Cheap car hire article discussion

NiftyDigits

N1AK wrote: »

I've booked a car for California from the 27th August to 7th September with Avis. I know the booking includes ALI/SLI (apparently it's bundled into hires booked via the UK site). However I can't work out, no matter how much searching I do, what my coverage is for collisions and whether I should book a separate CDW/LDW insurance policy.

Could anyone please advise me on this, and if I should get a CDW policy is their a firm that you would suggest?

Worldwideinsure is the cheapest. But you should be asking AVIS about the coverage.

NiftyDigits

alexanderwhite wrote: »

you can<snip>.

.. and will be reported as a SPAMMER.

N1AK

NiftyDigits wrote: »

Worldwideinsure is the cheapest. But you should be asking AVIS about the coverage.

Thanks Nifty, I was hoping I could hear from someone independent on what I did/didn't need. I'm pretty sure if/when I ask Avis they are going to suggest that I need the deluxe version of every insurance add-on!

I know when you book via avis.co.uk they automatically cover ALI for US car hire. I don't think CDW is covered but wanted to make sure before I double up on insurance by mistake!

SHEILA54

Hi

Is it best to book car hire for our trip in May next year now or to leave it? Atlas Choice and Argus Car Hire are offering a cheap rental at Barcelona airport but we would have to travel from Terminal 1 to 2 and I am worried that it may be with Sol-Mar who seem to have really bad reviews. Why don't they tell you online who it is with?

Another problem is that my daughter and her family are joining us out there but both she and hubbie only drive an automatic and the cost is really high, unless you want a smart car!

Any advice greatly appreciated

NiftyDigits

N1AK wrote: »

Thanks Nifty, I was hoping I could hear from someone independent on what I did/didn't need. I'm pretty sure if/when I ask Avis they are going to suggest that I need the deluxe version of every insurance add-on!

I know when you book via avis.co.uk they automatically cover ALI for US car hire. I don't think CDW is covered but wanted to make sure before I double up on insurance by mistake!

That's exactly what you need to know...for what you are not covered.
Then you can find a cheaper alternative.
You will likely have CDW, but perhaps with a large excess and some exclusions. So find out exactly, what you have right now.

NiftyDigits

SHEILA54 wrote: »

Hi

Is it best to book car hire for our trip in May next year now or to leave it? Atlas Choice and Argus Car Hire are offering a cheap rental at Barcelona airport but we would have to travel from Terminal 1 to 2 and I am worried that it may be with Sol-Mar who seem to have really bad reviews. Why don't they tell you online who it is with?

Another problem is that my daughter and her family are joining us out there but both she and hubbie only drive an automatic and the cost is really high, unless you want a smart car!

Any advice greatly appreciated

If peace of mind is important to you, don't just go for the cheapest.
Pay more and be sure of what you are getting.
Hertz is quoting me £201 for a Hyundai i30 Auto(or similar) for a week. Full/Full policy. Terminal 1.
Do you need a middleman? It will only add to your confusion.

Bri1

I booked a Dollar car in the US through a well known UK broker, after we arrived back on our credit card we found a charge fraudulently added for a service we knew nothing about, extended breakdown cover at around £90 after conversion, the UK broker was not interested & actually blamed us, they basically said we were lying, they were completely useless & provided no service whatsoever, so we had to complain directly to Dollar in the US which wasn't easy, they refunded but did nothing about the fraud, this was at LAX, it happened a second time believe it or not, so this time we went the card charge back route which worked fine, but once again no mention of doing something about this fraudulent practice which I believe has happened to others at this particular rental location, have since used Dollar at Las Vegas with no problem & Alamo at LAX who didn't have the hard sell on arrival like others try to do anyway, so using a UK broker is no guarantee of anything

N1AK

NiftyDigits wrote: »

That's exactly what you need to know...for what you are not covered.

Turns out that bookings via avis.co.uk includes both ALI/SLI and CDW/LDW

N1AK

NiftyDigits wrote: »

If peace of mind is important to you, don't just go for the cheapest.
Pay more and be sure of what you are getting.

I think this is exactly the right attitude with hire cars. Companies that appear cheap so often do so by having abusive terms, fees etc that you only find out about at the last minute; they'll try and force you into upgrades, insurance etc by saying you'll be delayed if you don't accept them etc.

NiftyDigits

N1AK wrote: »

Turns out that bookings via avis.co.uk includes both ALI/SLI and CDW/LDW

CDW/LDW is not the issue...it is whether there is any Excess payable in the event of an incident. Do you ask?