Car Rental Tips and Traps You Must Pay Attention To for Your Florida Vacation!

We found this wonderful article on car rental tips and traps to avoid when on vacation.

Please read carefully so you don't fall victim to rent a car nightmares that have you paying too much and more!
Enjoy!!

Renting a car is getting trickier by the day.

Finding a good car rental deal has gotten harder as rental-car agencies raise their rates and as governments pile on new taxes. In addition, many franchises are charging fees for things that used to be free.

Meanwhile, getting an upgrade to a bigger car rental -- something that's more likely as busy rental counters run out of cheaper vehicles -- could result in financial disaster, since some common rental vehicles are often excluded from insurance coverage.

Here are the traps to avoid when you're navigating a car rental:

Car Rental Trap No. 1: Limiting your search

Unfortunately, there's no single Web site that always has the best deals. There's also no single car category that's always cheapest.

To find a good rate, you'll need to scour the Web. You might start with a major travel site like Expedia, Travelocity or Orbitz, then check out the prices at Hotwire.com and Priceline. Finally, explore some of the rental companies' sites, looking for specials. Once you've booked, check back at the various sites periodically to see if you can get a better deal.

The best deal Hotwire could find recently on an SUV rental in Los Angeles, for example, was $38.95 a day. Expedia's lowest rate was just under $35 a day. At Alamo's site, though, a "last minute special" knocked the price down to $31.96.

But Hotwire found the best deal on an economy car at Chicago's O'Hare airport: $25.95 a day, compared to the $38 quote for Budget that was the lowest at Expedia, Orbitz and Budget's own Web site.

The earlier you start looking, the better. Booking weeks in advance allows you to hedge against future price increases, but you're not locked in if rates should drop. (In most cases, there's no penalty for canceling a reservation if you find a cheaper rate later.)

Also, don't assume that smaller is always less expensive. Some agencies are slashing rental rates on SUVs and larger cars as customers balk at the expense of filling bigger gas tanks. If you need the extra space or won't be doing much driving, these bigger cars can be a bargain.

Bonus car rental tip: Consider convenience as well as price. You might get a better quote from an off-brand agency, but you could end up paying in longer lines or less-frequent shuttle service. If time is an issue, consider joining some of the major car-rental companies' frequent-user clubs, which can speed you through the check-out process.

View our favorite car rental deal sites and why we like them here

Car Rental Trap No. 2: Not factoring in taxes

State and local governments have discovered the perfect patsies: rental-car drivers. In many areas, various government-mandated charges make up 20% to 30% of the total bill.

Some of these fees relate to the cost of building and maintaining airports, but others subsidize municipal projects a driver might never visit.

"(Government) agencies have figured out that this is a great way to raise money from non-taxpayers and non-voters," said Neil Abrams, a former Hertz executive who is now president of travel-research company Abrams Consulting Group. "It's taxation without representation."

Here are some ways to cope with car rental fees & taxes:

Look for full disclosure. Make sure the booking site allows you to see all taxes and fees before you commit. Most of the major travel sites, including Expedia, Travelocity, Orbitz and Hotwire, show you total costs that include these charges.

Consider renting a car off-site. You'll still pay taxes and some fees if you rent from a chain's downtown or suburban location rather than its airport site, but the total is likely to be less. You'll have to weigh the cost and hassle of getting to the alternate location against any savings.

Reconsider whether you really need a car rental. Particularly in big cities, you may discover that relying on shuttles, taxis and public transportation actually costs less than renting (and parking) a car. If it's a toss-up, consider that many airports keep their rental car facilities in distant lots, which can add 30 or more minutes to the time it takes to get to your flight.

Car Rental Trap No. 3: Letting add-on fees empty your wallet

Rental-car companies are taking a cue from banks that have learned to nickel-and-dime their customers for big profits. Here are some of the major fees to watch out for:

Late fees. Most agencies use a 24-hour clock that starts when you pick up the car. If you get the vehicle at noon, you're expected to return it by noon on the final day of your contract. Get stuck in traffic on the way to the airport and you could face a hefty fine.

Many agencies offer a 60-minute grace period (at Hertz, it's 30 minutes), but after that you'll face steep hourly rates. Be late enough, and you'll be charged for an extra day. If you got a cheap weekend rate or other special deal, those late fees could really jack up your total cost.

"You could potentially pay more (in late fees) than you did for the car rental," said Anne Banas, executive editor of SmarterTravel.com.

The best cure is prevention. Check local traffic conditions and leave plenty of time to get to the airport.

Fuel charges. If you fail to fill your tank before returning, the agency could charge you $4 or $5 a gallon for the missing fuel. Prepaying for a full tank isn't usually the best alternative, though, since any gas you don't use is essentially a donation to the car-rental company's bottom line.

Most of the time, Banas said, you're better off skipping the prepaid options. Instead, look for a convenient gas station as you leave the airport and use it when the time comes to return your car.

Bonus car rental tip: Make sure the tank is full when you get the car. If it's not, insist that the agency rep note the fuel level on your rental contract so that you don't wind up paying for the last driver's gas as well as your own.

