With the high cost of car rental, the price is sometimes no longer worth the convenience. Sure, the rising price of gasoline at the pump has something to do with high car rental fees. But what most of us don’t realize is that most of what’s in our car rental bill is due to hidden charges. These charges can actually contribute to half of what they charge for your car rental.
Most car rental agencies won’t tell you this, but most of those hidden charges are optional. You can save money by having them removed in your car rental bill. We’ll show you what these hidden charges are, what they mean, and how you can talk your way out of them.
* When you want your rental car to be brought to you at the airport, you’re going to have to pay for a hidden charge called Airport Taxes and Surcharges. Whenever a car rental agency brings a car to the airport, the airport management and the local government charge the agency concession fees and business taxes, respectively. The car rental company has to pay these charges so they can do business at the airport. Since it costs the company more to deliver a car to the airport, they charge you an extra 10% on you bill for that extra service.
There are two ways to avoid paying for this hidden charge. First is by simply picking up your car rental at an off airport location. Second is by using the free shuttle service at the airport; if available, and just have your car dropped off along the shuttle route.
* Collision Damage or Loss Damage Waiver is the extra $10-$25 you have to pay per day in order to avoid liability for any damage on your car rental, provided that the damage wasn’t caused by gross negligence.
Most car insurance and credit card insurance cover rental cars as part of their standard coverage. Check if your insurance company covers rental cars and if they do, have the Loss Damage Waiver removed. You’re just wasting money if you’re paying for collision damage on top of your regular insurance.
* Car rental companies often advertise that paying for gasoline charges is one way for you to save on your car rental bill. They rationalize that by paying this one-time charge, you get your rental car with a full tank and you can return your car with an empty tank. You save time because you don’t have to go to the gas station yourself to fill up your tank.
However, most car renters can’t completely consume a full tank of gas. You won’t get a refund if you don’t use up all your gas but you could get penalties added up to your bill. It’s still cheaper to gas up your own rental car you only have to pay for the amount of fuel that you need.
* If you drop of your rental car at a different location from where you picked it up, you may get charged with a drop-off fee. Drop-off fees vary from state to state. Some states don’t have drop-off fees while some have fees that can go as high as $1000.
So as much as possible, return your car at its original pick-up point. If it’s not possible to return your car back in the same place, look for drop-off places where the fee is minimal.
* Contrary to popular belief, car rental companies don’t like it when you return their car early. They’ll even charge you what’s called an early return fee for returning your rental car too early. Early return fees can cost you from $10 to $15 per day. And if that’s not enough, if you’ve rented your car for a week and you returned early, they’ll charge you for the daily rate instead of the weekly rate. So in addition to the early return fee, you’ll also have to pay the rate difference, which could cost you hundreds of dollars. To prevent this from happening, make sure to return your car on the exact date that was stated in your policy, no more or less.
Most of the hidden charges that car rental companies add to your bill are due to penalties for breaking your rental policy. This is why you should read and understand your rental policy before signing the contract. Ask your car rental company to make sure you have everything covered in your contract. By knowing everything there is to know about your policy, you’ll be able to avoid any penalties and keep your car rental costs at a minimum.
Larry Sanderson is a rental car industry expert with over 20 years experience. If you’d like to know how to get great car rental agency deals for senior citizens, just visit Larry’s online car rental guide.
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