subject: Reduce Your Car Rental Costs! Tips On How To Get Rid Of Hidden Charges [print this page] With the high cost of car rental, the price is sometimes no longer worth the convenience. Sure, the rising price of gasoline at the pump has something to do with high car rental fees. But what most of us don't realize is that most of what's in our car rental bill is due to hidden charges. These charges can actually contribute to half of what they charge for your car rental.
A lot of these hidden charges aren't even necessary and you have the option of removing them from your bill. You can save money by knowing what these hidden charges are and the different ways you can prevent car rental agencies from placing them on your bill.
* Airport taxes and surcharges is what car rental agencies charge you extra for the convenience of picking up your rental car at the airport. This extra service can actually amount to 10% of your total bill. The reason they charge you more when you want your car bought to the airport is because of taxes and concession fees. Car rental agencies have to pay concession fees to the airport management every time they bring a rental to the airport. The agency also has to pay business taxes to the local government for doing business at the airport.
Most airports and some car rental companies have free shuttle service with fixed routes. To remove this hidden charge from your car rental bill, take advantage of this free service and just have your car dropped off at a location away from the airport. That way, the car rental reduces cost and you don't get charged extra for their service.
* Collision Damage or Loss Damage Waiver is the extra $10-$25 you have to pay per day in order to avoid liability for any damage on your car rental, provided that the damage wasn't caused by gross negligence.
Most of the time, you don't need collision damage. That's because most car insurance and some credit card insurance have collision damage that also covers rental cars. So if your credit card insurance or regular car insurance has collision damage, you can have this removed from your bill.
* At first glance, gasoline charges seem like a great idea. Imagine getting your rental car with a full tank. You don't need to stop by gas stations along the way and you can return the car with an empty tank if you want to.
The problem with gas charges is you don't get a refund if you don't use up all your fuel. Rather than paying for gas charges, fill the tank yourself. That way, you're only paying for the amount of fuel you're using.
* A car rental company normally expects their customers to return their rental car from where it was taken. If you can't return your car back to the same place and you have to leave it elsewhere, you car rental company can charge you with drop-off fees. Drop-off fees vary, depending from state to state. If you're lucky, you leave your rental car in a place that doesn't charge drop-off fees. But most states do charge drop-off fees and some fees go for as high as $1,000.
If you want to avoid paying the drop-off fees, just return the car from where you got it or leave it in a place where there are no drop-off fees.
* Contrary to popular belief, car rental companies don't like it when you return their car early. They'll even charge you what's called an early return fee for returning your rental car too early. Early return fees can cost you from $10 to $15 per day. And if that's not enough, if you've rented your car for a week and you returned early, they'll charge you for the daily rate instead of the weekly rate. So in addition to the early return fee, you'll also have to pay the rate difference, which could cost you hundreds of dollars. To prevent this from happening, make sure to return your car on the exact date that was stated in your policy, no more or less.
Listed above are just some of the hidden charges that you'll see on your car rental bill. Other hidden charges are the result of breaking your rental policy, which can result in penalties. The more penalties you incur, the higher your car rental bill becomes. In order to avoid adding to your bill, make sure you read and understand your policy before you finalize the rental. Knowing what you can and can't do with your rental car can help avoid getting charged with additional fees when your bill comes.
