The Wall Street Journal just published an article about how difficult it is to find cheap rental cars these days. Customers are looking for alternatives to rent at reasonable prices. But how can you find cheap car rentals? We have put together some tips to help you reduce your bills.
1. Rent cheap cars from private owners
Peer to peer is the new trend on car rentals. You can rent a car from a private owner when they are not using it. The service is provided by the Spagg Network. Check spagg.com’s inventory online to see what cars are proposed by city. If you have a friend with an available car, you can also ask them to register their cars with Spagg so that you can rent legally and benefit from Spagg’s insurance.
2. Reserve your car online
Travel inventory aggregators like Expedia or Travelprice feature inventory from a variety of car rental companies and make them compete so that you can get the cheapest rental.
3. Use your own auto insurance
You will need your car to be insured for property and third party coverage during the rental. Even though car rental companies want you to purchase their coverage, you don’t need to do so if you already own a car and have auto insurance that covers any car that you drive. Before leaving for your trip, simply give your insurance company a call and ask if they cover car rentals too. Ask specifically for the level of coverage of property (must cover the value of the car you rent) and for third party insurance (must cover eventual lawsuits from third parties). However, beware of your credit card coverage. Most people take them for good without reading the fine print. They often do not cover 3rd party liability, and only work in very special cases.
4. Negotiate the price
Car rental industry is one of the last markets where you can negotiate prices. No matter what reservation you have, you can always negotiate when you’re at the counter. Ask for a discount. Check prices at their competitors (specially in airports). Make them aware that you have alternatives. But watch out: you must also feel how much they need your business. Car rental companies have decreased inventory recently, and may not need to negotiate with you to sell out their inventory for the day.
5. Ask for an upgrade
If you tried negotiating and can’t get a cheaper rental, ask for a better car for the same price. Car rental companies often have a harder time renting larger cars. They may not care to give you a larger car if it is late in the day and they are certain that they’re not going to rent it to anybody else that day.
6. Rent outside of airports
Airport car rental counters must pay a variety of fees to be able to operate. Some of the fees are charged directly to the customer and will appear on your bill, some will simply be built into the price of the rental. Before leaving for your trip, check out the car rental companies installed right outside of the airport. Chances are that they have significantly cheaper car rentals.
7. Search for coupons online
Google “car rental coupons” and you will see a variety of websites that aggregate discounts for car rentals. Some of the coupons are outdated, but if you try several, you will eventually find one that still works. Coupons enable you to rent 5-15% cheaper than the asked price.
8. Use your airline miles
Customers with cumulated mileage tend to focus on the usage of the mileage for the next plane trip. It is often easier to use your mileage for getting advantages in other travel services, like a preferential rate at a car rental desk.
9. Rent from mom and pop shops
Local car rental shops in the city may be going through cash-hungry times and may be interested in lowering the rates just to get your business. They also rent smaller cars with very low cost (ever thought of renting a Daewoo Lanos?).
10. Avoid gas guzzlers
If you are driving more than 100 miles per day, the cost of the gas will be comparable to the cost the car rental. Saving on gas will be as important as saving on your car. Renting a car with a 20% better mileage (say 18mpg instead of 15mpg) is equivalent to negotiating a $8 discount on a typical $40/day rental. And the good news is that you will be helping the environment and all of us.
