Cars are expensive pieces of machinery so it should come as no surprise that actually hiring a car can also be a pricey experience. You’ll not only have to stump up for the daily rental costs of the car, as well as providing fuel, but in many cases you’ll also need to pay for an insurance policy in order to cover you should any damage occur.
All these factors combined can make hiring a car an eye-watering experience. However there are a number of ways to save money when you know a few insider tricks.
Be Flexible On Dates
Hiring a car is very much like booking a hotel room or a flight; certain days will prove more popular than others, and in many cases the hire charge on these days will be higher than less popular days.
Take a look at the following quotes as a perfect example. The first quote is for a weekday hire, while the second is the cost of hiring the same car on a weekend. The difference for the Chevy Aveo is £3.26 per day – equivalent to almost £50 over the course of a two week vacation.
Choose a Small Car
It’s a fact of life that more powerful cars with larger engines typically cost more to buy, insure and/or rent. Try comparing the cost of hiring a little three door run-around with a five door, four-wheel drive monster and you’ll quickly see the difference in cost.
What that means is that if you want to save money when hiring a car (or buying one) don’t go looking for the biggest, most powerful vehicle around. Instead try focusing your search on the smaller vehicles with the less powerful engines. Aim to find the smallest car you think you can cope with. While the driving experience may not be what you’re used to, just think of all the money you’ll be saving.
Learn to Hypermile
“Hypermiling” is the name given to a series of techniques designed to provide you with the best possible mileage in your car. In essence, hypermiling allows you to drive further on the same amount of fuel.
The reason that hypermiling can save you money on your hire car rental is that most companies will expect you to return your vehicle with a similar level of fuel to when to took it away. As a result even if you only hire a car for a single day you’re still going to need to pay for fuel.
The less fuel you use, the less you’ll pay to refill the car and so the more money you’ll save.
Invest In Hire Car Excess Insurance
Car hire companies have a nasty habit of charging over the odds for any repairs or insurance claims necessary. Worse, you will normally be expected to pay a sizeable excess in the event of a claim even if the accident isn’t actually your fault at all.
Better than relying on a hire car firm who will charge you anything up to £1,000 excess if and when an insurance claim is necessary, instead consider taking out hire car excess insurance, or comprehensive insurance by youi. For less than the price of a daily coffee you’ll be able to insure yourself against having to pay out in the case of a claim.
If you would like to find out more about excess car insurance visit us at http://www.paymyexcess.com/ were we have a range of packages to suite your needs.
Most insurance companies will add coverage for non-owned vehicles – such as rental cars or dealership loaners – at a very small price. Well worth it if you are not covered by your credit card.
A far simpler solution is to get yourself am American Express Gold or Platinum card. Each time you rent you’re always covered, no problem. A hell of a saving over the $10 or $15 a day the rental companies hit you with.