For senior firefighter Sam Locke, a government restructure paved the way to begin his novated lease journey.

“When the Tasmania Fire Service was brought under the same banner as the Department of Police and Emergency Management last year it allowed firefighters the opportunity to salary sacrifice vehicles, so I thought I might give it a go and see how it works out after a five-year lease,” says Sam.

After crunching the numbers on a few older vehicles he settled on a 2018 Mazda CX3 Akari diesel automatic. The vehicle is one of two in the household, and is used for trips to and from work, school runs and family outings. 

Sam says the budgetary convenience swayed him towards a novated lease. “With fuel, servicing and general running costs [budgeted for] I knew we have five years of covered driving ahead of us. I love that everything is covered for with no nasty surprises. Also, there’s tax benefits which aren’t offered with a regular finance package.”

Sam is full of praise for the service provided by Maxxia during the two-month wait for his vehicle. “All the staff I dealt with played a hand in a smooth transaction; their ability to communicate both verbally and via email was fantastic. With the dealings I’ve had so far I would definitely recommend it to those who are able to salary package a vehicle.”