car hire in Iceland : useful tricks

Anything your own car insurance does not cover, it is likely that your credit card will. In some cases the credit card coverage is as good as or better than your auto insurance; in others it is intended to be secondary insurance to help cover anything your auto insurance does not.

Of course, you will need to pay for your car rental using that card; just having a qualifying credit card does not give you any protection.

Always compare rental agencies – including some less common ones.

Just about everyone knows the big brands – Hertz, Avis, Enterprise, and so on – but there are a lot of less obvious brands that may offer better rates. Budget, Sixt, Thrifty, and Fox are just a few of the available ones.

To cover all your bases, you can book through an online travel agency website – like Hotwire or Priceline- to compare a few different rentals. More info about car hire in Malaga

Don’t Walk Up

Like a flight, you’re going to find the best car rental rate beforehand online. Actually, if you are booking a car with less than 24 hours advance notice your rates may skyrocket.

If you walk off the airplane with the thought of just walking up to the car rental booth to rent you’ll likely be surprised by the high prices. We always aim to rent a car with at least 24 hours notice. If you do need a car on short notice, it’s best to go with smaller independent providers who can negotiate a rate with you.

Ask for discounts.

Your first question at the rental counter should be: “Do you offer any discounts?” Whether Military, AAA, senior, corporate or otherwise, many associations get price breaks from car rental companies, and all you have to do is ask. In many cases, mentioning your frequent flyer membership can help you ear miles on your car rental. For example, United Milage Plus members earn 75 miles per day on Hertz rentals, and elite members earn an additional 50 miles per rental day, which means you could easily earn up to 500 extra frequent flyer miles for just a four day rental! Read more about rent a car in Faro

You’ll pay a fixed price for this service at the start of your rental, to cover the cost of any tolls you go through with your hire car. It is usually offered at the rental counter when you arrive to pick up the car.
Tips for avoiding a prepaid toll service hard-sell

Do a little research before you set off, so you get a sense of how much tolls cost where you’re going. Then you can estimate whether paying a fixed rate for all tolls is a good option, or whether it will end up more expensive than paying as you go.
If you’re travelling somewhere with extensive tolls (for example the USA especially Florida, and many mainland European countries) and you know you’ll use plenty of them on your trip, these prepaid services can use useful.