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NGExpert financial copywriter
Healthcare is a huge industry in South Africa, covering everything from pediatric and senior care, to dental, vision and audio, with a vast array of equipment utilised by professionals who work in the sector.
Page written by Chris Godfrey. Last reviewed on August 26, 2024. Next review due March 1, 2025.
Because this equipment can be expensive, many medical providers choose to lease the machines and tools they need using a medical equipment lease. This type of financing reduces strain on cashflow, provides practitioners with the latest devices, and helps to continually improve the efficiency and quality of the healthcare we receive.
The main categories of medical equipment are electronic, diagnostic, surgical, durable medical equipment (DME), acute care, IT hardware and software, storage, and transport. However, no matter what it’s called, almost every type of medical device can be obtained with a specialised medical equipment lease.
Paying for medical equipment out of valuable working capital does not make business sense, which is why thousands of medical SMEs secure the devices they need with a flexible, cost-effective, medical equipment lease. This type of financing offers a host of unique advantages:
Healthcare providers seeking to lease their new medical equipment can choose from two types of medical equipment leasing products:
This is a long-term rental agreement with an option to buy at contract end. The lessee (you) pays a fixed monthly sum for use of the equipment and for a set period of time (12, 24, 36 months etc). When the contract expires, you may either buy the equipment for its fair-market value, extend the rental for a further 12 months or more, or you can simply return the device(s) to the lessor (the equipment provider) with nothing more to pay. (Subject to any usage limitations).
This is also long-term rental agreement, but you automatically buy the equipment for a pre-agreed ‘buyout fee’ (often as little as R1) at contract end. You pay a fixed monthly sum for use of the equipment and for a set period of time (12, 24, 36 months etc). When the contract expires and you have paid the buyout fee, the equipment is yours with nothing more to pay.
Your financial plan will determine which method of medical equipment funding is best for you. If you want to add the equipment to your balance sheet and own it outright as soon as the loan is paid off, a finance loan may be the way to go. However, if you want the lowest monthly payments, the biggest tax deduction, the option to buy or return the equipment when the contract ends, and you wish to avoid the potential liability of owning obsolete medical machinery, a flexible, medical equipment lease may be best for you.
Medical equipment leasing is a specialist financial area with differing rules of application and requiring deep knowledge of this business sector from the lender. South African medical SMEs seeking funding may find themselves forever searching and making applications to lender after lender without success. The delays this can create could cause them to lose revenue and leave their business vulnerable to competition. Instead, working with a broker, who can access medical equipment leasing from a wide range of lenders is a better way to go. No more cold calls and endless demands for information, just tell us what you need and leave the rest to us.
Give your practice the equipment it needs to grow. Register with Swoop to find the best rates, the best terms and the best medical equipment lease today.
Written by
Chris is a freelance copywriter and content creator. He has been active in the marketing, advertising, and publishing industries for more than twenty-five years. Writing for Barclays Bank, Metro Bank, Wells Fargo, ABN Amro, Quidco, Legal and General, Inshur Zego, AIG, Met Life, State Farm, Direct Line, insurers and pension funds, his words have appeared online and in print to inform, entertain and explain the complex world of consumer and business finance and insurance.
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