How to get the best car hire prices
Last Updated: 16th Sept, 2021
Tips on how to save money and avoid additional charges and fees. We want you to get the best car hire price, it’s why we are in business for the past 25 years. Compare and save on the following brands.
Book your car hire in advance.
During the pandemic many car hire companies sold off their fleet of cars, as a result there is currently a shortage of rental cars, so book your car as early as possible.
If you book with www.airportcarhire.com you have free cancellation and free amendments. Should the rental price drop you simply amend your booking and switch to the cheaper price.
The price difference will be credited to your account within four working days. So secure your reservation by booking your car rental in advance, you have nothing to lose.
Automatic or Manual
In Europe manual transmission will be cheaper than automatic by up to 33%. A good incentive to choose manual over automatic.
Skip the GPS Sat Nav
Use the maps app on your smartphone and download the data in a wi-fi area to save on data charges and battery.
Consider renting a compact car, most compact cars have built in sat nav at no extra charge.
Additional Driver
Do you need the extra driver? Many car hire companies will €10 and more to have a second driver. Check our website to see if the additional driver is free before you book. If not stick to the one driver. See our post on car hire with free additional driver
Child Seats
Many airlines now let you take car seats for free, if not purchase a portable one that doubles as a rucksack. Available from Amazon at £45.
Check out special offers on our website where the car hire company will provides a free child seat.
Fuel
When choosing fuel policy select full to full as this is the best option. This means you get the car full with fuel and you return it full so as not to incur additional charges and fees.
Another option is Same to Same you will need to return it with the same amount of fuel as it had when you collected it. Don’t forget to take a photo of the fuel gauge and check the paperwork to see that it is correct before you head off.
As Filling stations are more expensive near the airport, fill up in advance and then top up the last couple of litres near the airport. Take a photo of the gauge and keep the receipts which will be time stamped.
Don’t put all your eggs in the one basket.
We all know how difficult it is, to get a cash refund from an airline. To add insult to injury the CEO of one the largest airlines went on the public airwaves to say, that his customers are liars and that they all had received a cash refund when they clearly had not.
If you had troubled getting your refund from an airline you will know exactly what we mean. Book your flight with an Airline and book your car hire with a Car Hire Company.
We are please to say airportcarhire.com will always refund customers for cancellations, providing they give between 24 to 48 hours notice before pickup.
If you add car hire when booking your flight some airlines will book the car hire for 30 minutes after the plane lands. If this is in the middle of the night or early morning at a small airport, the car hire supplier may be closed and you will have to wait until they reopen the next day. This can also happen in mid afternoon at smaller airports.
At airportcarhire.com only car hire companies that are open for the time you wish to book are displayed. If the car rental supplier is closed they will not appear in the search results.
Scratches & dents
When you collect the car check it thoroughly for pre-existing damage. If you find damage, even the slightest scratch or scruff mark, report it to the representative before leaving the parking bay.
If you do not find any scratches or dents always take time stamped photos and videos of the car. Later if you feel you are being wrongly charged for damage you will be able to show if the scratches were already present when you received the car.
Choose 5 doors even if you need only 2.
In the busy season many of the smaller 3 door cars are sold out by the afternoon. If they are sold out and you have booked a 5 door you will get a free upgrade to a larger car Thank you for your email has 5 doors. In most cases 3 and 5 door cars are similar in price.
Compare prices here
One way rental may be more expensive than returning the car a week later.
Many people rent a car for one day and drop it off when they reach their destination. Some will do a new rental for the return journey back to the airport.
Before you do this, work out how much it would cost to hold on to the car for the duration of your holiday, it may work out cheaper that the one way rental fee.
If you need to pay for parking don’t forget to take this into account..
Free CDW insurance with a US credit card.
US credit card holders may have free CDW insurance. Contact your credit card company to see if you are covered for car rentals in the country you are visiting..
Tweak your times
If you have flexibility, tweak your pick up and drop off times. Sometimes it can be cheaper to drop the car back at a later time. Book the later time and drop it back earlier. In most cases there is no penalty for returning a car early. This can apply to an 8 day rental working out cheaper than a 7 day rental, check it out and you may be pleasantly surprised.
Long term rentals
Long term rentals in Spain can be as little as 50 cents per day. The 3 week rental usually have the best rates. In some cases 3 weeks rental can be cheaper than 2 weeks. If so book 3 weeks and return the car early if you only require 2 weeks.
Off airport not always cheaper
The Best Car Hire Price may not be down town. Don’t forget to add in the cost of getting to and from the airport . You will also have a better selection of cars at the airport. Opening hours will be better and they are open on weekends.