Everything you might want to know about car rentals :)

[Had2stopLurking]

Hello all! I've seen a lot of questions asked re: rental cars and policies on this board lately and was hoping I could clear some things up (at least in my experience from being a former manager of one).

Most car rental agencies (your biggies like Hertz, Avis, Alamo, ect) go on what's called a "24 hour day" rental. For instance, if you pick it up at 10:00 a.m. on Monday, and return it at 10:00 a.m on Tuesday, that counts as one day. Most big companies will give you a 59 minute grace period on returning (so you would have until 10:59 on Tuesday in this case). If you arrive after that time, you start getting charged by the hour (usually one third the daily rate) until it it cheaper to charge for an entire additional day.

Places like Enterprise have two types of rental rates, one described as above, and one that's considered a "calendar day" rental. USUALLY, those types of rentals are used for insurance replacement purposes and are not quoted at airports. A calendar day rental means that no matter what time you pick it up on a given day and return it the next day, it counts as two days.

Everyone should check with their local insurance company/cc before rental to see what it covers in regards to rental cars. Some policies cover it if it's a replacement vehicle, some do not. You need to check with your agent or cc company.

It used to be that foreign travelers (keep in mind this was many many many many) years ago were required by some companies to purchase the additional insurance. I can't really comment on that anymore, as I haven't been in the business in a while to know if that rule still exists.

The optional gas option will almost always save you the time/hassle of having to refuel your car and work out cheaper with less stress in an unfamiliar area. Keep in mind, this is only the case if you are going to use AT LEAST 3/4 of the tank on your trip. The gas is usually offered upfront for a few cents less than local gas prices.

Some places offer just a "glass coverage" option (rather than the entire vehicle). Check with your local insurance company to see if it carries over to glass on rentals (even if it does on your own vehicle, it may not on rental cars) to know if you might need that option (it's typically only a few dollars a day).

Also, ALWAYS walk around your vehicle and have them note any scratches or dings or anything that sticks out at you. Most places aren't sticklers about it, but, some are. Best to cover your butt just in case.

Also, check your gas gauge before leaving the lot. Sometimes vehicles are flipped quickly and not refilled. You don't want to have to double dip on gas (when you sign the contract, it's usually stating the car is full and you will return it that way). This doesn't happen often, but, it's not out of the question either; especially when it's busy with high turnover on vehicles.

I think that's all I've got for now, haha. If anyone has any questions, I will be happy to try to answer them for you.

Hope that helps.
H2SL

 

[thefigueroas]

Thank you very much for your information. This will be very helpful for newbies and people who don't rent very often (like me!)

 

[jlewisinsyr]

Most car rental agencies (your biggies like Hertz, Avis, Alamo, ect) go on what's called a "24 hour day" rental. For instance, if you pick it up at 10:00 a.m. on Monday, and return it at 10:00 a.m on Tuesday, that counts as one day. Most big companies will give you a 59 minute grace period on returning (so you would have until 10:59 on Tuesday in this case). If you arrive after that time, you start getting charged by the hour (usually one third the daily rate) until it it cheaper to charge for an entire additional day.

Actually most places are 29 minute grace periods now.

Places like Enterprise have two types of rental rates, one described as above, and one that's considered a "calendar day" rental. USUALLY, those types of rentals are used for insurance replacement purposes and are not quoted at airports. A calendar day rental means that no matter what time you pick it up on a given day and return it the next day, it counts as two days.

Correct, high end rental agencies often use calendar days as well.

The optional gas option will almost always save you the time/hassle of having to refuel your car and work out cheaper with less stress in an unfamiliar area. Keep in mind, this is only the case if you are going to use AT LEAST 3/4 of the tank on your trip. The gas is usually offered upfront for a few cents less than local gas prices.

To further expand. Prepaid gas charges are based on 100% capacity. It's almost impossible to deplete a car down to zero, even if you run out of gas altogether. So lets say you rent a Nissan Altima, it has a 20 gallon tank, you prepay at $2.50 a gallon you will be paying $50.00. If you return it with just 1 gallon left (which is extremely aggressive, most likely you'll return it with much more), your actual cost per gallon increases to $2.63/gallon or about 5% more, which most likely will be more then local places charge (well not right at the drop off, but on the highway near), considering most pre-pay rates are 5% - 10% less then the local area. Prepay outside of convenience will almost NEVER save you money.

 

[Lewisc]

I wish "helpful" posters would verify their facts before posting. The information regarding the optional gas is wrong. It's the kind of lying that's frequently done by agents trying to meet a quota. Your post serves as a warning why renters shouldn't trust anything the employee of the agency tells them.

The 59 minute grace period is history. Some poster report being charged extra hours when they went past their scheduled drop off time even though the extra time didn't add an extra day.

It is next to impossible to save money with the pre-paid gas option. jlewisinsyr went through the numbers. Rental agencies frequently "fudge" the average cost of local gas. They'll usually quote the average price for premium gas at a full service station. Renters won't be putting premium gas in a rental car.

People should check with their auto insurance broker. Many of our personal auto polices cover rental vehicles other then replacement.

