PSA: Top 10 rental car secrets
The folks over at SmartMoney.com have compiled a common-sense list of the "Top 10 Things Your Retntal Company Won't Tell You." In point of fact, we'd reckon that most of the pointers are forehead-smackingly obvious, but that doesn't mean that it isn't worth a quick refresher, or a good opportunity to relay your own tips to fellow Autoblog readers in comments.
1. "We're a tax magnet."
2. "We track your every move."
3. "Our prices are etched in sand."
4. "You probably don't need our insurance."
5. "Your reservation doesn't mean bupkis."
6. "Special orders are our bread and butter."
7. "The little guys charge less."
8. "We're cutting corners anywhere we can."
9. "Think gas prices are high at the pump? Look what we charge."
10. "We offer some terrific deals - on Thursdays when the moon is full."
[Source: SmartMoney.com; New York State Insurance Department]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
fumbducker 1:29PM (6/14/2006)
4. "You probably don't need our insurance."
i rented a van, bought the insurance (never know, i was piling 10 people in to go to a concert out of state) for $22, smacked it into a stone column at the top of my driveway (before we even left), dropped it off... - nothing out of pocket or on my car insurance, just had to fill out some paperwork. $22, i'll pay that every time, at least for a one day rental....
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PJ 1:41PM (6/14/2006)
5. "Your reservation doesn't mean bupkis."
This can work in your favor. When I need to rent a car, I usually book a reservation at the busiest local office. Chances are, your $19.95/day rental gets upgraded simply because other renters have jumped on all the subcompacts already.
One of the most recent times I rented, I had a reservation for a Chevy Aveo. Ended up paying the same price for a Mercedes-Benz C-Class!
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USAFMech 2:13PM (6/14/2006)
Ditto:
Went to Palm Springs. Our Focus magically became a Grand Marquis. A real grandma-mobile, but it beats being cramped. BTW, the largest trunk in a production car don't mean bupkis when travelling with a baby and two women.
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Matt 2:27PM (6/14/2006)
I had the same experience at the West Palm Beach National Rental Car in February. I arrived 30 minutes ahead of my reservation, which was for a Pontiac G6, but because the lone G6 on the lot was still being washed, I ended up with a Chevy Trailblazer.
As for rule 10, great deals can be found for those willing to do research. Check out the FatWallet.com forums to find dozens of car rental discount codes -- not to mention other e-commerce discounts too. I snagged that G6 reservation with tax for a week in Florida in February for $159.
However, one caveat about using random discount codes... while the Web sites will let anyone reserve a car with the codes, some codes require associations with an organization. In the event the clerk asks for proof, and you can't produce it, have backup reservations at another rental agency.
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John 2:37PM (6/14/2006)
In my experience, upgrades have been common because the reservation means squat. Several years ago in the UK, I had booked a Vectra to pick up in Edinburgh, and when I went to get the car, they gave me a Saab 9-5 that needed to go back to London!
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Ed 3:04PM (6/14/2006)
Just a warning for those who prepay for full tanks: the price per gallon might seem cheaper than the gas stations, but keep in mind that they charge ALL the rental car fees and taxes on your total rental, including the gas. That means $2.99/gallon can really mean $3.50/gallon very easily from some airports.
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T White 4:14PM (6/14/2006)
Here's another good suggestion:
If you need to return a car on a day that a particular office is closed, ask to return to another location, such as the airport if available.
Here's the story
About 3 years ago I rented a Jaguar, I was told to return it back to the office on Monday, I only needed the car for a friend's wedding on Saturday. That office was closed on Sunday. I could have paid a small fee to return to the airport, but I was told this after the fact and was stuck with another days rental of $200. I later recovered this fee, plus other comps with an nice lengthy letter to corporate office.
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gbh 4:23PM (6/14/2006)
I used to rent cars about 2 weeks out of every month. It was great. I would make sure I arrived after the masses grabbed their econoboxes. Almost always got at least an upgrade to a Chrysler convert. Like most other business, the more you buy, the more they will upgrade you gratis just to keep you around.
Lately, I do much less fly and drive. But when I do, a little web work always seems to get me into something not too horrible (Taurus or TownCar) for $20-30 a day.
