I think it's swings and roundabouts. I'm in Saudi ( thinking over a move to Qatar, so hence lurking on this forum! ) and I think use cars in Saudi are more expensive to buy than they are in the UK, they seem to hold their value. THe reason for this - I think - is due to fuel being much cheaper. Big engine cars in the UK are cheap to buy used, as no-one wants to buy them, due to high fuel costs. Here in Saudi, the opposite is true, fuel is cheap so they tend to not depreciate as much. Ok so that's purchase costs. In terms of running costs, I think it's cheaper here in the Middle East. Fuel of course we know about. Depending on the make of the car - spare parts are as cheap if not cheaper. Labour is of course much much cheaper, so the servicing and repairs are cheaper. I find insurance cheaper here too than in the UK, so overall the cost of a car here in Saudi is cheaper than in UK ( taking into account the higher purchase price )
BTW Lincs, I thought you were spot on with your first post. I'm Indian heritage, born in Kenya, brought up in the with UK passport. I'm considering a package similar to what the OP referred to, trying to negotiate.
In terms of 'package', I work in HR. We initially recruit employees on a 'Bachelor' contract, so they get quite a few benefits. If they bring their family out, then they relinquish some benefits but then are provided with others ( eg paying school fees etc ), so you either get one package or the other.
I think it's swings and roundabouts. I'm in Saudi ( thinking over a move to Qatar, so hence lurking on this forum! ) and I think use cars in Saudi are more expensive to buy than they are in the UK, they seem to hold their value. THe reason for this - I think - is due to fuel being much cheaper. Big engine cars in the UK are cheap to buy used, as no-one wants to buy them, due to high fuel costs. Here in Saudi, the opposite is true, fuel is cheap so they tend to not depreciate as much. Ok so that's purchase costs. In terms of running costs, I think it's cheaper here in the Middle East. Fuel of course we know about. Depending on the make of the car - spare parts are as cheap if not cheaper. Labour is of course much much cheaper, so the servicing and repairs are cheaper. I find insurance cheaper here too than in the UK, so overall the cost of a car here in Saudi is cheaper than in UK ( taking into account the higher purchase price )
BTW Lincs, I thought you were spot on with your first post. I'm Indian heritage, born in Kenya, brought up in the with UK passport. I'm considering a package similar to what the OP referred to, trying to negotiate.
In terms of 'package', I work in HR. We initially recruit employees on a 'Bachelor' contract, so they get quite a few benefits. If they bring their family out, then they relinquish some benefits but then are provided with others ( eg paying school fees etc ), so you either get one package or the other.