The biggest of them is deciding where exactly you will get this car. The fact is that rental conditions in huge companies and small private offices differ dramatically. Transnational car rental companies - Avis, Hertz, Eurodollar, Europcar - will offer you international-level service: their cars are usually no older than six months, they can give you the car right at the airport, and you can return it in any of the cities where the rental agency has offices. And there are many such offices - you will find company branches in most international airports around the world.
But in a small firm, the requirements will be much lower: for example, they won't ask for a credit card, they will turn a blind eye to the fact that you are not yet 21 or your driving experience is less than two weeks. But don't rush to rejoice: the smaller the agency, the greater your chances of running into some unpleasant surprise.
Here's an example: you rented a car from a reputable company, say, in Berlin, drove it to France, and somewhere on a country road it (well, let's say) broke down. You calmly call the company and change the car in the nearest city. At the same time, they will smile at you and compensate for your wasted nerves. But whether the owner of a small nameless office will smile at you when, having long exhausted your supply of profanity, you return there on a 24-hour tow truck is another question. In addition, in a car rental firm 'At Bill's (Fritz's, Jean's, Mahmoud's, etc.),' they can easily hand you a car with a hidden defect or simply of advanced age, and the rental agreement may be drawn up in such a way that in the event of an accident you will go broke. Thus, if reliability and peace of mind during your vacation are most important to you, our first advice is to contact companies with a name.
However, you have to pay for comfort - the price at a large company is sometimes 40% higher than at a private office with two jalopies. Moreover, renting a car will be especially expensive if you come to a branch of a transnational company "off the street," because international firms prefer customers who have booked in advance: through travel agencies or the Internet.
A Pig in a Poke
But booking a car has another feature: you can never know in advance exactly which car you will get upon arrival. The fact is that only the class or group of the car is booked, not a specific model. So let's find out which cars belong to which classes.
Mini - Ford Ka, Fiat Uno 1.1, Suzuki Alto, VW Beetle, Fiat Sciento.
Economy - VW Polo, Opel Corsa 1.2, Renault Clio 1.2, Ford Fiesta.
Compact - VW Golf 1.6, Opel Astra, Citroen Xsara, Fiat Brava, Ford Focus 1.6.
Intermediate - Opel Vectra 1.8, Renault Scenic, Ford Mondeo 2.0.
Standard - Audi A4, Alfa Romeo 156, VW Passat 1.8.
Minibus - Mercedes Vito, VW Caravelle, Fiat Ducato.
Full-Size - Mercedes C180, Alfa Romeo 166, Mitsubishi Pajero 4x4.
Premium - BMW 525i, Lexus IS 200, Volvo, V70 Vauxhall Omega 2.2 CDX.
Luxury - Mercedes E240, Volvo S80, Audi A8.
In accordance with their class, all cars are also grouped: A and B are economy-class cars, C are compact-class cars, D are mid-size cars, E are economy-class cars with automatic transmission, G are premium-class cars, and so on.
So, if you, for example, like the Opel Astra of the economy class, but despise the Volkswagen Polo, nothing can be done: it is unknown exactly what an employee of a car rental company will roll out of the garage. And if this issue is fundamental to you, it is better to do without pre-booking and, upon arriving in the country, go to national agencies. But keep in mind that during the peak season, the car you need may simply not be available.
Do you speak English?
Whichever car you choose, before you drive away in it, you will have to spend a good half hour drawing up a contract. And here, watch out, don't make a blunder. In principle, the registration procedure is quite simple, but only for those who speak English. Otherwise, you will have to trust the office clerk, which sometimes leads to dire consequences. To avoid getting into an unpleasant situation, we advise you to remember a few terms and notations that may be present in your contract. So, the following may appear: unlimited mileage - Unlimited Mileage, purchase tax - Sales Tax, state taxes - State Tax, airport tax - Airport Fees, additional driver fee - Additional Driver Charges, one tank of fuel - One Tank of Fuel, and so on.
When signing the contract, make sure you have clarified absolutely all rental conditions. For example, returning the car more than an hour late is in some places charged as an additional day. The car is provided to the renter with a full tank of fuel, and it must be returned with a full tank as well, otherwise you will have to overpay considerably. The service may include unlimited mileage, or it may be limited, and then from a certain point you will have to pay for each kilometer. In some countries, there may be restrictions on crossing borders with neighboring states, and so on.
In addition, before you sign the contract, you must be shown an inspection sheet (Check-List). Usually it is a picture on which all dents and scratches made before you (knock on wood) are marked, the presence of wheel caps, lack of fuel, and similar 'little things.' And if you were not shown such a paper, be prepared for them to want to get money from you for damage you didn't cause.
Trump Card
Only after you have dealt with all the above difficulties can you "pull out of wide trousers"... a credit card. Yes, yes, you will again be able to pay in cash only at the wonderful establishment "At Bill's (Fritz's, Jean's, Mahmoud's, etc.)". Reputable companies, on the other hand, accept only credit cards with a substantial deposit. The payment system can be almost any - VISA Classic and Gold, Master Card/Eurocard, American Express... To rent a Premium class car, you will need two credit cards from different systems, for example VISA and American Express. And Lux class cars are rented out with credit cards, not debit cards.
