10 tips for car rental and money saving
Renting a car tends to be confusing, frustrating, and, worst of all, expensive. But not necessarily. Since the price of car rental is deceptive, the following tips can save you more than 50% of the "normal" price. With these savings, you may find it very enjoyable to rent a car... as long as you pay attention to the speedometer!1. Refuse insurance
I understand: You are not an adventurer, you want to be insured. do not worry! If you rent a car in the US and already have car insurance, your car insurance should include a car rental (call confirmation). If you are renting a car in the US but do not have car insurance, please use a credit card to book a rental car, and the credit card provides additional insurance as an additional allowance. If you are in an international lease, the supplementary insurance provided by the credit card will usually become the main insurance, so again, you will be protected.
2. Reject GPS
You don't have to turn the time back to the 20th century, you just need a map and stars, but don't get the GPS provided by the rental company. If you are renting a home in the US, just use the map feature of your smartphone. This option is also available for international rentals. Instead of a $13 a day GPS, change your phone to a new SIM card (make sure your phone unlocks first). In most countries, $15 can make your data plan big enough, you can use the map for a few days, and you can reply to emails and check Facebook!
3. Fill up the oil in the cheapest place
No mind. But usually, especially when traveling between countries, you don't know the difference in natural gas prices, which can be dramatic. Do your homework in advance.
4. Use rentalcars.com or kayak as a starting point, but be sure to check out the actual car rental website
Using rentalcars.com or kayak or any other search engine is a great way to find a suitable range and what you should pay for a rental car. However, be sure to check the car rental company's website. On my last trip, rentalcars.com wanted 192 euros and rented a car for 10 days from Europcar. When I went to the actual site of the European car company, the same rent was also set at 150 euros, 25% lower than the original. A few minutes of work can save you a lot of change, especially in the case of long-term leases.
5. Avoid airport transfers
This is not always the most convenient, but if you can avoid picking up at the airport, you can save some big money. Most car rental companies charge a fee for renting your car at the airport, sometimes as much as $30. Instead, save the money and go to the second place to pick up the car. If you are in a big city, there should be many choices, and they should be located near public transportation. Hop on the subway, leave the airport, spend the extra money on a hearty lunch, then pick up your car.
6. Always fill the car
This must be one of the biggest scams, where Nigerian princes provide you with millions of dollars in bank account information. The car rental company will charge you two to three times more gas than the gas station, so if you don't fill the car, you will spend a lot of money to fill them up. Also, never agree to prepay the gas fee. You will be charged in advance for a full tank of petrol, unless you completely empty it, you will lose money. Instead, just select the "Return at full speed" option... and make sure it's full!
7. Earn flight miles for your rental car
Before renting a car, be sure to check out the Frequent Flyer Bonus website for the type of bonus offered by each car rental company. To get a bonus, all you have to do is give them your frequent flyer number when you rent a car, it will be released automatically. Who doesn't like free miles!
8. Get the discount code
Car rental companies always offer special discounts for all types of things, from business car rentals to AARP members. A simple Google search (your car rental company) discount code will return a lot of clicks. Check out the first few sites to see what type of code is there. Then, use these codes to get a 50% discount on the rent!
9. Use the hotel status to get an extra allowance
Usually, if you work in one or two hotel chains, you can also get some discounts at the car rental company. For example, my golden status at Hilton has earned me a 25% discount on most major car rental companies. Hotel status can also earn you extra discounts, such as free upgrades or free GPS rentals (although I don't recommend paying for GPS, if it's free, please accept!). These additional offers may be superimposed with the promotions offered by the discount code, which means you can use your status to get offers and use the discount codes you find online. Call the company to confirm. If they can't be stacked, just choose one of the best quotes.
10. Don't speeding
As a person who accumulates speeding tickets in multiple countries, do what I say, not do what I do. Nothing is worse than opening the Victorian police envelope four months after the end of the holiday and being hit by a few hundred dollars for speeding.
Of course, if you don't plan to return to your destination for a while, the state of the restriction may end, and you have an important person who can rent a car in their name next time, then... maybe speeding is not that expensive at all.
