Which Rental Car Company?

[ducklite]

well, some people have limits on their charge accounts and to them it is a big deal. Often it takes up to 10 days for that charge to come off. It would not affect me and obviously not you, but, it does affect others. Try to think about other people, please.

Like I said, if my money was so tight that a $200 hold would affect my trip, then I wouldn't be taking a vacation. What on earth would happen if there was an emergency and they needed to spend $800 to get home, or their flight was cancelled due to bad weather and they had to spend an extra two or three days in Orlando--like people visiting from Denver will likely be facing this weekend?

I'm not flaming, I'm pointing out a very real possible situation, and wondering about the rationality of taking a trip without having the means of paying for an emergency that might come up.

Anne

 

[Lewisc]

I can't speak for the OP but some people either by choice or due to problems in the past have relatively low limits on their credit cards even though they are well off financially. Those people could either write a check or use a debit card to pay for unexpected expenses. Car rental agencies are one of the few business that treat debit cards and credit cards differently. In fact car rental agencies are one of the only business that don't allow customers to pay cash without a big hastle.

Look at it from the agencies side. You have a car worth $20,000. You're leaving town after your vacation. They'd like the ability to make sure you pay if you keep the car a few extra days, forget to fill it up or return the car with some damage.

It's not a smart financial decision to keep your limits so low that it limits your ability to chose what rental agency you can do business with. I still think the best solution is to see if you can get your credit limit increased by $200.

I would assume that any agency might wind up putting a hold on my credit card even if that policy wasn't in effect when I made my reservation.

Like I said, if my money was so tight that a $200 hold would affect my trip, then I wouldn't be taking a vacation. What on earth would happen if there was an emergency and they needed to spend $800 to get home, or their flight was cancelled due to bad weather and they had to spend an extra two or three days in Orlando--like people visiting from Denver will likely be facing this weekend?

I'm not flaming, I'm pointing out a very real possible situation, and wondering about the rationality of taking a trip without having the means of paying for an emergency that might come up.

Anne

 

[ducklite]

I can't speak for the OP but some people either by choice or due to problems in the past have relatively low limits on their credit cards even though they are well off financially. Those people could either write a check or use a debit card to pay for unexpected expenses.

I understand that, but another poster was saying that $200 would be spending money that they now couldn't have for the parks, and my point is that if you don't have the cash flow to tap spending money from an additional source to the point that a $200 deposit was going to hinder the trip, perhaps it might be better to wait until the financial picture was more stable.

Anne

 

[ducklite]

It's not a smart financial decision to keep your limits so low that it limits your ability to chose what rental agency you can do business with. I still think the best solution is to see if you can get your credit limit increased by $200..

I agree--in fact keeping a limit so low that you routinely hit the limit every month is actually BAD financial sense. You should never allow your spending to go past 50% of the limit of your card. To do so actually negatively affects your credit.

Anne

 

[Yzerbear19]

While it is not an issue for me, I would still not like having my funds tied up by anyone. It is the not the amount, it is the principal.

Exactly! I like knowing that if something were to come up that my money isn't being held by someone. I don't trust that they will take the hold off right away because I know of several companies that don't take them off right away. I've had to call my bank several times in the last couple of months to cancel holds that the companies hadn't taken off even though the charge had cleared.

 

[disneyldwjr]

Like I said, if my money was so tight that a $200 hold would affect my trip, then I wouldn't be taking a vacation. What on earth would happen if there was an emergency and they needed to spend $800 to get home, or their flight was cancelled due to bad weather and they had to spend an extra two or three days in Orlando--like people visiting from Denver will likely be facing this weekend?

I'm not flaming, I'm pointing out a very real possible situation, and wondering about the rationality of taking a trip without having the means of paying for an emergency that might come up.

Anne

Anne,
I am sure you are not flaming, but, you know, we are dealing with adults here and what they do or plan to do is none of our business. I am sure they have thought out all possible scenarios and while I am sure your input is valuable to some, it is really not applicable or necessary here.

