DBRS Morningstar Assigns Provisional Ratings to Wheels Fleet Lease Funding 1 LLC, Series 2023-1

DBRS, Inc. (DBRS Morningstar) assigned provisional ratings to the following classes to be issued by Wheels Fleet Lease Funding 1 LLC, Series 2023-1 (the Transaction):

-- $677,400,000 Class A Notes at AAA (sf)
-- $19,650,000 Class B Notes at AA (sf)
-- $29,400,000 Class C Notes at A (sf)

The ratings on the Notes are based on DBRS Morningstar’s review of the following considerations:
-- Transaction capital structure, proposed ratings, and form and sufficiency of available credit enhancement.
-- Credit enhancement levels are sufficient to support DBRS Morningstar stressed loss assumptions under various scenarios.
-- The yield supplement account is established to supplement the yield from any lease that does not meet a minimum yield requirement.
-- The Transaction’s ability to withstand stressed cash flow assumptions and repay investors according to the terms in which they have invested. The rating addresses the payment of timely interest on a monthly basis and principal by the Legal Final Maturity.
-- Wheels' capabilities with regard to originations, underwriting, and servicing.
-- Donlen, LLC's (Donlen) capabilities with regard to originations, underwriting, and servicing.
-- LeasePlan USA's (LeasePlan) capabilities with regard to originations, underwriting, and servicing.
--DBRS Morningstar continues to deem Donlen, Wheels, and LeasePlan as acceptable originators and servicers of fleet leases.
-- The high credit quality and historical performance of the collateral.
-- The leased vehicles are essential use vehicles for customers; therefore, such leases are likely to be affirmed by an obligor in a bankruptcy proceeding.
-- These leases are hell-or-high water and triple net with no set-off language. The lessee is responsible to pay all taxes, title, and registration charges. The transaction assumptions consider DBRS Morningstar’s baseline macroeconomic scenarios for rated sovereign economies, available in its commentary “Baseline Macroeconomic Scenarios for Rated Sovereigns: April 2023 Update,” published on April 28, 2023. These baseline macroeconomic scenarios replace DBRS Morningstar’s moderate and adverse Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) pandemic scenarios, which were first published in April 2020.

ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL, GOVERNANCE CONSIDERATIONS
There were no Environmental/Social/Governance factor(s) that had a significant or relevant effect on the credit analysis.

A description of how DBRS Morningstar considers ESG factors within the DBRS Morningstar analytical framework can be found in the DBRS Morningstar Criteria: Approach to Environmental, Social, and Governance Risk Factors in Credit Ratings at (May 17, 2022) https://www.dbrsmorningstar.com/research/396929/dbrs-morningstar-criteria-approach-to-environmental-social-and-governance-risk-factors-in-credit-ratings.

Notes:
All figures are in U.S. dollars unless otherwise noted.

The principal methodology applicable to the ratings is Rating U.S. Auto Fleet Lease Securitizations (September 23, 2020; https://www.dbrsmorningstar.com/research/367023/rating-us-auto-fleet-lease-securitizations).

Other methodologies referenced in this transaction are listed at the end of this press release.

The DBRS Morningstar Sovereign group releases baseline macroeconomic scenarios for rated sovereigns. DBRS Morningstar analysis considered impacts consistent with the baseline scenarios as set forth in the following report: https://www.dbrsmorningstar.com/research/384482.

The rating was initiated at the request of the rated entity.

The rated entity or its related entities did participate in the rating process for this rating action.

DBRS Morningstar had access to the accounts, management and other relevant internal documents of the rated entity or its related entities in connection with this rating action.

This is a solicited credit rating.

Please see the related appendix for additional information regarding the sensitivity of assumptions used in the rating process.

DBRS, Inc.
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New York, NY 10005 USA
Tel. +1 212 806-3277

The rating methodologies used in the analysis of this transaction can be found at: https://www.dbrsmorningstar.com/about/methodologies.

Rating U.S. Auto Lease Securitizations (November 2, 2022)
https://www.dbrsmorningstar.com/research/404831/rating-us-auto-lease-securitizations

Operational Risk Assessment for U.S. ABS Servicers (April 5, 2023) https://www.dbrsmorningstar.com/research/412303/operational-risk-assessment-for-us-abs-servicers

Operational Risk Assessment for U.S. ABS Originators (April 5, 2023) https://www.dbrsmorningstar.com/research/412302/operational-risk-assessment-for-us-abs-originators

Legal Criteria for U.S. Structured Finance (December 7, 2022) https://www.dbrsmorningstar.com/research/407008/legal-criteria-for-us-structured-finance

Rating U.S. Structured Finance Transactions (February 6, 2023) https://www.dbrsmorningstar.com/research/409449/rating-us-structured-finance-transactions

For more information on this credit or on this industry, visit www.dbrsmorningstar.com or contact us at [email protected].