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LTJ 5:52PM (6/14/2006)
As for No. 9, it's funny that SmartMoney would comment on the cost of renting a car when you pay more to rent a $200 chain saw for one day than for a $25,000 automobile.
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Fred Richards 5:55PM (6/14/2006)
Check out the coupons at http://www.DealTaker.com
Car Rental coupons are here: http://www.dealtaker.com/coupons21.html
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N Z K 6:19PM (6/14/2006)
The reservation thing is definitely true. I was booked for a Toyota Echo once; got a Buick Century. That may not sound like much of an upgrade, but the Buick had a lot of equipment I wouldn't have had the benefit of (notably, remote locks and a CD player).
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Elias 12:00PM (6/15/2006)
I was in Key West with a group of friends and had to leave, so we called all the car rental places for pricing. Only a few would rent to people under 25 (was 23 at the time), and Avis offered to pick us up. When we got there, there was a bit of a dilema. We were paying for an economy car, but they had none. Not only that, but the only cars they had left, they weren't allowed to rent to people under 25 (SUV, Luxury car, minivan). In the end, we got a Caddie Deville for like $30, and had a nice drive back to Miami (with sat radio, too).
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iQuack 7:26PM (6/15/2006)
An article in "The Wall Street Journal" a week or two ago said that current high gas prices are causing some people to complain about rental car upgrades to larger, "better" cars or SUVs when reserving an economy car.
Seems these folks don't want to gas up a thirstier car, so refuse the upgrade if possible.
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Chris 1:13AM (6/16/2006)
I'm a true believer in taking the coverage with car rentals, especially when renting in Canada, most rental companies offer zero deductible coverage, which to me translate to worry free travel. And if you can find a company with economical rates paying the extra $25.00 per day doesn't seem too bad. In my travels I found Thrifty and Dollar car rentals to be the best pricewise.
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David R. 1:10PM (6/18/2006)
1. Hotels are tax magnets too. Blame government, not the rental company.
2. Why shouldn't they track your every move. It's their car.
4.Tell the person, after the fact, with the 10 year old car worth nothing why their insurance won't pay off a totalled $25,000 dollar car, and I doubt you will pay it for them either. Also, most people do not carry liability in anywhere near the limits necessary in today's sue happy world.
Most rental car companies try to be fair. Try looking at things from their point of view as well.
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Tina 5:07PM (6/18/2006)
As far as car rental insurance I found out the hard way. I rented a car from enterprise in Dec of 05 they never said anything about there insurance. Until I Hit a pothole in Baltimore Md. I bent the rim and the tire went flat. They charged me my $500.00 deduct from my insurance and would not let me get another until I paid it well that is when they said something about there insurance. They are still trying to charge me
$600.00 on top of the $500.00 they already got. That is crazy.
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Michael Leary 7:17PM (6/18/2006)
The price per gallon quoted by the rental company is for a full tank of gas... If you leave gas in the tank you are actually increasing the price per gallon on yourself. 20 gallon full tank and you paid 2.50 a gallon for a full tank or 50 dollars and then return the car with 5 gallons left in the tank you just gave the rental company five free gallons. NEVER BUY the FUEL SERVICE OPTION
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Nicki Seddon 12:58PM (6/22/2006)
People are so wrong about rental car insurance not being worth it. I work for a rental car company and I have seen and delt with many customers who have had an accident in a rental car. Maybe they should ask the woman who rented with us recently, She rented a $35,000.00 Dodge Durango for three days and decided to take LDW coverage. It added an additional $60.00 to her contract. While enjoying her lunch, the vehicle was side swiped in the parking lot. Well when she returned to us, all she had to do was sign one piece of paper, we told her she wsa all set, she left with a smile and was on her way to airport to catch her plane home. Hmmmm..... Let's see --- $60.00 cost for well over $5000.00 worth of damage(never mind loss of use, towing charges, etc.)no claims to her insurance company (therefor no premium increases the next year on her own private policy)she wasn't held up in our office filling out all kinds of forms, digging for ins. policy #'s,running late for a flight or maybe even missing it(I've seen it happen) and all the other headaches that come with car accidents!! As far as I'm concerned $60.00 was ABSOLUTELY worth it !!!!!
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