 

[disneyldwjr]

I understand that, but another poster was saying that $200 would be spending money that they now couldn't have for the parks, and my point is that if you don't have the cash flow to tap spending money from an additional source to the point that a $200 deposit was going to hinder the trip, perhaps it might be better to wait until the financial picture was more stable.

Anne

Anne,
Frankly, what other people do is none of our business. Judging someone's financial state from one post is absurd, to say the least and more so, none of your business.

 

[disneyldwjr]

sorry, duplicate response.

 

[disneyldwjr]

Exactly! I like knowing that if something were to come up that my money isn't being held by someone. I don't trust that they will take the hold off right away because I know of several companies that don't take them off right away. I've had to call my bank several times in the last couple of months to cancel holds that the companies hadn't taken off even though the charge had cleared.

I am happy we are on the same page. I refuse to write a check to places like Target, because if I have to return something, they have 10 day holds on checks, can you imagine? They are using my money to gain interest in their accounts for something that, by law, does not require that much of a hold.

 

[disneyldwjr]

I agree--in fact keeping a limit so low that you routinely hit the limit every month is actually BAD financial sense. You should never allow your spending to go past 50% of the limit of your card. To do so actually negatively affects your credit.

Anne

Conversely, it is stupid to have limits that you cannot afford to pay. It matters not what your limit is IF you pay it monthly. It is way too tempting to some to have high limits. And, if you pay your bills on time, it is not a negative impacts on your credit. Many things are taken into account when analyzing credit, and the most important one is the ability to pay, which offsets going past 50% of your limits.
Let people decide how to handle their own finances. After all, it is they that pay their bills, not you.

 

[Disneyjosh229]

Let people decide how to handle their own finances. After all, it is they that pay their bills, not you.

Ive been waiting for someone to say that....

Thank You


Its about to get ugly

 

[ducklite]

Conversely, it is stupid to have limits that you cannot afford to pay. It matters not what your limit is IF you pay it monthly. It is way too tempting to some to have high limits. And, if you pay your bills on time, it is not a negative impacts on your credit. Many things are taken into account when analyzing credit, and the most important one is the ability to pay, which offsets going past 50% of your limits.
Let people decide how to handle their own finances. After all, it is they that pay their bills, not you.

Actually you are wrong. Credit bureaus do not have access to income, nor is it figured into credit scoring. What is looked at is the timely payment history, the length that accounts have been open, and how far into your credit line you go. I will reiterate, going past 50% of your credit line dings your credit.

And if we are all adults, as you mentioned, then we should all have control of our spending habits and not have to be treated like children with an allowance to control ourselves.

Anne

 

[djpositivek]

While I don't agree with the holds, these companies have the right to do it and if anyone doesn't agree to the terms, the answer is simple... Rent with another company.

Also about credit, I think it's nice to have plenty of breathing room with credit. I would hope that just because you have a higher limit on a card doesn't mean you are going to spend it. If that's the case, it might be time for counselling

 

[disneyldwjr]

Actually you are wrong. Credit bureaus do not have access to income, nor is it figured into credit scoring. What is looked at is the timely payment history, the length that accounts have been open, and how far into your credit line you go. I will reiterate, going past 50% of your credit line dings your credit.

And if we are all adults, as you mentioned, then we should all have control of our spending habits and not have to be treated like children with an allowance to control ourselves.

Anne

Credit bureaus do have access to your income and where you work along with a lot of other information I am not exactly delighted they have access to.
However, when analyzing credit for mortgages, loans, cc, etc. The DO take into consideration how much money you make, how you pay your bills etc.
The Credit bureaus provide a synopsis only, they do not make credit granting decisions.
Anne, I have been in the business for years and I do know just a tiny bit about how it works. You write columns for rock bands. Big difference.
As to what people do with their money, in reality, you are assuming WAY too much from one or two posts from OP. It is you that is talking down to this person and, frankly, while you are entitled to your opinion, it is none of your business and definitely out of line to speak to him/her as if he/she were a child.
What you feel about spending habits apparently works for you, and I am thrilled beyond belief that it works for you, but, what works for you does not work for everyone and you should not be judging others to your standards.
Sometimes it is wise to keep our judgmental opinions to ourselves (which is probably what I should have done rather than answer your posts).

