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Renting
a Car Can Prove More Expensive Than Originally Budgeted For
By Philip
Suter
Most
of us need to hire a car at some time or other. Going on holiday,
making a business trip or your own vehicle is in for repairs
We
will often book a rental car, more and more people do this
on the Internet and arrive at the airport or rental dealer
and discover there are extras there that you had not taken
into account when you made the booking.
You
realise that you need an additional driver so there is often
a daily charge for the extra driver/s. You are told that the
car comes with a tank full of fuel. You are charged an amount
to cover this and when you get into the car discover that
there is a sticker saying, “return empty”. If you do
this you could most likely find that had you filled the car
up it would have cost less than the amount the rental company
charged for the fuel.
What
about the insurance?
You
are told that the insurance cover will not cover you if the
car is broken into, a wing mirror broken. You will be responsible
for the Excess. At most European, South African, New Zealand
and Australian car rental locations, the customer is responsible
for the excess this can be the first £500 and up to £1,600
on the rental vehicle in case of an accident or if the vehicle
is stolen. As you are not willing to take on this responsibility
you immediately agree to pay additional insurance – It can
mount up particularly if you regularly hire a car. .
You
can of course purchase car rental excess insurance.
There are policies available on a daily rate, annual and for
families covering a fair proportion of the world’s countries.
These policies work in a similar way to an annual travel insurance
policy. It doesn’t matter how many times a year you rent a
car, you are still covered.
When
you go to collect your rental car remember the following:
- Most
car rental locations require a credit card
- Most
car rental locations will not accept debit or switch cards
- You
must have held a valid driving licence for one year
- There
is often a minimum and maximum age to hire a car
- Always
ask what is included in the rates quoted
- Never
initial or sign an agreement without asking about each item
- Do
not over insure. If you have travel insurance you do not
need personal effects or personal accident insurance
- Pre-purchase
or Pre-reserve your car rental
- Purchase
from agents within your own country in case you need refunds
or assistance
- When
you pick-up your vehicle determine where the drop off point
is for your return
- Ask
if the return area has an attendant. If not, who do you
return the car to and who will check it over for damage
When
you actually get to the vehicle – even if you are tired after
your trip remember the following:
- If
you leave the vehicle without check-in, examine it for damage
and photograph it from every angle.
- Check
the vehicle for damage
- Check
the spare tyre
- If
the fuel tank is meant to be full, make sure that it is
Do
take great care, as the reasonable car rental rate you originally
found could be a lot more than you expected.
Philip
Suter is a Director of JML Property Services http://www.jml-property-insurance.co.uk,
a UK based company offering Insurance Products on line, property
rentals in Berkshire and Buckinghamshire, England and an International
self catering vacation home advertising service http://www.jmlvillas.com.
He is also involved with management training companies operating
in the UK and Internationally.
He
is a very experienced property consultant with over 30 years
work in the Residential letting business and served in the
national council of The Association of Residential Letting
Agents (ARLA). He is a Fellow of the National Association
of Estate Agents (NAEA) and a Member of The association of
Residential Letting Agents.
Article
Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Philip_Suter
©Philip
Suter jml Property Services January 2006
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