Mandana

Does anyone have any tips for British visitors? It's a minefield enough for residents!

Is there a credit card they can apply for which covers rental insurance; do they need to take out all the options (CDW/SLI etc)
Any advice would be most welcome to pass onto our visitors. Thanks

PS tried to search but couldn't find anything for visitors

sambapink

We just hired a car for visitors from home. OH hired it in his name and he had to show his insurance details etc - then added our visitor onto it, and took out the extra insurance on top of that. He did it this way because it was just a local car rental place and they could 'cope' better if we did it that way. It was alot cheaper than say Airport Rental places. My OH said he paid $15 a day fully comp insurance and $30 for the car. Our visitors said this was alot cheaper than they had been qouted. Car Rentals at the airports are able to sort out insurance etc for foreign visitors - but it will probably be more expensive.


If they are booking it themselves from the UK - tell them to check out how much it is to book car hire through the airline they are flying with - we found we got a better deal than doing it ourselves.

Ray

Check here for the all inclusive rates ..
http://www.uscarhire.co.uk/rest_of_usa_car_hire.aspx

Folinskyinla

Hi:

The rental companies themselves sell a fairly pricey "Collision Damage Waiver" if you chose to get it. As for your credit card, you have to check the individual issuer. It used to be standard on American Express -- but is now extra for green and gold [at least on US cards]. I was please last year to find that my Korean Air Skypass Visa [via US Bank] did have it.

So, again, check with your credit card issuer.

Mandana

Thanks guys. Very helpful, as always.

Cheers

Rockgurl

One thing I learned the hard way....the price you are quoted is never the price you pay! They always seem to find these little hidden extras that you don't find with car rental in the UK.

Mandana

We found the UK is exactly the same with the hidden extras at Christmas. Car hire, including insurance came to just under £1k for 3 weeks. Nearly twice what we expected.

We've just come back from the UK (again) and it wasn't as bad this time due to learning the hard way, paying extortionate insurance (both in November last year and then again at Christmas) we've now got a US credit card that covers UK car rental insurance.

Will come in handy when we go back in 2 months.

Dogbyte

Another tip if yoiu can arrange it, is if they book a car in the UK to pick up from the US (NOT airport)... on arrival and you can, pick them up at the airport,take them to the closest city/town rental centre as you save money cos you are not using the airport pick up.There are differences in taxes which makes it a bit cheaper.I used UK 'Carhire3000' who were very competetive,but most are, in one way or another.

Big D

we used airlinenetwork - for an extra 5 quid you can get unlimited drivers and a full tank of gas - the rates are good and you pre pay so no extra fees.

Be wary of credit cards - most UK cards dont cover it. I use the insurance on my corporate Amex here and in UK (per company policy) but I am dubious as to the amount of cover and the ease of claiming if needed - not my problem though!

Big D

If you use your own insurance there are limited extras they can charge. I use Avis and been happy - one issue was that they estimated a one way charge as 40 USD and actually charged 40 GBP - I complained and they refunded the fee.

Steerpike

Does anyone know if it's possible for a 20-year-old visitor to rent a car here? I know there is a surcharge for under 25, and generally it's not possible under 21. I have a 20-year-old visiting me soon and would like to arrange a car for them if possible.

BritishGuy36

I have found it to be exactly the opposite. I have never been made to pay anything extra, on any of the 7 occasions I have rented a car in the US.

I get offered add-ons, but don't have to take any.

I usually find that a bundle deal including CDW is quite cheap and go for it then there are no worries. If you book directly on a US website like Alamo etc then CDW is not usually included, or is expensive to add on. But if you book with your UK travel agent, you can usually get a decent deal that includes CDW.