subject: Renting A Car For Holiday Travel [print this page] When renting a car for holiday travel, it must be ensured that you get the perfect car at just the right price. The contract may involve huge hidden charges and if you make the wrong choice you may end up paying massive amounts of money, or worse of all, getting ripped off by extensive bills in case of an accident.
When looking to rent a car, the first thing that you need to decide is the type of car you will require. Car rental companies will make all attempts to convince you to rent a bigger car than what you actually need. However, you should only choose the smallest possible vehicle that can meet your needs.
As a general rule, you should look out for the cheapest rates available. Do an online research with details of your travel and destination as well as the type of car you want. Compare the prices offered by different car rental companies in order to be able to find the best deal. The main drawback of using comparison websites is that they only focus on larger, more expensive vehicles. In order to find deals on smaller cars, you need to check with small, local dealers. Local rental companies keep their expenses at a minimum by setting up offices away from airports and not marketing themselves on comparison sites and hence are in a better position to offer cheaper deals to their customers.
Avoid spending too much on car insurance. Insuring a hire car is not as vital as the rental company would like you to think. Many travel insurance policies these days cover theft and third-party damage claims and hence it is important to check if your insurance policy covers car insurance before renting a car to ensure that you dont pay for anything that is not necessary.
Attention should also be paid to petrol and diesel expense as it has the potential to burn holes in your pocket. The best is to pick up a full tank car and then refuel it yourself before giving it back. The gives you greater control as you dont have to pay for high-priced fuel. The drawback is that you should be able to find a petrol station on your way back and hence need to plan in advance. If the tank is not full, the rental company will charge you a heavy surcharge in addition to the cost of refueling. A more common approach used by many rental companies these days is that they charge their customers up front for the fuel and hence the car can be returned empty.
Last but not least, try to make the payment using your credit card for added safety, especially if you are dealing with an overseas rental company. This is to ensure that your money will be returned if you dont receive the promised service. However, you may be required to pay an additional amount for using this method of payment.