People from a foregin country should check. Third parties bundle a car rental (from a major agency) with insurance and a gas plan. This is generally a better deal then taking the extras from the rental company.

In addition to walking around the vehicle pop the trunk. Look for the spare tire and a jack. You don't want to be charged for a missing tire and you'd like to know you have a spare in case you get a flat.

Hello all! I've seen a lot of questions asked re: rental cars and policies on this board lately and was hoping I could clear some things up (at least in my experience from being a former manager of one).

Most car rental agencies (your biggies like Hertz, Avis, Alamo, ect) go on what's called a "24 hour day" rental. For instance, if you pick it up at 10:00 a.m. on Monday, and return it at 10:00 a.m on Tuesday, that counts as one day. Most big companies will give you a 59 minute grace period on returning (so you would have until 10:59 on Tuesday in this case). If you arrive after that time, you start getting charged by the hour (usually one third the daily rate) until it it cheaper to charge for an entire additional day.

Places like Enterprise have two types of rental rates, one described as above, and one that's considered a "calendar day" rental. USUALLY, those types of rentals are used for insurance replacement purposes and are not quoted at airports. A calendar day rental means that no matter what time you pick it up on a given day and return it the next day, it counts as two days.

Everyone should check with their local insurance company/cc before rental to see what it covers in regards to rental cars. Some policies cover it if it's a replacement vehicle, some do not. You need to check with your agent or cc company.

It used to be that foreign travelers (keep in mind this was many many many many) years ago were required by some companies to purchase the additional insurance. I can't really comment on that anymore, as I haven't been in the business in a while to know if that rule still exists.

The optional gas option will almost always save you the time/hassle of having to refuel your car and work out cheaper with less stress in an unfamiliar area. Keep in mind, this is only the case if you are going to use AT LEAST 3/4 of the tank on your trip. The gas is usually offered upfront for a few cents less than local gas prices.

Some places offer just a "glass coverage" option (rather than the entire vehicle). Check with your local insurance company to see if it carries over to glass on rentals (even if it does on your own vehicle, it may not on rental cars) to know if you might need that option (it's typically only a few dollars a day).

Also, ALWAYS walk around your vehicle and have them note any scratches or dings or anything that sticks out at you. Most places aren't sticklers about it, but, some are. Best to cover your butt just in case.

Also, check your gas gauge before leaving the lot. Sometimes vehicles are flipped quickly and not refilled. You don't want to have to double dip on gas (when you sign the contract, it's usually stating the car is full and you will return it that way). This doesn't happen often, but, it's not out of the question either; especially when it's busy with high turnover on vehicles.

I think that's all I've got for now, haha. If anyone has any questions, I will be happy to try to answer them for you.

Hope that helps.
H2SL

 

[Had2stopLurking]

I wish "helpful" posters would verify their facts before posting. The information regarding the optional gas is wrong. It's the kind of lying that's frequently done by agents trying to meet a quota. Your post serves as a warning why renters shouldn't trust anything the employee of the agency tells them.

The 59 minute grace period is history. Some poster report being charged extra hours when they went past their scheduled drop off time even though the extra time didn't add an extra day.

It is next to impossible to save money with the pre-paid gas option. jlewisinsyr went through the numbers. Rental agencies frequently "fudge" the average cost of local gas. They'll usually quote the average price for premium gas at a full service station. Renters won't be putting premium gas in a rental car.

People should check with their auto insurance broker. Many of our personal auto polices cover rental vehicles other then replacement.

People from a foregin country should check. Third parties bundle a car rental (from a major agency) with insurance and a gas plan. This is generally a better deal then taking the extras from the rental company.

In addition to walking around the vehicle pop the trunk. Look for the spare tire and a jack. You don't want to be charged for a missing tire and you'd like to know you have a spare in case you get a flat.

Thanks for saying I'm "lying" If you actually took the time to read my post, I did include the fact that it saves on convenience if you are in a place you are unfamiliar with. As jlewis pointed out, the gas option is based on the entire tank of gas. For me, losing $5 on extra gas left in the car by prepaying (if I plan on using most of the tank) is much better than the hassle of having to find a gas station near the airport in certain places. Places like Syracuse, yes, there are a plethora of gas stations and such on RT 11, South Bay Road, and Taft Rd near Hancock Airport. Places like Orlando, it's a zoo trying to get off the highway, not get hit with another toll, and get back on to only get hit with another toll before returning the car. Convenience does play a part in any decision.

I have yet to see the 29 minute grace period at any car rental agency recently (but that does not mean it doesn't exist, just still have encountered the 59 minute gp in both Cali and Florida in the last year, so I was unaware of that change.)

When I managed car rental, we always priced our gas based on the average of the lowest gas price in the area, not premium; so until you can show me proof of that, I would tend to think that policy is not across the board.

