I’ve been on quite a few holidays where we’ve rented a car and along the way I’ve picked up some handy tips. Hopefully you will find these tips helpful
1) It all starts when you pick up the car, or even when you book the car. It is extremely important to get adequate insurance. You can do this direct with the rental company. However it might also be worth considering a specialist car rental provider such as Insurance4carhire as they have a more comprehensive cover and could work out a lot cheaper. Whatever insurance you get it is always worth checking the car thoroughly before you accept it. Look it over, if there are any scratches or dents make sure this is noted on the rental document. Should you not do this there is a chance that you will be liable when you hand the car back and they spot the damage.
2) Make sure you get the right car for your holiday. If you’re going to Orlando and need a hire car to get from the hotel to Disneyland or Universal Studios then an economy or compact car will be more than adequate. However if you’re doing long journeys and travelling many miles then comfort becomes a priority. In this case a bigger car might provide you more comfort. It is always essential that you can fit your entire luggage in the boot. You are likely to leave the car at car parks/towns along the way and you don’t want to make it obvious your tourists and have a car full of loot.
3) When you travel in the USA or Canada on long journeys then it is a good idea to stock up on some essentials at a supermarket. We always stop at the first Wal-Mart or similar large store we see and buy a cool box and some food and drink. The cool box is great for keeping drinks cold throughout the day and most accommodation has an ice machine so it’s easy to fill the cool box with this every morning. The cool box is great for drinks, but it also allows you to make some sandwiches in the mornings and keep them cool till lunch time. Even eating out can get tiresome and boring if you have to do it for breakfast lunch and dinner.
4) It is also a good idea to keep an eye on the petrol gage. We had one incident near Moab in Utah when we almost ran out of Petrol. We set off to go to Canyonlands National Park, which was a bit of a trek from the town, about 70 miles I’d say. When we got there we noticed we hardly had any petrol left. We didn’t think this was a problem as our map showed us that there was a petrol station just outside the park. Unfortunately the petrol station was shut and we were extremely worried that we would not be able to get back to town. We drove with the air conditioning and radio off to preserve as much petrol as we could. Luckily the car began to issue a warning alarm that the petrol had run out just as we pulled up on the forecourt of the petrol station. After that we made sure we filled up whenever we went for a long drive and the petrol tanks was less than ¾ full.
5) When you return your car it is good to give it a quick clean on the inside, just to check you haven’t left any important paperwork inside. You can bring it back with the outside as dirty as you like as the rental company will always clean it before renting it out again. It is also important to check what was agreed in your rental agreement with regards to bringing it back with a full tank of petrol or not. If you bring it back half empty then be prepared to pay a premium for them to fill it up. On the other hand you might have paid for a tank of petrol upfront which means you don’t need to fill it up so always check. I would always avoid paying up front for the petrol. When you do this it allows you to bring the car back and you don’t have to have a full tank. The rental company claims this can save you money and hassle. However this is usually not the case. Let’s assume to fill the tank fully it would cost $80 and the rental company says they will only charge $70. You initially think that’s a bargain and get tempted. When you analyse this though you realise that you are actually likely to be out of pocket. For example if you bring the car back and you have half a tank of petrol left then this will the rental company(or you) $40 to fill up. Yet you paid $70 up front. When you pay up front for the tank of petrol it is in your interest to have the tank as empty as possible when you take it back. In my opinion though it is better to fill it up at the end and not pay for the petrol up front.
I hope these tips are helpful and there might be many more I’ve missed out. There is a comment box underneath so if you have some tips to add or want to comment on one of my tips feel free to use this feature.
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