Saturday, August 23, 2008

The One Way Budget Car Rental

By Sandy Maseko


To save the cost of regular taxi rides, why not try a budget car rental and enjoy the independent experience it offers. Sometimes though, the companies that rent budget cars, supply cars that are at the bottom end of the spectrum. Well maybe not that bad, but sometimes, well most of the time, the people that assist you in car rentals just doesn't have your best interest in mind, so you end up paying a truckload of money for a pool of frustrations. So, just to help, I have made a written down a few pointers to help.

If the type of car you want to drive is of no real concern to you, use a car rental web site that allows you to dictate your own price level. Often the site will not only get you the best deal but may even throw in an unlimited mileage just to get the deal. If you are lucky and decide to book a fly-drive deal for instance, then you may find the rental company has upgraded your vehicle but this is less likely if you book with the airline themselves. Unfortunately, airlines although convenient aren't really the more economic way to go, their budget car rental prices are hardly budget, and tend to be higher than those of outside firms.

There are some excellent budget car rental deals on the internet that can give you a great bargain. Internet only bookings are fast becoming the only way you are able to receive a discount on your car rental. Shopping around on the internet can be fun and save you money as there is almost always a special car rental offer available with one budget car rental company or another. Plus, and this is the good bit; all this can be done from your home.

Another thing to try is whether your credit card company has negotiated special discounts with the car rental company you are going to use. Many car rental companies have arranged special deals with large organizations to ensure they have more business, perhaps you are a member of one of these.

Before you drive the rental car away, carry out a thorough check for damage as often these budget rental cars take a few knocks so if there is make sure the renter is aware of them. For you won peace of mind and financial well-being, check out all the vehicles controls and make sure everything that is fitted works so you won't have to pay for something that was faulty when you drove it away.

Before you decide to use the budget rental car company's insurance, take a look at your own policy as you will probably find that it covers rental vehicles as well. Why pay for insurance for budget car rental when your own auto insurance policy will cover it even if it isn't a great deal. Whatever the case, you must still have insurance cover when you rent a car so don't try and skip it to save money.

One last tip is to try and collect your budget rental car as soon as the office opens as many of the cars already on rental will not have been returned and there is a good chance you will get a upgrade at no extra cost.

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