Hidden charges of car hire rental Companies (From Dorset Echo)

Hidden charges of car hire rental Companies

11:49pm Wednesday 10th March 2010 in

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People who pre-book their hire car in the UK before they travel abroad might well think that all they will have to do upon arrival at their destination is pick up the keys to their car and go. In practice, they will probably be faced with charges from the car rental office for optional extras. Some of these charges may be applicable, such as needing the inclusion of an extra driver, child seats, roof rack, snow chains or excess mileage Then inevitably will come the hard sell for excess waiver fees, sometimes charged at extortionate rates that could be anything from £10-£15 extra per day. Most people assume that a UK booking includes insurance and is excess free, so it comes as a shock to learn that they have anything from a £500 - £1600 excess liability should the rental car be damaged or stolen. All this stress can be avoided by effecting a car hire excess insurance policy in the UK before travelling. Annual European multi-trip cover starts from as little as £49 per year for ages 21 to 74 and is still available even for drivers aged 75-85 for £65. Cover for the United States and Canada starts from as little as £109 per annum. This sort of cover is available from www.insurancenow.co.uk> under their motor section.

Having effected a car hire excess insurance policy, should the policy holder be unfortunate enough to need to make a claim, the car rental company will charge their credit card for the relevant excess amount, they will need to retain all paperwork and receipts and upon return to the UK this amount is reimbursed from their car hire excess insurance policy.