If people are charged for returning their car passed the scheduled return time (yet it is still within the 24 hour clock of pickup time), then they need to contact the corporate office of the company they rented from to get it resolved because that should never happen; the computers are programmed to charge based on a 24 hour clock (unless it's a calendar day rental). So are you saying they now have taken the time (and expense) to just redo all computer systems at all major car rental agencies to mess with people? Yep, I see them doing that (trust me, you would laugh too if you knew how cheap corporate is at car rental agencies, )

 

[Lewisc]

The optional gas option will almost always save you the time/hassle of having to refuel your car and work out cheaper .
H2SL

The pre-paid option will never work out cheaper then returning your car with a full tank. I don't know if you're lying, or you believe the lies your rental company told you to tell your customers. Your statement is a lie, the only question is if you knew it was a lie when you posted. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you drank the kool aid and believed the BS.

Thanks for saying I'm "lying" If you actually took the time to read my post, I did include the fact that it saves on convenience if you are in a place you are unfamiliar with. As jlewis pointed out, the gas option is based on the entire tank of gas. For me, losing $5 on extra gas left in the car by prepaying (if I plan on using most of the tank) is much better than the hassle of having to find a gas station near the airport in certain places. Places like Syracuse, yes, there are a plethora of gas stations and such on RT 11, South Bay Road, and Taft Rd near Hancock Airport. Places like Orlando, it's a zoo trying to get off the highway, not get hit with another toll, and get back on to only get hit with another toll before returning the car. Convenience does play a part in any decision.

jlewisinsyr (or any other recent renter) What is the current high gas rate if you don't return your car full (don't pre-pay for gas) and what is the rate if you purchase the pre-pay option? I suspect the average renter at Orlando will wind up using less then half a tank of gas. He'll probably come out ahead paying the high per gallon for half a tank rather then paying the discounted pre-pay rate for the entire tank. I wonder what % of the tank is break even.

I'm not going to take the time to search. At least one poster was charged for returning the car late, as per the rental agreement, even though the late return didn't increase the number of days the car was rented. This might be justified, it's theoretically possible returning the car late meant the agency didn't have a car available for another customer.

 

[jlewisinsyr]

jlewisinsyr (or any other recent renter) What is the current high gas rate if you don't return your car full (don't pre-pay for gas) and what is the rate if you purchase the pre-pay option? I suspect the average renter at Orlando will wind up using less then half a tank of gas. He'll probably come out ahead paying the high per gallon for half a tank rather then paying the discounted pre-pay rate for the entire tank. I wonder what % of the tank is break even.

I never choose pre-paid fuel so to be honest I never really pay all that much attention; it's actually highly discouraged in our companies travel policy because it never is cheaper, outside of convenience there is no benefit. I think the highest I ever saw the return less then full tank charge was around $7.00 a gallon, but that was when regular gas was around $4.00 a gallon. I think the surcharge (return less then full) rate averages 150% of current price average.

In the past when I've taken note, it has been about on par with the local stations because they average multiple stations and regular (87 sometimes 89 Octane) grade, sometimes it has been an estimated 5% - 10% less, but that was atypical in most cases.

To expand on your 50% of tank usage, using the same numbers I mentioned on a Nissan Altima, it would work out to be $5.00 a gallon for 10 gallons of use, at a prefilled rate of $2.50 a gallon for 20 gallons. If the 150% average surchage is correct, it would be $3.75 a gallon (which seems low to me, but again I don't pay attention to the charts), so do the math on that.

 

[Had2stopLurking]

The pre-paid option will never work out cheaper then returning your car with a full tank. I don't know if you're lying, or you believe the lies your rental company told you to tell your customers. Your statement is a lie, the only question is if you knew it was a lie when you posted.



jlewisinsyr (or any other recent renter) What is the current high gas rate if you don't return your car full (don't pre-pay for gas) and what is the rate if you purchase the pre-pay option? I suspect the average renter at Orlando will wind up using less then half a tank of gas. He'll probably come out ahead paying the high per gallon for half a tank rather then paying the discounted pre-pay rate for the entire tank. I wonder what % of the tank is break even.

I'm not going to take the time to search. At least one poster was charged for returnning the car late, as per the rental agreement, even though the late return didn't increase the number of days the car was rented.

So you think double paying tolls, aggravation to save $5 in gas isn't cheaper? Duly noted. My time and peace of mind is worth a bit more than that.

And you are correct, MOST people that rent in Orlando wouldn't use a full tank of gas. If you noticed, I said that it would work out if they were going to use the tank of gas (or most of it). Driving to/from Disney ONLY wouldn't be worth it and I wouldn't have even offered it. If they are going from Disney, to Tampa, to other places, ect, then yes, it's worth it IMO. It saves a lot of aggravation in unknown places.

But, continue to argue the evils of car rentals and why people should beware. That's why they have buses. Everyone has options!!

 

[Dan Murphy]

Thanks much, H2SL, and welcome to the DIS.

 

[Had2stopLurking]

Thanks much, H2SL, and welcome to the DIS.

thanks Dan! That little boy in your signature is precious!!!!!

 

[zulaya]

Last time I rented from National, the price for pre-pay was probably within 5 cents of what the price was out on Disney property.

That being said, I never take pre-pay because:

1. I rarely use the full tank and I don't want to pay for gas I didn't use
2. I've been going to WDW for 10 years and I know the best places to fill up anyway. The issue of getting lost, double tolls...doesn't apply to me personally.