Best ways to save money on your car rental

Saving money is not easy when you don´t understand how something works, in fact the opposite, losing money, is the most likely. This is not a foregone conclusion if you are only willing to spend some time and effort understanding some basic ways to save money on your car rental. These tips are by no means rocket science or complicated to put into action, most are just plain common sense. The “hard” part is to put it into action.

Plan ahead.

If you are anything like me you are likely to leave things to the last minute. This is not a good idea when trying to save money on a car rental. Plan as early as you can. This will allow you to find the best deals and take advantage of the better prices car rental companies give to reservations.

Look for discounts.

Discounts are out there for those that take the time to look for them. Email the car rental companies and ask for the special deals and discounts available. Visit their website and see what discounts are available. Discounts can also be obtained by being a member of AAC, AAA and other driver associations, even some credit cards come with in-built discounts. All these methods can provide discounts ranging form 5% to 30%.

Make various bookings.

Do not limit yourself to one booking. Most car rental will allow you to make a booking without providing credit card or ID information, like Hertz and Avis. If you find a good deal, book it, and keep on looking for a better one until you can´t. Then you can cancel the reservations that don´t cut the mustard.

Check out travel search engines.

Big travel websites like Orbitz and Kayak often have great deals for car rentals. Always spend a couple of minutes scanning their best offers. Because of the bulk reservations these big companies arrange they can often offer better prices than we can ever get.

Look for insider connections.

If you have a friend or colleague that has connections or works in a car rental company they can often get “friends and family” prices. This only works if you are close enough to your “friend” or cheeky enough to ask.

Learn about insurance coverage.

In most car rental operations half the fee is the insurance. Last time I hired a car, the rental fee was $35 and the insurance was $50. This often is redundant as your car insurance and credit cards will more often than not cover the insurance provided by the car rental. Take some time to understand what the insurance coverage offered means and what you can save on and what you need. A few minutes of good decision making can save you a lot of hassle in the event of an accident.

Compare and save using smart Car rental services online

If you have to rent a car, why spend more than you need to? No reason right? However many of us are paying over and above the best rate simply because we don’t invest a little time and effort in finding the good deal we deserve as top paying clients. The secret behind a saving money on your car rental is to use the internet in a smart way. This article will help you compare and save using car rental services online.

The insurance.

One of, if not THE most expensive parts of car rental is the insurance. Find ways to sidestep these fees. For example you can find out if your personal car insurance covers for rental cars. You can also look into what insurance coverage you will get by paying for the car rental online with your credit card. Often we have duplicate insurance through our car insurance or credit card that can easily be avoided saving up to 50% of the car rental fee.

Rental period.

Decide how long you will need the car. We an often spend more than we need by simply not calculating properly how long we need the car for. Another problem is when we rent a car on a daily basis and end up keeping it a week. We then pay the higher daily rate when we could have made juicy savings on the weekly plan.
Add on fees.

Discuss with the car rental company any add on fees that might be included and either avoid them or try to get a discount. Add on fees include airport fees, insurance for additional drivers and fuel charges.
When you get a good deal, reserve it. Reserve fees are often much cheaper than walk in fees. If you find a good deal get it while you can and reserve it, you don’t know how long it will last.

Stand for your rights.

If you reserve a certain car type at a certain price and when you arrive to pick it up they are suddenly out of stock demand a complimentary upgrade. If they will not agree (and you can afford to lose your reservation) walk out, the car rental company will likely want to keep you business.

Bigger is not always better.

Decide what size of a car rental you really need. If it is not large enough you will get frustrated and probably waste time, if it is too big you are just wasting money on extra car rental fees and fuel. It pays to plan ahead and decide what kind of car you need.

Go online.

Most major car rental companies provide discounts if you book online. Take advantage of these savings and book from the comfort of your home.

As you can see there are many ways you can save money on your car rental if you do it the smart way. Get smart and follow these tips the next time you book a car rental.