Debit Card w/ Mastercard Logo for Car Rental?

[GoingtoWDWagain]

Hi everyone, need car rental and only have debit card w/ Mastercard logo on it? Do any of the on-site (Orlando airport) car rental companies except this at time of rental?

Thanks in advance!

4 more days to WDW

 

[safetymom]

What car rental agency are you planning on using? Some of the companies will let you use a debit card, others require a credit card up front but will let you use your debit card when returning the car.

 

[CarolA]

Keep in mind that some rental car companies (and hotels for that matter) place a "Hold" on your account for the estimated total and sometimes some extras. So while the "hold" is on, you will not have access to the cash locked up by it.

 

[mcnuss]

The hold for a rental car can be between $500-$1000 depending on which - if any - insurances you took, so if you are going to use a debit card, you need to have a very hefty balance in your account. You can call the company directly and they will tell you the amount of the hold they will require.

ps: If you have a low limit credit card, you'll run into the same issue.

 

[safetymom]

I have never had that large of a hold placed against my card when renting a card. At Hertz it is the actual costs plus $50.

I suggest the OP call the rental agency that they plan to use and ask them what the policy is so there are no surprises when they show up at MCO.

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Alamo charges the actual charge (nothing more) at the beginning of the rental with a debit card.
Dollar puts a hold of the amount plus a certain percentage.

The hold for a rental car can be between $500-$1000 depending on which - if any - insurances you took, so if you are going to use a debit card, you need to have a very hefty balance in your account. You can call the company directly and they will tell you the amount of the hold they will require.

Who are you renting from?

 

[kdibattista]

Budget lets you use the Visa/Mastercard logo check card for rentals. It is located at the airport. They did put a hold on the card but I believe it was just the amount of the rental.

 

[beattyfamily]

I just did a reasearch at National, Alamo, Dollar, and Budget and found that Budget was the only one who accepted a Visa Debit card as payment.

The others all would do a credit check and/or needed a hefty deposit per day etc... to be able to use a debit card.

The Budget agent on the phone said the only way to book it was over the phone with a debit card...not certain if that is true, though.

Unfortunately, for my BIL, though, Budget rates are pretty darn high for the first week of Decmeber. $213 for a week.

Hopefully, rates will come down before then or I'll bet he'll go with Tiffany Town car instead even though there's less freedom.

Thanks for this thread!

 

[safetymom]

If you join Hertz #1 Express or #1 Gold you can use your debit card to reserve and pay. It just has to be in your profile. There are sites that you can join #1 Gold for free.

This is what I do with Hertz and it works every time.

Your results differ from what others have reported.

 

[beattyfamily]

Originally posted by safetymom
If you join Hertz #1 Express or #1 Gold you can use your debit card to reserve and pay. It just has to be in your profile. There are sites that you can join #1 Gold for free.

This is what I do with Hertz and it works every time.

Your results differ from what others have reported.

I did not research all rental agencies...just the ones I mentioned. They all either said they would do a credit check and/or they would require a very substantial deposit.

I did not research Hertz since they are offsite. Thanks for the info though!

 

[safetymom]

Hertz is very quick and easy. We used to use National but found it took more time. I have never waited more than a minute or two on the shuttle and I am driving out of the lot in less than 10 minutes. I think that is very good.

 

[beattyfamily]

Originally posted by safetymom
If you join Hertz #1 Express or #1 Gold you can use your debit card to reserve and pay. It just has to be in your profile. There are sites that you can join #1 Gold for free.

This is what I do with Hertz and it works every time.

Your results differ from what others have reported.

I just checked Sparatan Travel for the Hertz #1 Gold free inrollment and it brought me to the application.

In the application it states:

In order of preference, list up to three credit cards you wish to use for Hertz rentals. Please note: Debit, bank and Visa Electron are not acceptable forms of payment.

So I don't get it. Maybe they just say debit (visa) cards cannot be used online BUT maybe they really can?

I'm getting so confused!

 

[CarolA]

This is my warining story and I don't know all the details.
I was at the Budget in Long Beach, CA last year and the family in front of me had their card denied. This was on a weekend and during the course of the discussion it came out that it was a debit card. The family said they had rented several times with it and the clerk did not know it was a debit at the time they started. However, for some reason it would not go and since the bank was closed they were out of luck. (Of course I know all this since they raised a royal STINK for all of us to hear, they even went so far as to tell the clerk the balance in the account which I thought was WAY too much info!) The clerk did tell me that occassionally he had trouble authorizing using the Debit card. He asked the family if they had informed the bank that there would be those big hits while they were on vacation. I wondered if maybe the bank's computer had noticed alot of large debits on the account that were out of ordinary and "locked" it to prevent fraud.

If you are using a debit card you might want to call your bank and ask them if they have things that trigger the fraud protections. I now call all my credit card before I go to Europe just for this reason.

Also, you may be required to show proof of insurance since normally debit cards don't have insurance coverage like a lot of credit cards.

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Originally posted by beattyfamily
I just did a reasearch at National, Alamo, Dollar, and Budget and found that Budget was the only one who accepted a Visa Debit card as payment.

The others all would do a credit check and/or needed a hefty deposit per day etc... to be able to use a debit card.

The Budget agent on the phone said the only way to book it was over the phone with a debit card...not certain if that is true, though.

