Car Hire: The Classic Pitfalls To Avoid

If you’re renting a car for your next road trip abroad, you’ll want to be ‘in the know’ about these common pitfalls that have tripped up plenty of travellers in the past. Avoid them and you’ll be able to enjoy the excitement and freedom of the open road without the stress or hassle of anything going wrong.

Before departing on your trip, you’ll need to go through the process of organising your rental and car hire excess insurance, which is essential for any driver who wants to limit the financial burden of any repair or replacement costs to do with vehicle damages or theft.

Don’t Pay Too Much for Your Insurance

Whilst it is vital to have insurance in place well in advance of your trip, you should be wary of choosing your hire company’s easiest option. This is often not the cheapest route to go down and can sometimes involve fees which are concealed within the overwhelming small print of the firm’s policy.

Check and Then Check Again

A few of the suggestions here may seem a little obvious, but there are plenty of cases in which there has been genuine disruption to the car hire process because of small mishaps such as not making sure that your license is valid or that you’re eligible to rent a car. This sort of thing is vital to check and check again before you even hire the car let alone set out on the open road.

Are You the Right Age?

Again, it sounds obvious but you do need to be aware of it. If you’re under the age of 25, many companies won’t rent out a car to you. Others will charge you a premium rate just because you’re a little bit younger. If you are only in your early 20s, then it’s a good idea to check out what these potential extra costs might be before you book.

Choose the Right GPS

GPS technology is, of course, a wonderful invention that has helped drivers navigate much, much more easily in recent years. However, just as is the case with your car hire excess insurance, you shouldn’t pay more than is necessary.

Whilst it may seem the easiest option to have your hire company organise your GPS, this may involve a daily rental cost that will cost a lot more the long term. Instead, it’s a good idea to buy a local SIM and just use your smartphone to navigate your way down the roads of your chosen destination.

Avoid these common pitfalls and you won’t go far wrong. From having your car hire excess insurance organised in plenty of time before your trip to checking your license is valid, these small things can make a big difference – and make your time on the road as smooth as can be!

Author Plate

Sam Walker is a specialist insurance expert at LowerHire, a company that offers low-cost single trip and annual multi-trip car hire excess insurance policies. Travellers can rest easy knowing they will be fully protected against any hidden hire car costs and look forward to a stress-free rental experience.