With the summer holidays not far ahead, it’s time to think about planning the family break. If you’ve booked your villa or hotel and know you are going to want to get out and about to see the surrounding area rather than confine yourself to your accommodation, you’ll need to book a hire car. There can be many issues and loop holes with the terms and conditions and more than one family has sat at the airport having to pay out extra in insurance costs or being told they have to pay a higher than expected deposit. However, there are ways to save money and ensure you have a smooth transaction.
Booking early saves money, the closer to the peak season it gets, the higher the price of the car. If you’re booking in the low season, there are often fantastic great deals which can be as cheap as £3 a day.
To find the best deals, use a car hire comparison website. The main ones are Kayak, Carrentals.co.uk and Travel Supermarket. Use all three before making a decision so you don’t miss out on a great deal. You’ll be sent a voucher to be printed off and presented to the company when you pick up the vehicle.
Some car rental companies will offer you a vehicle with a full tank of fuel, which they say you have to pay for up front and request that it be returned empty with no refund on the fuel you haven’t used. If you’ve not driven many miles, you’ll be losing money. With some tanks costing over £90 to fill, this is a big wedge of cash to pay out along with the thought you may lose some of it. Look for companies which offer a fuel clause called ‘return as you found it’ so you only pay for what you use.
Some car hire companies tell customers that even a scratch can cause the loss of their deposit and press them into buying the excess insurance policy. This can be very costly and is sold as a scare tactic. The solution if you are concerned is to buy a stand-alone excess policy at a greatly reduced cost; some can be as inexpensive as £2 a day. If you travel across Europe regularly – even as often as just twice a year, look at buying an annual excess policy. Companies which offer these include Questor and Moneymaxim.
With youngsters on holiday with you, there is the need for suitable child seats to be hired. These can be a large amount added on to the cost – even with a cheap daily rate – so have a look for alternatives. There’s a company at Malaga Airport for example called Tots Store where you can rent a child seat for a greatly reduced price in comparison to the car hire company.
If you need that bit extra to pay for your car hire even with getting a good deal, then a payday loan may be the solution until you return from holiday.
Book your car early and be armed with all the documentation on arrival at the airport and you’ll have no issues to deal with. Once you have your car, you can set off towards your destination knowing that you have a great holiday ahead of you.
