Car hire Malaga train station

kazmeister

Hi does anyone have any recommendations. Looking for 2 weeks high season (August).

2 years ago we booked with Avis as they came up reasonable but when car collected my dad was forced to pay another €200 euros for additional insurance. I'm normally careful about looking at all the extras and T&C's but very wary about making a mistake on his behalf again.

Also by chance I discovered the airport price for one agent was almost half the price of pick up at the train station, has anyone else discovered this.

Thanks in advance

Voyager2002

Don't "beat yourself up" about making a mistake: car hire firms in this part of the world are notorious for inventing extra charges such as this that are not in fact detailed in the T and Cs.

NiftyDigits

Perhaps you booked the AVIS car via the US website. CDW not included in that case.

What you really need to do is to state exact dates and what you have been quoted so far...and for which class of car.

kazmeister

NiftyDigits wrote: »

Perhaps you booked the AVIS car via the US website. CDW not included in that case.

What you really need to do is to state exact dates and what you have been quoted so far...and for which class of car.

We need a 4 door car for 3 adults and 2 teens and 4 luggage ideally to save more than 1 airport run. Driver will be arriving at Malaga station evening of 18 Aug returning midday 2 Sep but if ridiculously cheaper could taxi to airport.

Have had quotes ranging from around £300 to £587 but then trying to get my head around what they include throws me as there are full rates, smart rates, crazy rates.

I need to know that dad will just pay the price and no more but be covered for damage in event of accident other than a reasonable excess.

antenna

quote
Also by chance I discovered the airport price for one agent was almost half the price of pick up at the train station, has anyone else discovered this.
The low price quoted will be at least doubled before you actualy get the car.

Voyager2002

kazmeister wrote: »

Also by chance I discovered the airport price for one agent was almost half the price of pick up at the train station, has anyone else discovered this.

Quite possibly the railway station price was the real price; at the airport they don't hand over the keys until the mark has agreed to a raft of spurious extra charges to plug the gap between the advertised and real prices. So if the railway station price is fair, go for it.

NiftyDigits

kazmeister wrote: »

We need a 4 door car for 3 adults and 2 teens and 4 luggage ideally to save more than 1 airport run. Driver will be arriving at Malaga station evening of 18 Aug returning midday 2 Sep but if ridiculously cheaper could taxi to airport.

Have had quotes ranging from around £300 to £587 but then trying to get my head around what they include throws me as there are full rates, smart rates, crazy rates.

I need to know that dad will just pay the price and no more but be covered for damage in event of accident other than a reasonable excess.

Book direct via https://www.alamo.co.uk/spain

No need to purchase the Excess Protection or TWR on their website.

Then, make sure that he purchases Car Hire Excess Insurance; https://www.bettersafe.com/Products/Car-Hire-Excess-Insurance-Protection Around £30 for an annual policy after Quidco.

Of course you don't need to buy from that particular company.

Once purchased, he can decline all extras offered by Alamo on arrival.

All he needs is a credit card wherein they will block €800.00.

In the event of a claim, they can draw on that €800.00. Make sure that he doesn't leave the desk without an invoice for any damage, which he can then present to the above insurance company for reimbursement.

That's it.

Don't forget Quidco.

If you take it on the evening on the 18th, put in the same time to return it on the 2nd. No problem if he takes it back earlier and you don't save any money by putting in lunchtime.

zagfles

kazmeister wrote: »

We need a 4 door car for 3 adults and 2 teens and 4 luggage ideally to save more than 1 airport run. Driver will be arriving at Malaga station evening of 18 Aug returning midday 2 Sep but if ridiculously cheaper could taxi to airport.

Have had quotes ranging from around £300 to £587 but then trying to get my head around what they include throws me as there are full rates, smart rates, crazy rates.

I need to know that dad will just pay the price and no more but be covered for damage in event of accident other than a reasonable excess.

Car hire excesses are very rarely "reasonable", that's how they make their money. They pretend everything is included when you book, third party, CDW, theft protection etc, so you think you're fully covered. No other insurance is offered at the time of booking.

You then get to the desk and they tell you there's a massive excess of something like £500-£1000. But you can buy an extra insurance, an excess waiver, to reduce that excess to zero. Usually for a rip-off price like £200 or so. If you refuse, they'll block the full excess on your card. So you'll need the headroom on your credit limit.

Alternatively, there are loads of reputable companies that sell excess waivers for a fraction of the price. I use insurance4carhire but there are loads of others. You still need the headroom on your card, as the insurance covers you, not the car hire company.

Ignore any bull you get about the car hire company not recognising the excess insurance you bought. They don't need to - it's nothing to do with them. It covers you not them. You don't even need to tell them you have excess insurance, just tell them you don't want their excess insurance. Note - you still need CDW, which is nearly always included in the base price of the car hire, it's just the excess insurance, sometimes called SuperCDW, that this is about.

Also be aware that some companies advertise zero excess, but then exclude half the car eg tyres, underside, roof, windows etc! The other thing to watch out for is those than exclude claims for negligence - practically all accidents are someone's negligence!

kazmeister

Thank you for your helpful posts. I actually checked my previous paperwork which was from Avis which I was surprised he was charged the extra. Yes the excess was high but that was a risk we would have taken had they not told dad he had to pay the extra. Will have a look at Alamo and purchasing separate insurance.

Thank you folks x

NiftyDigits

kazmeister wrote: »

Thank you for your helpful posts. I actually checked my previous paperwork which was from Avis which I was surprised he was charged the extra. Yes the excess was high but that was a risk we would have taken had they not told dad he had to pay the extra. Will have a look at Alamo and purchasing separate insurance.

Thank you folks x

If he didn't have a credit card in his name with him for the authorisation, they may compel you to purchase their excess waiver.
So it might have been either a booking via the US website or the lack of a valid CC.

Don't skimp on the excess insurance for the sake of £30 or so. The loss of 800€ can really take the shine off a holiday. Plus the excess insurance covers things like windscreen, tyres and keys. So definitely worth having.

Quidco gets 9% off for Alamo and 20% off for Bettersafe

kazmeister

Thanks Nifty.
It was Avis-Europe.com and he had a card, I think they were just being pushy and he fell for it. He won't do this time as I will definitely get the extra cover, didn't even know you could get this so thank you.