You could save yourself a lot of money on fees by looking online first.
• • Advertising Disclosure
Editor’s Note: This story originally appeared on Living on the Cheap.
When renting a car, you might think that getting into an accident is the only thing that could cost you money. But while accidents are sometimes unavoidable, there are other mistakes that can cost you money when driving a rental car.
They include failing to take pictures of your car before and after your rental term, failing to plan for an extra driver and failing to understand the economics of rental cars.
“Always take pictures of all sides of the cars and inside the car to document any damage before pickup and after drop-off,” says Michael Stalf, managing director of Myonecar, a German car rental company.
Why take vacation photos of your car? Because your rental car company probably won’t. If it finds damage to your vehicle, it will hold you liable. By the way, if you find a ding, dent or scratch on your car when you pick it up, make sure it’s also documented in your paperwork. Or better yet, ask for a different vehicle.
Renters also tend to forget that car rental companies charge hefty fees for additional drivers. For example, Hertz charges $13.50 per day, a maximum of $189 per rental, for each additional driver. Julie Demaret, a director at the car rental firm Rhinocarhire, says you need to think about the extra driver before you rent.
“If you want to share the driving, try to find an offer with a free additional driver,” she says. “It’s always cheaper to book beforehand than on arrival.”
And look out for upsells. For example, insurance can add $20 or more per day to the cost of your rental. But you can get car rental coverage for about half that from a traditional travel insurance company. Allianz Travel Insurance has a product called Rental Car Damage Protector for $11 a day. The insurance site iCarhireinsurance.com, which is operated by Halo Insurance, even sells a policy that covers you up to $1,200 for misfueling your car.
Make sure you understand the tricks of the trade, too. Car rental companies get busy during the summer. Nicole Gustas, a frequent traveler from Boston, couldn’t find a rental car in Los Angeles recently, so she used a strategy that became popular last summer: She rented a U-Haul truck for two days. Then she found an SUV through Enterprise at a remote, off-airport location.
“We wanted an economy car,” says Gustas, a marketing director for an insurance company. “But beggars can’t be choosers.”
But perhaps the biggest mistake you can make when it comes to your rental car is underestimating your budget.
“Be prepared to spend money,” warns Robert Walden, editor in chief at VehicleFreak.com, a car maintenance site. “Due to shrinking fleets, deferred maintenance on vehicles and many other factors, rental cars are at a premium today.”
Walden says higher prices aren’t the only thing to worry about. Vehicles will be in short supply, a sequel to last summer’s car rental shortage. That means some of us won’t even have the chance to make these common car rental mistakes.
Disclosure: The information you read here is always objective. However, we sometimes receive compensation when you click links within our stories.
Like Article Add a Comment
Simple ways to make, save, and grow your money daily:
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Every week our podcasts bring you lively money discussions that will give you a few laughs along with advice that will make you richer.
Listen/Subscribe
Some of our favorite stories for you to read next.
Join our free newsletter subscribers building wealth and destroying debt:
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Do Not Sell My Personal Information
© 2022 Money Talks News. All Rights Reserved.
1 (833) 669-8557 | 1732 1st Ave #26661, New York, NY 10128
Advertising Disclosure: This site may be compensated in exchange for featured placement of certain sponsored products and services, or your clicking on links posted on this website.
Help us produce more money-saving articles and videos by subscribing to a membership.
Get Started
Help us produce more money-saving articles and videos by subscribing to a membership.
Our Policy: We welcome relevant and respectful comments in order to foster healthy and informative discussions. All other comments may be removed. Comments with links are automatically held for moderation.
Please enable JavaScript to view comments.
Join happy subscribers and sign up for our free newsletter! You’ll get:
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
About Author
