Whenever our car is in the body shop we resort to a rental vehicle. The same thing happens when we go for a vacation, renting a vehicle seems like the most convenient choice to get around. Nevertheless, we have a budget, and we choose the vehicle carefully so as to stick to that budget.

Unfortunately, due to rental cars’ hidden fees, sticking to that budget may be a difficult task to achieve. First of all, you should look out for rental cars with an extremely convenient price. You have to take into consideration the fact that rental companies are trying to make a profit, and if their rental car price is too low, they’ll try to profit from something else.

So most probably this great and convenient price is just a base fee. To that you will have to add the drop off charge. In these cases, it is advisable to find out about the drop off charge before renting the vehicle, and if it exceeds the price you’d be paying for your trip, then you should return the vehicle to the same location where you rent it.

When we say that the hidden fees may add up to make a significant number we are talking about hundreds of dollars. Among the hidden fees we can count the license fee, concession rent, security fee, trip saver, and many more. This is why it is important to request the rental car company to disclose all of their fees before renting the vehicle.

Most rental companies will charge you for additional insurance. In the case you do not purchase this additional insurance, and you are involved in an accident, all the repair charges will have to be covered by your credit card. It is important that you notice that apart from the repairs, rental companies will charge you a fee for loss of use.

Regarding the insurance offered by the rental car companies, you should take into account that if you are renting a vehicle as a courtesy of your own insurance company, this is common when your vehicle is being repaired at a body shop, then you can expect your own insurance to cover you. You should not purchase any extra insurance, because you do not need it.

In addition, you should be aware that if you return the rental vehicle with an empty tank, you will face gasoline charges. You also have an early return fee to look out for. In addition, remember that when you rent a car, you have a mileage limit, so there is an extra charge per mileage exceeded.

All in all, the best way to avoid an unpleasant surprise when returning your rental car is to do your research and to have the rental company disclose all of their fees before you rent the vehicle. Although renting a vehicle may seem like the most affordable way to get around when we do not have our vehicles, we should be aware that in most cases we’ll end up paying more than expected.

The boss at Advertizia, Julian J. Lenox evaluates websites for Travel and Tourism Top 100, a specific Travel and Tourism websites analysis collection. Read more at Last Minute Car Rental Deals.

[tags]rental cars, last minute car rentals, last minute rental cars[/tags]