Explain Car Rentals to me (and paying for the rental)

[tms295psu]

Sounds silly, but I have NEVER rented a car! Always had family to "shuttle" us to the airport, and borrowed one of their cars while in town.

My main concern is how much available credit do I need to rent a car. I've started an on-line ressie (didn't actually Book). Basically a 5 day rental w/ Alamo in Orlando, Full Size Car, Approx $230 for the rental w/ their list of taxes/fees. I have full coverage (with high limits) on my personal vehicle and I know my insurance can be used for rentals, so I shouldn't have to purchase their "rental insurance".

I just don't want to show up expecting to drive away from the airport (no alternative ride) and not be able to do to "available credit" on my card.

Do they double the rental and put a hold on the card, or do they just charge what the actual rental fee is???

 

[Lauralooneyfordisney]

Your personal car insurance should be fine if it covers rental cars. That is what we do and never get the rental insurance. You book your reservation online and when you pick up the car then they charge the actual fee of the rental at that time and put it on your card. I have never had them add an over the amount "hold" on my card before. If someone else knows any different then they will chime in. You will need to fill up with gas before you take the car back to make sure you are not hit with the high price of them filling it up for you. also. Make sure you take your car insurance card with you too. Hope this helps.

 

[mikehn]

They take credit card info when you pick up the car, and this is for incidentals in case you incur them - such as gas, tolls, etc. However, I've never known them to actually hold any certain dollar amount on your card in advance. They charge the total amount of the rental (including any incidentals) on your card once you return the car at the end of the trip. The actual charge does not hit your card until you return the car.

 

[jlewisinsyr]

The only comment is to make sure you use a credit card; debit cards, even if used in a credit transaction have very different rules.

 

[backyardponder]

Also be aware they will run a quick driving record search on you. When they punch in your drivers' licence number, the check is done. It is really fast, so you won't even know it was done. If you have a bad driving record, they could refuse to rent to you even if you have a reservation.

 

[ncc1701]

Some companies do offer a lower rate if you pay in advance. So make sure you don't check on that rate

 

[snesguy]

Sounds silly, but I have NEVER rented a car! Always had family to "shuttle" us to the airport, and borrowed one of their cars while in town.

My main concern is how much available credit do I need to rent a car. I've started an on-line ressie (didn't actually Book). Basically a 5 day rental w/ Alamo in Orlando, Full Size Car, Approx $230 for the rental w/ their list of taxes/fees. I have full coverage (with high limits) on my personal vehicle and I know my insurance can be used for rentals, so I shouldn't have to purchase their "rental insurance".

I just don't want to show up expecting to drive away from the airport (no alternative ride) and not be able to do to "available credit" on my card.

Do they double the rental and put a hold on the card, or do they just charge what the actual rental fee is???

I've never had a problem when renting. I give them my credit card and driver's license and they're happy but I have plenty of room on my card. It's an easy process. You have to watch out for upsells. Many rental agencies will encourage you to take extra insurance (for which you get charged). If you don't want extra insurance watch out for this and say, "no thanks".

I googled a little bit to search for an answer to your question about CC holds. For the definitive answer you should call Alamo and they should be able to tell you. What I found online varied from, $200 hold, to $300 hold, to hold only the amount of the rental. So long as you have $300 of room I think you'll be fine. Alamo allows you to check in online on their website so if you can do that before you leave that's a good sign that you'll have no trouble.

People paying with cash have to put up a cash deposit. My search found one person who said that Alamo reduced the size of their deposit requirement (which he found out by calling Alamo and asking) if he provided confirmation of a return airline ticket so this might help if you don't have enough room to hold the standard deposit. Call Alamo to check.

 

[gmeh1]

Sounds silly, but I have NEVER rented a car! Always had family to "shuttle" us to the airport, and borrowed one of their cars while in town.

My main concern is how much available credit do I need to rent a car. I've started an on-line ressie (didn't actually Book). Basically a 5 day rental w/ Alamo in Orlando, Full Size Car, Approx $230 for the rental w/ their list of taxes/fees. I have full coverage (with high limits) on my personal vehicle and I know my insurance can be used for rentals, so I shouldn't have to purchase their "rental insurance".

I just don't want to show up expecting to drive away from the airport (no alternative ride) and not be able to do to "available credit" on my card.

Do they double the rental and put a hold on the card, or do they just charge what the actual rental fee is???

Alamo puts a hold on your card for the rental costs, nothing more. They will charge your card at the end of the rental. If there are extra costs, like not returning it full, that will be added on to the cost of the rental. BUT, we do NOT put extra holds on cars, just the price you are quoted.

 

[gmeh1]

Your personal car insurance should be fine if it covers rental cars. That is what we do and never get the rental insurance. You book your reservation online and when you pick up the car then they charge the actual fee of the rental at that time and put it on your card. I have never had them add an over the amount "hold" on my card before. If someone else knows any different then they will chime in. You will need to fill up with gas before you take the car back to make sure you are not hit with the high price of them filling it up for you. also. Make sure you take your car insurance card with you too. Hope this helps.

Alamo, which is the rental agency the OP is using, does not charge upfront, we put a hold on the card for the amount of the rental. We do not require a car insurance card.

 

[gmeh1]

Also be aware they will run a quick driving record search on you. When they punch in your drivers' licence number, the check is done. It is really fast, so you won't even know it was done. If you have a bad driving record, they could refuse to rent to you even if you have a reservation.

Alamo does not run a license check on you. Neither does National or Enterprise.

 

[rwdavis2]

Depending on the rental company you may want to join one of their renter programs. For example, Dollar's Express has you fill in all your license, credit card, and other information when you join. When you go to pick up the car you get your own special and usually shorter line, at the rental counter. They don't spend forever typing in your info since they already have it. You can even specify the insurances you want. But make sure to double check that.

MOST IMPORTANT
When you go to get the car walk around and note ANY dings/dents/scratches regardless of how small. They should give a paper where you make the notations and then take it back to the desk where you got the keys and have them sign it. Take pictures of the car as well. You want to protect yourself in case they try to scam you for damage.

Also, many credit cards also offer their own (free with the card) damage insurance for a car rental. Read the fine print on the card's contract.