If you don't yet have a credit card, but you want to rent a car only from a large company, you can try to negotiate with them through a travel agency. In this case, the rental is paid for at home, and there they hand over the car without any credit cards. Although, it is worth saying that for people from the CIS, companies usually do not make special concessions. So, without a credit card you will have to walk in Italy, France, Holland, and Sweden. Spain and Germany already accept cash, but only when renting cars of groups A, B, and C. You can completely do without a credit card only on islands like Malta or the Greek archipelagos, from where it is physically difficult to steal a car.
From Poverty and Prison
When it comes to actually paying for the rental, don't be too surprised at the mysterious $12-15 included in its daily cost. We'll tell you: these are insurance policies, and believe us, they are absolutely necessary, even if you are an experienced driver. The most important insurance, necessarily included in the price, is Collision Damage Waiver (CDW). It relieves you of the costs of repairing damage to the car sustained as a result of a road accident, even if the accident happened because you grossly violated the rules. The only condition for the insurance payout is that you were not drunk at the time of the accident. For peace of mind you will have to pay at least $5-6 for each day of rental. If you refuse the insurance, in the event of an accident you will have to pay in full, and your timid objections like "he cut me off" will not be taken seriously by anyone.
An insurance policy called Theft Protection (TP) limits your liability in case of car theft. However, you must have the documents and car keys in your possession: that is enough so that you don't look like an accomplice to the theft.
Third Party Liability (TPL) is a limitation of the client's liability to third parties. After all, if you drive into someone else's car or a shop window, you can fall under the criminal code. It is this insurance that will protect you from material claims and even help you pay bail if you are sentenced to imprisonment.
Insurance of your own life and health, or Personal Accident Insurance (PAI), like the previous insurance, is not mandatory. In terms of price, it is almost the cheapest, costing from $1 to $10 per day depending on the country. However, life and health insurance has age restrictions, for example, insurance is not provided to clients over 70 years old.
But if you think that by buying up insurance policies you can smash up a rented car for the thrill and get away with it, you are greatly mistaken. In contracts with large car rental companies there is such a cunning thing as a deductible. This is what it means: by buying insurance, you are not completely relieved of responsibility; you only limit it to a certain amount, and no matter what you manage to do to the rented property, you will only pay the deductible amount. For example, if your contract has a deductible of $300. If you dent a fender, causing the rental company $299 in damage, you will have to pay it yourself. But if instead you total the car and it cannot be repaired, you will again pay $300, and the remaining damage will be covered by the insurance company. The more expensive the rented car, the higher the deductible, within which the client compensates the damage independently.
For Dinars, Liras, Francs
So, we have moved on to the most interesting part - how much does it cost to rent a car? We'll tell you: the daily car rental rate is $25-250 depending on its class and rental duration. An automatic transmission will cost $50-100 more per week, and the price for renting a car with a mobile phone and satellite navigation system will double. If you want to rent a car at the airport, you will need to pay a fee - from 10% to 20% of the rental cost. An additional driver, child seat, chains, ski racks, and so on are also paid for. In addition to the direct rental price and insurance, the rate will include the country's taxes. We tried to compare the offers of some travel companies for car rentals abroad and derived the arithmetic average amount that you will have to pay for a week of renting cars of certain classes in the most popular countries (see table).
Tips
So, now you know everything you need to stop being a pedestrian tourist. But bear with us for another minute: we have a few extremely useful and specific tips for you.
If you order a car while still at home, you need to know one subtlety: prices at rental offices fluctuate depending on the tourist season. But when booking, the client can be sure that the car will be available at the price that was in effect at the time of placing the order. For example, if you book a car in May for August, it will be at the May price. And if you order in August for November, you risk overpaying 30-40%.
There are different ways to save on car rental. For example, some companies give women a discount of up to 30% when renting. If you need a car for a whole month, sometimes it is better to rent it for 20 days, because for the next ten it will be provided for free. Some companies have a special rate for using a car on weekends (weekend tarif).
The option to leave a cash deposit - an undoubted advantage. But in this case, never schedule the return of the car for a weekend day, especially if it is the day of departure. A typical situation: the office is closed, a company employee is supposed to come to your hotel to pick up the car, and he is bound to get stuck in traffic when you have an hour left before departure. You will not take the rented car with you, but the deposit that was supposed to be returned to you will remain in the employee's pocket.
Be careful with insurance. First, any insurance only takes effect if the driver has contacted the police to file a report on the incident (the rule applies even for the most minor damage to the car). Second, you should find out all the nuances from the rental company. For example: a fairly long stretch of highway from Dubai to the area of Hatta crosses the territory of Oman. And although there are no passport formalities there, the car insurance taken in the UAE does not cover Oman.
That is the hard life of a motorist on vacation. But no matter how we scare you, it is still worth renting a car. After all, with it you will feel free, and that is the most important component of a good vacation.