Airways get the lion’s share of destructive publicity for hitting travellers with further expenses, however in some ways automobile rent firms are simply as responsible.
Final week on the Hertz web site, the worth quoted for renting a small automobile for every week in June from Pisa airport was £157.69. Sounds affordable sufficient, does not it? However if you wish to keep away from the danger of paying as much as €1,600 (greater than £1,400) if the automobile is stolen, or as much as €900 (£800) in case you injury the car, the rental value would virtually double to £304.87.
Opting to have an extra driver will put an extra £45 on the bi ll. Fancy having satnav? That is one other £68.34. All of the sudden, the worth has shot as much as practically £420 – greater than two-and-a-half instances the unique quote.
It prices between £6 and £13 a day to rent a satnav – and they don’t seem to be usually lined beneath rental firms’ automobile insurance coverage – so take your personal
Hertz is much from the one offender – most different automobile rent firms make a big quantity from further charges, which they separate from their primary rental charges to maintain their headline figures low.
This implies if you end up searching for one of the best offers, it is important to check the full value of bookings somewhat than simply going with the agency on the prime of a value comparability web site.
It is also important to work out which extras you want lengthy earlier than you arrive on the rental desk. You do not need to be able the place you are having to make choices about advanced insurance coverage with a pushy gross sales agent if you end up drained after your flight and simply wish to get in your approach.
Here’s a checklist of additional automobile rent prices to look out for – and the best way to maintain them to a minimal.
EXCESS WAIVER COVER
The fees of £1,400 and £800 I quoted for Hertz symbolize the excesses on the corporate’s Collision Harm Waiver (CDW) and Theft Safety insurance coverage for an economy-size automobile in Italy. Extra quantities differ relying on which agency you employ, the dimensions of the automobile and the nation you’re in.
Whereas excesses in Italy are among the highest, they’re nonetheless substantial in different European international locations, and in Australia and New Zealand. You should not discover excesses on automobile rental within the Caribbean and Central and South America, and they don’t seem to be widespread in america.
Rental firms supply insurance policies that waive these excesses, however all too usually they’re astronomically costly: with Hertz on the Pisa rental, it is £147.18 every week or £21.02 a day for its ‘Tremendous Cowl’. A minimum of Hertz stated how a lot the payment can be – I may discover nothing on the Avis web site spelling out what its extra discount cost can be.
You may be glad to listen to there are far cheaper alternate options. For instance, you’ll be able to add a ‘complete injury extra waiver’ to a reserving with Vacation Autos (0871 472 5229, www.holidayautos.co.uk) for about £4.70 a day for a small car rented from Pisa. Economic system Automotive Rent (0845 450 0877, www.economycarhire.com) has aggressive rental charges that embody no insurance coverage extra.
Higher nonetheless are excess-waiver insurance policies provided by specialist insurers – www.moneymaxim.co.uk presents a price-comparison service of the ten or so companies which have sprung up in recent times, and the most affordable cowl comes out at beneath £2 a day.
Specialist insurers additionally supply an annual cowl, which suggests even higher worth in case you hire a automobile a number of instances a yr. And their insurance policies usually embody injury to tyres and windscreen – widespread exclusions on automobile rental firms’ personal extra waiver insurance policies.
OTHER INSURANCE
Varied types of insurance coverage are important when renting a automobile. In addition to CDW and theft safety, you want ample third-party legal responsibility cowl, which comes within the type of ‘supplementary legal responsibility insurance coverage’ or ‘prolonged safety’ in North America. Leases pre-booked in Britain usually embody these, however do test.
Nonetheless, it is all too straightforward to finish up paying for insurance coverage you do not want, or don’t need, just by not checking the varieties correctly. A reader not too long ago unwittingly paid $300 (about £187) to the rent agency Greenback for private accident cowl (which is not obligatory when you have private journey insurance coverage) and RoadSafe Street Help, which gives an upgraded breakdown cowl many individuals may not regard as important.
ADDITIONAL DRIVER
Whereas charging further for a second driver is customary apply throughout the business, Economic system Automotive Rent already contains an extra driver in its charges. Alamo (0871 384 1086, www.alamo.co.uk) contains as much as three further drivers in its Gold packages for the US and Canada.
PETROL
Some rental companies insist you pay up-front for a full tank of petrol and say you’ll be able to return the automobile empty, which is inconceivable, so that you lose out. In the event you’re anticipated to return the automobile with a full tank however fail to take action, you will be hit with a hefty ‘refuelling’ cost.
SATNAV
On condition that it sometimes prices between £6 and £13 a day to rent a satnav system, and the truth that they don’t seem to be usually lined beneath rental firms’ automobile insurance coverage, I counsel taking your personal.
MONEY-SAVING TIPS
Rent charges rise in the course of the peak summer time durations, so it’s a good suggestion to e-book as quickly as potential for July and August.
In the intervening time, charges for these months in in style locations together with Spain and the Balearics seem like extra affordable in contrast with the earlier two summers. In 2009 and 2010, costs rocketed as a result of car shortages.
Resist strain to pay to improve to a bigger automobile on the rental desk. As small automobiles are essentially the most in demand, it’s possible you’ll discover you are upgraded free of charge.
To cut back the probability of false expenses showing in your bank card assertion after your rental, the place potential get a member of workers to test the automobile over and signal it off if you return it.