 

[disneyldwjr]

While I don't agree with the holds, these companies have the right to do it and if anyone doesn't agree to the terms, the answer is simple... Rent with another company.

Also about credit, I think it's nice to have plenty of breathing room with credit. I would hope that just because you have a higher limit on a card doesn't mean you are going to spend it. If that's the case, it might be time for counselling

WOW< ITA with what you should do if you don't like the policies. It is exactly what I do.

Yes, it is nice to have wiggle room with your credit. And if you have, say a limit of 500.00 for a trip and 100.00 of that is rental and another is a hold for 200.00, then it does significantly reduce your disposable income for that trip.
Yes, the hold will be removed in 3-10 days AFTER you return the vehicle, but, for some, it is not what they want.

Might be time for counseling, perhaps, but, none of my business for someone else.

 

[disneyldwjr]

Ive been waiting for someone to say that....

Thank You


Its about to get ugly

You are welcome!!!!

 

[ducklite]

Credit bureaus do have access to your income and where you work along with a lot of other information I am not exactly delighted they have access to.
However, when analyzing credit for mortgages, loans, cc, etc. The DO take into consideration how much money you make, how you pay your bills etc.
The Credit bureaus provide a synopsis only, they do not make credit granting decisions.

Credit BUREAUS do not take income into account when creating credit scores. Credit grantors such as BANKS have that information and definitely use it to determine creditworthiness.

Anne, I have been in the business for years and I do know just a tiny bit about how it works. You write columns for rock bands. Big difference.

First of all, I don't have a column. I write features, concert reviews, and CD reviews, so lets get that straight. Next I'd like to point out that I wrote a monthly column for a national mortgage magazine for five years. I was also a loan officer, as well as mortgage processor and underwriter for a total of about ten years. So it would seem that I do have a little bit of understanding of how it all works. Fair Isaac does NOT take income into consideration when determining credit scores, and credit scores are what make the world go around. Ten points on a credit score can make the difference between getting a 5% rate and a 7% rate. Over time that adds up to a ton of money. And BTW--it takes a lot more effort and ambition to be successful as a music journalist than in the lending sector.

As to what people do with their money, in reality, you are assuming WAY too much from one or two posts from OP. It is you that is talking down to this person and, frankly, while you are entitled to your opinion, it is none of your business and definitely out of line to speak to him/her as if he/she were a child.

I was not trying to talk down to the OP, and I apologize to them if they felt I was. But I was correct in saying that running your credit cards to the limit WILL affect your credit score, and it's better to have a $2000 limit that you run to $1000 than a $1000 limit that you max out.

What you feel about spending habits apparently works for you, and I am thrilled beyond belief that it works for you, but, what works for you does not work for everyone and you should not be judging others to your standards.
Sometimes it is wise to keep our judgmental opinions to ourselves (which is probably what I should have done rather than answer your posts).

Exactly, especially because you obviously also had ZERO idea that indeed I DO know what I'm talking about before you decided to flame me.

Anne

 

[disneyldwjr]

[Exactly, especially because you obviously also had ZERO idea that indeed I DO know what I'm talking about before you decided to flame me.]

Just doing what you do so well and often to others dear.

 

[ducklite]

[Exactly, especially because you obviously also had ZERO idea that indeed I DO know what I'm talking about before you decided to flame me.]

Just doing what you do so well and often to others dear.

You need to look in the mirror.

Anne

 

[vacation dreamer]

We've used Budget a number of times before, but the $200 deposit really drives me crazy for some reason....I can't seem to find anything about Alamo requiring a deposit though. And I don't know much about other car rental companies. We'd like a nice car....something exceptionally clean as well. We also need something that is onsite at the Orlando airport (MCO)...not one that you take a bus or tram or anything like that to get to their parking lot of cars. Who's your favourite car rental company and why? What's their deposit requirements? TIA!

We have never been charged a deposit fee with Budget and we use them all the time. Do they put this charge on your CC or make you pay cash?