the pay figure used to calculate your pension. Other forces have not. Northumbria Police, for example, state their scheme does not affect your pension. Kent Police explicitly advises staff to consider the pension implications before joining. The position depends entirely on how your force has set up their specific scheme.
Before signing any salary sacrifice agreement, ask your force HR or payroll team one direct question: does this scheme reduce my pensionable pay? Get the answer in writing.
Example: Police Constable, £38,000 salary, £370/month sacrifice.
- Pensionable pay reduced from £38,000 to £33,560 per year
- Employer pension contributions calculated on lower figure
- Employee contributions also based on lower figure
- Compounded over a 30-year career, the impact is substantial
The police pension is one of the most valuable benefits in the public sector. Reducing pensionable pay through salary sacrifice trades a long-term pension benefit for a short-term monthly saving on a car. For officers earlier in their careers with decades still to serve, this trade-off deserves careful thought.
"The pension impact is real and for police officers it is worth taking particularly seriously. The police pension is one of the best in the public sector. A direct purchase through Motor Source protects that completely while still saving you thousands on the car itself." – Steve Thornton, CEO, Motor Source Group
Electric Vehicles: Which Option Works Best?
Electric vehicles change the calculation across all three options. Here is what police staff need to know.
Salary sacrifice and EVs: where the numbers are strongest
Salary sacrifice is most financially compelling when the car is electric. EVs carry a Benefit in Kind rate of just 2% in the current tax year, rising gradually to 7% by 2028 to 2029. Compare this with a petrol car at 25% to 37% BiK, and the monthly saving on an EV through salary sacrifice is significantly larger than on an equivalent petrol model.
For police staff whose force offers salary sacrifice and who want a new electric car, this combination delivers the largest monthly saving of any option. The pension impact consideration still applies, however, and should not be overlooked even when the monthly numbers look attractive.
Police car discount and EVs: own it outright
Motor Source Group offers police staff significant discounts on electric vehicles, with an average saving of £7,500 off list price across all makes and models including EVs. If your force does not offer salary sacrifice, or if you want to own the car rather than lease it, the police car discount route gives you access to the same vehicles without any force involvement.
Buying an EV outright also means no BiK tax, no early exit risk and no pension impact. For police staff who are planning a mortgage, approaching retirement or uncertain about their career plans, owning an EV through the police car discount is a clean and straightforward option.
Which EV route is right for you?
| Your situation | EV route to consider |
|---|---|
| Your force offers salary sacrifice and you want the lowest monthly cost | Salary sacrifice on an EV through your force scheme |
| Your force does not offer salary sacrifice | Police EV discount via Motor Source Group |
| You want to own the EV outright with no pension impact | Police EV discount via Motor Source Group |
| You may transfer force or leave the service before the lease ends | Police EV discount via Motor Source Group |
Which Option is Right for You? It Depends on These Factors
The right option depends on whether your force offers a scheme, your rank and pay grade, your career plans and your financial situation.
| Your situation | What this means for your choice |
|---|---|
| Your force does not offer a salary sacrifice scheme | The police car discount is your primary option. Available to all officers and staff regardless of force. |
| You are a constable or sergeant on standard pay (20% taxpayer) | Salary sacrifice saves modestly on tax. The pension impact may outweigh the monthly saving over a full career. The police discount is often the better long-term choice. |
| You are an inspector or above (40% taxpayer) | Salary sacrifice on an EV delivers a more meaningful monthly saving. Still consider the pension impact before committing. |
| You may transfer force or move departments during the lease | The police car discount carries no exit penalty. Salary sacrifice and personal leasing both do. |
| You are planning a mortgage or parental leave | The police car discount has no impact on gross salary, pension or maternity pay. |
| You are approaching retirement | Salary sacrifice affects pensionable pay in your final career average years. The police car discount does not. Speak to your pensions manager before committing. |
| You are a PCSO or civilian staff member on lower pay | Salary sacrifice may be restricted by the National Minimum Wage floor. The police car discount is available with no such restriction. |
