The first article offers what I have found to be the best guidance: Try a blind-booking site like Hotwire or Priceline, which offer cars only from a handful of top national chains. Pre-pay your booking, and you'll save up to 40 percent. The catch? If you cancel your trip, you'll be out the money. Here is my approach - learned from reading countless threads in this forum: 1. Use the car rental coupon thread and travel search sites to find the lower cost companies at the desired dates and location, then book at least one on the rental agency's own site. 2. Periodically search for new promotions, offers 3. Approximately 2 weeks before the rental date, research betterbidding.com, and try my luck on Hotwire and Priceline. If I can save at least 20%, pull the trigger and cancel #1.
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I've been using this same technique for a couple of years. Find the best deal, book it. Then work Priceline to beat it. I've saved up to 50% off my best coupon/ costco deal and several times it's the same chain I've booked with.
One major downside of using a blind booking engine is that you have to stand in line at the rental car check in counter. This can be a VERY time-consuming exercise depending on location and date.
Another tip for finding great rates is to scour the flyertalk.com car rental forums for coupons and discount codes, of which there are many, and which can make a substantial dent in the cost of renting. AAA and AARP and major corporation (e.g. IBM) rates often can be substantially less than rack rates.
JonesBeach said:One major downside of using a blind booking engine is that you have to stand in line at the rental car check in counter. This can be a VERY time-consuming exercise depending on location and date.
If you are not already a member of the preferred program for the rental company you end up with, join before you leave - most rental companies allow you to join online, for free; the travel forums offer links for most that don't. While you won't earn points or bennies for the rental, you can go to the preferred counter at the airport, show your membership number, and avoid the wait.
JonesBeach said:Another tip for finding great rates is to scour the flyertalk.com car rental forums for coupons and discount codes, of which there are many, and which can make a substantial dent in the cost of renting. AAA and AARP and major corporation (e.g. IBM) rates often can be substantially less than rack rates.
When was the last time you rented a car? As suggested in the links above, standard rates have skyrocketed, and even with some of the better codes, there is a significant premium over what can be had on the opaque sites.
I agree, try Toyota. I rent Sienna for only $49.90/day vs $150 from all other company. Not mentioning, it is brand new car, only 1200 mileage, with DVD player.
I'm a car rental noob and can use some sage advice. Do you buy rental insurance?
I recently completed a trip. Initially car rental reserved online was ~$160, but at the counter I decided to get the "loss" waiver for an added $22 per day, which bumped it up to ~$280, sticker shock indeed. Per my understanding, the waiver covered up to the full value of the car if it was stolen or damaged--it didn't cover bodily injury.
I wanted the comfort of knowing if those events did happen I was covered. My personal insurance did not cover car rentals. Unfortunately, I didn't call them up either prior to my somewhat immediate trip.
I almost did get into an accident too, I almost bumped the car in front of me as it slowed down in the middle of the highway.
One thing that did run across my mind was I wanted to put a dent/scratch on the car and get my money's worth.
Personally I am rarely able to plan two weeks in advance. On my most recent rental, I was only able to plan about 10 minutes in advance. (My flight was cancelled and I need a one way car fast.) To avoid getting ripped off at the airport on a walk up, I called my acquaintance at my small hometown Hertz Local Edition for a last minute reservation. Because she knows the system inside and out (including all the coupons) she was able to save me about 50% on a car (at the airport.)
The moral of the story is it can payoff big to know someone on the inside. How to meet someone like that? I met her when I rented a car there. Just introduce yourself. Worked for me.
Nakatomi said:I'm a car rental noob and can use some sage advice. Do you buy rental insurance?
I recently completed a trip. Initially car rental reserved online was ~$160, but at the counter I decided to get the "loss" waiver for an added $22 per day, which bumped it up to ~$280, sticker shock indeed. Per my understanding, the waiver covered up to the full value of the car if it was stolen or damaged--it didn't cover bodily injury.
I wanted the comfort of knowing if those events did happen I was covered. My personal insurance did not cover car rentals. Unfortunately, I didn't call them up either prior to my somewhat immediate trip.
I almost did get into an accident too, I almost bumped the car in front of me as it slowed down in the middle of the highway.
One thing that did run across my mind was I wanted to put a dent/scratch on the car and get my money's worth.