Additional or young drivers. Some agencies allow you to add another driver at no charge; others slap on a fee of $25 or more. Drivers under 25 often face a surcharge that can range from $10 to $80. These fees may not be disclosed before you book; you'll need to ask.

One-way charges. If you're not going to drop the car off at the same location where you picked it up, you may pay a lot more -- or you may not. The cost depends on a number of factors, including the agency, the cities involved and even the type of car.

Both Thrifty and Dollar, for example, recently quoted a $39.99 daily rate on Expedia for a convertible picked up at the Miami airport. But if you wanted to drive the car to Dallas, Dollar tacked on a $427.68 "drop off" charge. Thrifty didn't. So the total bill for Thrifty was a little over $100 for a two-day rental, while Dollar's tab was over $600.

Alamo and Hertz, meanwhile, didn't include specific drop-off charges for their vehicles, but instead charged a higher daily rate for the car. The best deal Alamo offered on the one-way route was on an economy car, for more than $200, while Hertz's cheapest rate was more than $350. (Returning the car to Miami instead of Dallas would have lowered Alamo's total bill to $54 and Hertz's to $117.)

Bottom line: Don't assume you'll have to pay through the nose for a one-way ride. Cast a wide net and check out the prices for various types of car at various agencies before you book.

Mileage fees. You can still find these charges at smaller agencies and specialty car rental companies. Typically, you're allowed a set number of miles, with each additional mile costing 15 cents to 50 cents for every mile you drive over the contract's limit. If you're renting from a small company, inquire about mileage limits and try to stay within them. Or, better yet, opt for an agency that offers unlimited mileage.

Extra cleaning charges. Do something really disgusting in or to your rental, and you may pay dearly for it. Most rental agencies reserve the right to charge you a premium for any deep cleaning that's required before they can rent the vehicle to another customer. So if somebody gets sick in the car, spills something gooey or doesn't quite make it to the potty, you might save some money (and embarrassment) by paying an auto detailer to clean up the mess before you return the car.

Bonus car rental tip: Even if the mess isn't egregious, you should clean it up and discard any garbage before returning the car if you want to keep the agency employees happy. A happy employee may be less likely to turn you in for that scratch or rat you out for a not-quite-full tank.

Various equipment rentals. Navigation systems, ski racks, child car seats and satellite radio can each boost the cost of a rental by $3 to $10 a day. Whether the convenience is worth the cost is an entirely personal matter. You should also know that your request for a certain item doesn't guarantee its availability. If it's really important -- like that car seat -- consider bringing your own.

Car Rental Trap No. 4: Paying for damage that's not your fault

Most major car rental agencies now hold renters responsible for damage caused by "acts of nature," including hail storms, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes and other disasters. Even if you couldn't have predicted the act or prevented the damage, you're on the hook.

Less catastrophic damage can get you in trouble, too. Many car rental agencies charge drivers hundreds of dollars for relatively minor dings or scrapes. If you don't do a careful walk around your vehicle and report existing damage to the company before driving away, you could end up shelling out for damage caused by the last driver. When you return the car, consider taking a few photos or a short clip with your camcorder or video-enabled phone as proof you brought it back in good shape.

If you do get saddled with a repair bill, you may have insurance or other coverage that will pay it, but even that is problematic. See below.

Car Rental Trap No. 5: Getting lost in the insurance maze

The usual advice you hear -- skip the coverage the rental car company offers you -- is way too simplistic.

In general, the coverage you've got on your personal vehicle will carry over to a rental, says Loretta Worters of the Insurance Information Institute. Your homeowners' or renters' policy probably covers your personal property if it's stolen from the car.

But if you've dropped comprehensive and collision coverage on your own car -- something many people do to save money on older vehicles -- you don't have that coverage for your rental, either. That means you could be held responsible for damage to or the theft of your rental.

"That's a big issue that most people don't think about," Worters said.

You might be saved by your credit card, particularly if it's a gold or platinum version that promises to pay for damage to a rental car. Even then, though, there are limits. For example:

Certain vehicles, including SUVs, luxury cars, pickups and vans, often aren't covered.

Long-term rentals (over two weeks, for example) may not be covered.

Losses caused by an unauthorized driver or a driver who violates the rental agreement typically aren't covered.

If you get popped for driving under the influence, for example, or you take the car out of the geographic area designated by the contract, your credit-card issuer probably won't pay, said Alice Droogan, global-solutions leader for MasterCard, which offers seven different bundles of coverage and travel benefits to financial institutions that issue its cards.

There's no shortcut: You need to review both your auto-insurance policy and your credit card's benefit guide. (If you don't have those handy, call the companies and have them send you copies.)

You also might consider taking the rental-car agency's coverage if you've had an at-fault accident recently or a series of other claims against your auto insurance. That way, you won't have to notify your insurer if you have yet another incident. The few bucks you'll pay for the coverage could be dwarfed by higher premiums or the hassle of finding another insurer after yours drops you cold.

We hope you enjoyed this article and hope it helps when renting a car for your next Florida vacation.