Unfortunately, for my BIL, though, Budget rates are pretty darn high for the first week of Decmeber. $213 for a week.

Hopefully, rates will come down before then or I'll bet he'll go with Tiffany Town car instead even though there's less freedom.

Thanks for this thread!

Alamo does not do a credit check or hold a large deposit, you have to to have a r/t ticket however. I have used my debit card a number of times and have never had a problem or hold.

Debit Cards


Debit and check cards may only be used in conjunction with proof of a round trip travel ticket (airline, cruise ship and the like).

A Debit/Check Card is considered to be any non-credit card bearing the Visa or MasterCard logo. Any other non-credit card without the Visa or MasterCard logo is not accepted.

For pick-ups in the United States and Canada, without proof of roundtrip ticket, debit or check cards are only accepted on return. A Credit Card in the name of the renter must be presented at the time of pick-up.

National does not accept debit cards at the beginning of a rental, only at the end. I have, however, used mine without issue (must be the way it is coded). As with any rental company, if you are using cash a hefty deposit is required.

Debit Cards
Debit and check cards may only be used as a form of payment at the end of the rental (once the vehicle has been returned). National Car Rental will not accept debit cards at the start of a rental. A credit card or cash qualification is required.

 

[beattyfamily]

Originally posted by GAIL HAYDEN
Alamo does not do a credit check or hold a large deposit, you have to to have a r/t ticket however. I have used my debit card a number of times and have never had a problem or hold.

Debit Cards


Debit and check cards may only be used in conjunction with proof of a round trip travel ticket (airline, cruise ship and the like).

A Debit/Check Card is considered to be any non-credit card bearing the Visa or MasterCard logo. Any other non-credit card without the Visa or MasterCard logo is not accepted.

For pick-ups in the United States and Canada, without proof of roundtrip ticket, debit or check cards are only accepted on return. A Credit Card in the name of the renter must be presented at the time of pick-up.

National does not accept debit cards at the beginning of a rental, only at the end. I have, however, used mine without issue (must be the way it is coded). As with any rental company, if you are using cash a hefty deposit is required.

Debit Cards
Debit and check cards may only be used as a form of payment at the end of the rental (once the vehicle has been returned). National Car Rental will not accept debit cards at the start of a rental. A credit card or cash qualification is required.

Thanks for posting about Alamo as it made me check again! I looked under "Renting with Cash" as opposed to "Debit Card"...silly me!

Thank you...this gives my BIL another option!

 

[dg39]

Hi, I'm in the same situatiion as you. I have a mastercard logo debit card. I just called Budget Customer Service & "April" said that yes we can rent a car in orlando with a debit card. You just need to show your drivers liciense & debit card. She also said that if the total of the rental is $200.00 or under they only put a hold of the $200.00, but if its over that they hold 125%, ex. if the car rental is $250.00 they put a hold of 125% which comes to $312.00. They take the money out when you bring the car back & release the hold. Hope this helps..

 

[safetymom]

As long as the debit card is listed in your Gold profile it is not a problem. I travel for business and use this card all the time. In fact I have 2 debit cards in my profile.

I have never had a problem with the debit card. It has to be in the profile. If it isn't then you are out of luck.

I am Hertz Gold 5 Star because I rent so often from them. If I had problems I wouldn't be using them.

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Originally posted by beattyfamily
Thanks for posting about Alamo as it made me check again! I looked under "Renting with Cash" as opposed to "Debit Card"...silly me!

Thank you...this gives my BIL another option!

Glad to hear that!!!!

The rules and regs. can be long and sort of a pain and it is VERY easy to misread something or look at something else. I do it all the time.

 

[kilee]

We had a recent expierence with this and were told that both Alamo and National recently changed their policies regarding this. It was only in the past few months that they stopped accepting the visa/mastercard debit cards. Now their policy states they will still accept it with a roundtrip train, airline, or cruise ticket. We went to get our car--- after doing this numerous times-- and we were told no. The rental fee was less than $300.00 and there was a very large sum in our checking at the time, meaning they could of took any size deposit. We then went through each rental place at the airport-- no dice-- not a single one would let us. I need to mention we were trying to rent from by our house to drive to Florida (we didn't want the miles on our cars). The companies that denied our visa debit card were: Alamo, National, BUDGET, Hertz, Dollar, and Avis. Not a one would take. (We also didn't have airline tickets). We do not hold any credit cards (great we have no debt, terrible in times like renting a car). Anyhow, we ended up having my MIL come rent a car in her name and put DH and I on as extra drivers. Luckily I found a code on Mousesavers that gave us the additional drivers for free. So that was my expierence in 2/03 trying to use a visa debit card. I will also note that our card says right on it--- checking account card( in small letters)-- but looks like a visa in every other way-- with the visa symbol and is accepted in all other "visa" situations-- and had been accepted in the past.

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

We had a recent expierence with this and were told that both Alamo and National recently changed their policies regarding this. It was only in the past few months that they stopped accepting the visa/mastercard debit cards.

The policy for Alamo and National has been in place for the last five years or more, as stated on their respective web sites.

Most of the others do a credit check and without recent credit on your file you won't get a card (almost as bad as being a credit risk).

I just checked my debit card and it says NOTHING about being a check card. It goes through even National without a hitch.