Check with your credit card and car insurance providers for the right answer. There are also some threads in the travel deal forum on this subject. Personally, I decline coverage, and stay away from companies like Hertz, who are very picky about minor damage and have unfriendly policies when it comes to accidents.
Nakatomi said:I'm a car rental noob and can use some sage advice. Do you buy rental insurance?
I recently completed a trip. Initially car rental reserved online was ~$160, but at the counter I decided to get the "loss" waiver for an added $22 per day, which bumped it up to ~$280, sticker shock indeed. Per my understanding, the waiver covered up to the full value of the car if it was stolen or damaged--it didn't cover bodily injury.
I wanted the comfort of knowing if those events did happen I was covered. My personal insurance did not cover car rentals. Unfortunately, I didn't call them up either prior to my somewhat immediate trip.
I almost did get into an accident too, I almost bumped the car in front of me as it slowed down in the middle of the highway.
One thing that did run across my mind was I wanted to put a dent/scratch on the car and get my money's worth.Check your personal auto insurance. If you have Collision coverage for your regular car, most likely they'll cover you for your rental. The gotcha, however, is called "Loss of Use." Since most people are now hip to the fact that they don't need the extra insurance, if you do get in an accident, the rental company will charge you for Loss of Use. This can add up, and most Auto Insurance policies won't cover that.
Also check with your CC company. If you have a Gold or Platinum or even a regular card, sometimes they throw in extra insurance when you pay with their card.
DVDBob said:Nakatomi said:I'm a car rental noob and can use some sage advice. Do you buy rental insurance?
I recently completed a trip. Initially car rental reserved online was ~$160, but at the counter I decided to get the "loss" waiver for an added $22 per day, which bumped it up to ~$280, sticker shock indeed. Per my understanding, the waiver covered up to the full value of the car if it was stolen or damaged--it didn't cover bodily injury.
I wanted the comfort of knowing if those events did happen I was covered. My personal insurance did not cover car rentals. Unfortunately, I didn't call them up either prior to my somewhat immediate trip.
I almost did get into an accident too, I almost bumped the car in front of me as it slowed down in the middle of the highway.
One thing that did run across my mind was I wanted to put a dent/scratch on the car and get my money's worth.Check your personal auto insurance. If you have Collision coverage for your regular car, most likely they'll cover you for your rental. The gotcha, however, is called "Loss of Use." Since most people are now hip to the fact that they don't need the extra insurance, if you do get in an accident, the rental company will charge you for Loss of Use. This can add up, and most Auto Insurance policies won't cover that.
Also check with your CC company. If you have a Gold or Platinum or even a regular card, sometimes they throw in extra insurance when you pay with their card.
Yeah, I researched car rental after my trip, came across "loss of use", that's was new, the price I believe you have to pay when they can't rent out the car cause you got into a accident or whatever.
I agree with the credit card route for the damage waiver. Most credit cards will cover the damage waiver with their own if you pay for the rental with their card. It is as simple as just calling them and asking if you are covered on a rental, it should take only a few minutes to find out. I recently rented a full size car for a week and got it for under $200. First off, even if you are just renting a car for a trip and leaving from your local area be sure to pick it up at an airport. That alone can save you as much as $40 from my experience. AAA usually also has a good coupon for some partner companies.
Message edited by: scdaddy7269 on 2009-08-25 19:55:55 CDT
scdaddy7269 said:I agree with the credit card route for the damage waiver. Most credit cards will cover the damage waiver with their own if you pay for the rental with their card. It is as simple as just calling them and asking if you are covered on a rental, it should take only a few minutes to find out. I recently rented a full size car for a week and got it for under $200. First off, even if you are just renting a car for a trip and leaving from your local area be sure to pick it up at an airport. That alone can save you as much as $40 from my experience. AAA usually also has a good coupon for some partner companies.
For myself I would never buy insurance from the rental company due to the outrageous cost. With that being said, I recently read an article that pointed out, if you do get into an accident and the car needs to be take out of the fleet for repair, not only will the rental company charge you for the repair of the car (which you may already have covered) but they will also charge you a "rental loss" fee for each day it is out of service. In other words, they will charge you what they would have made had the car not been removed from service. So if the repair takes 2 weeks, then you pay for 2 weeks of car rental on top of the repair fee. Oh, and don't expect that 2 week rental loss fee to be a discounted rate either.
Here is a recent article about rental car insurance. Well worth the read. Should clear up some of the questions about buying insurance from the rental companies.
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