Protecting a Tesla Bought on a Novated Lease: What to Arrange, and When

Why EV novated leases changed the maths

Because eligible electric vehicles under the luxury car tax threshold are exempt from Fringe Benefits Tax, salary-packaging a Tesla has become one of the most tax-effective ways to drive one. More of the cost comes out of pre-tax salary, which is why Teslas have become the most popular novated-lease vehicle in the country.

What far fewer drivers realise is that the lease does not have to stop at the car and its running costs.

What you can actually include

Alongside charging, insurance, registration, tyres and servicing, a novated lease can usually include eligible accessories — and that is where protection fits:

• Paint protection film (PPF) — full-front or full-body, to guard the factory paint from stone chips and swirls.
• Ceramic and graphene coatings — a durable, high-gloss layer that makes the car easier to keep clean.
• Window tint — heat and UV rejection, chosen around the car’s sensors.
• Customisation — wraps, accessories and finishing touches, specified up front.

Included this way, the cost is paid from pre-tax salary rather than your take-home pay — and you save the GST on top.

The one thing to get right: timing

This is the part that trips people up, so it is worth being precise:

• Before the lease is finalised — the protection needs to be quoted and included in your package. Once a lease has started, you generally cannot add new items to it.
• After delivery — the work itself happens. You collect your Tesla from Tesla, then drive it straight to us and we protect it while it is still flawless.

In other words, nothing needs to happen to the car before you take delivery. The only thing that has to happen early is the paperwork — getting an itemised quote into your lease package in time.

What if the lease has already started?

If your lease is already running, you generally cannot capitalise new accessories into it — but you are welcome to book with us directly and pay privately. The ideal, though, is to talk to us the moment you order the car, while there is still time to include the work in your package.

How it works with us

We have worked alongside novated lease companies and their customers for years, so the process is deliberately simple:

• Tell us your Tesla and what you’d like protected — our project builder makes it quick.
• We send you an itemised quote.
• You pass the quote to your novated lease provider.
• Your provider requests an invoice and we send it straight to them.
• We align your booking with your delivery date, so the car is protected from day one.

One dedicated relationship manager looks after you the whole way — the same person from first quote to collection. We are provider-agnostic, so our quote and invoice work with whichever novated lease company your employer uses.

If you’re at the research stage, our dedicated Tesla novated lease page explains exactly what can be included, what it costs, and lets you build a package to send straight to us.

Lucky Five Motorsport provides vehicle protection, repair and customisation services. Where this article touches on novated leasing or tax, it is general information only, not financial or taxation advice — confirm eligibility and figures with your novated lease provider or a qualified adviser.