Net Investments in Operating Leases Loans and Lease Receivable (Policies)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2019

Loans and Leases Receivable Disclosure [Abstract]

Lessee, Leases [Policy Text Block]

Net investment in operating leases consists primarily of lease contracts for vehicles with individuals, daily rental companies, and fleet customers with terms of 60 months or less. Payment extensions may be requested by the customer and are generally limited to a maximum of six months over the term of the lease.  Term extensions may also be requested by the customer. Term and payment extensions in total generally do not exceed twelve months. A lease can be terminated at any time by satisfying the obligations under the lease agreement. Early termination programs may be occasionally offered to eligible lessees. At the end of the lease, the customer returns the vehicle to the dealer or may have the option to buy the leased vehicle. In the case of a contract default and repossession, the customer typically remains liable for any deficiency between net auction proceeds and the defaulted contract obligations, including any repossession-related expenses.

Accumulated depreciation reduces the value of the vehicles from their initial acquisition value to their expected residual value at the end of the lease, with the associated depreciation expense recognized on a straight-line basis over the term of the lease. At the time of purchase, we establish the expected residual value for the vehicle based on recent auction values, return volumes for our leased vehicles, industry-wide used vehicle prices, marketing incentive plans, and vehicle quality data. We monitor residual values each month and review the accuracy of our accumulated depreciation on a quarterly basis.

Comparability of Prior Year Financial Data, Policy [Policy Text Block]

We reclassify certain prior period amounts in our consolidated financial statements to conform to current year presentation.At December 31, 2018, this reclassification increased accumulated depreciation and decreased allowance for credit losses by $78 million, respectively, and had no impact on Net Investment in operating leases.  On the income statement, this reclassification increased Depreciation on vehicles subject to operating leases and decreased Provision for credit losses by $29 million and $77 million, for the third quarter of 2018 and first nine months of 2018, respectively.

These changes had no impact on Income before income taxes, Net investment in operating leases, Retained earnings, or to Net cash provided by / (used in) operating activities. We have reclassified prior period amounts to reflect the above changes.