Aspect Car Rental BlogNews and views about car hire and rental world wide.

Many US and Canadian drivers coming to UK and Europe for the first time can get quite confused about the insurance offered on their rental car.

In the States and Canada it usual for the rental to be for ‘time and mileage’ only, they would then expect to pay for additional aspects of the insurance, for example CDW (Collision Damage Waiver).

Many of them will be able to use their own insurance policy to cover the CDW and others will have it as part of a credit card deal. so when they get to Europe they expect the same thing to apply here.

This is where the confusion comes in, even if they rent with a US company like Avis or Alamo they will find that US or Canadian insurance policies and credit card policies are not valid in Europe and so they have to pay the extras.

Car rental that is time and mileage only looks very cheap when you go to book, it can however turn out to be far more expensive by the time you’ve bought all the ‘extras’ you need. Nothing is guaranteed to spoil a trip more than finding the budget you set for your car rental is woefully inadequate.

Always check the insurance when you rent a car for your trip to Europe and specifically the difference in price between paying it all up front when you book (usually the best deal) or buying the ‘extras’ at the car rental desk.

If possible you want to get confirmation by email of the rates involved, or at least a name of the person you speak to if you do it by phone.

A lot of people get confused about insurance when they book car hire, whether on line or by phone. Mostly because in the UK and many countries in Europe we’re used to terminology like ‘fully comprehensive’ rather than ‘fully inclusive’ which is what many car hire companies use.

So what is the difference? It has to be said, not a lot, with ‘fully comprehensive’ it generally means that no matter what happens to your car and no matter whose fault it is, your insurance company will pay for repair or replacement.

It is usual for there to be an excess that you pay and this excess will be determined by many things including your driving record, how much you pay for your insurance cover and the dictates of the insurance company.

With car hire insurance it’s very similar but not always the same. For example, most private insurance policies will cover the underside of the car and the windscreen. Commercial car hire insurance however does not generally speaking. Tyres are not covered at all in either case so you need to be aware of this and to check what the excess is (and it will often be different depending on the supplier).

It is possible in many cases to ‘buy down’ the excess when you hire a car and it will be a personal choice for you depending on circumstances and exactly what the excess is. However, in many cases although you can ‘buy down’ the excess, this doesn’t mean you don’t pay it at all! Often it means that should you have an accident of some kind, you will have to pay the excess locally and then claim it back under the terms of the ‘buy down’.

Is it still worth doing? That is something that only you can decide but ask yourself this, how many people do you think each year don’t do it under the assumption that ‘it won’t happen to me’ only to find it does happen?

In the UK the usual excess is £500 no matter which car hire company you’re with and it costs a lot less to waive it than to pay. So again the choice is yours!

Are you going to Malaga this year on holiday or for business? If so have you thought about car hire? Last year there was a shortage of hire cars in Spain and especially in popular destinations like Malaga!

Although the economic climate is blamed because many car hire companies have reduced their fleets or, kept older cars on fleet instead of replacing them, it has to be said that they’ve probably not suffered as much as other industries.

Why? Because their product is now in short supply and you know what that means! Yes, the price goes up! They make more money per hire now because of that shortage and if you’re one of the unlucky people who waits until they get there to hire a car, you’ll probably end up paying as much as 50% more than you would have paid if you’d booked your Malaga car hire early.

Can you enjoy your Malaga holiday without a car? Well of course it is perfectly possible to enjoy a visit to Malaga and not have a car but, if you do decide to hire a car then your enjoyment will be enhanced!

Apart from the many miles of beaches there are so many places to visit around Malaga and a hire car can help you with that. Small villages up in the hills, where time seems to have stopped, up market places like the Malaga Gun and Country Club.

Just driving in you hire car along the coast road either east towards Nerja and the amazing caves there, or west towards Marbella and the playground of the rich and famous. Whichever direction you choose to take when you get to Malaga, car hire will help you make the most of your trip!

I have mentioned before about booking early yet many people still think they’ll get a better deal if they make a last minute booking, how wrong they will be!

All the major companies are cutting back on their fleets and some of the smaller companies are not only cutting back, they’re keeping the cars much longer than the usual 6 months.

This means that especially at busy times (July and August) hire cars are in very short supply. The Independent had an article online about the shortages that happened last year, especially in Spain, where prices for these two months doubled when people were trying to book a car near their time of departure.

There are three basic ways to book car hire, wait until you get there and hope for the best, imagine the horror though when you turn up with kids and mother-in-law in tow, all tired and uncomfortable from the flight. Especially when instead of a car you get told there are none available and you must take a taxi to your final destination!

Secondly you can pre-book, this where you say you’re going to arrive and pay for the car but don’t pay any money,  you can still turn up only to find that mysteriously no car is forthcoming.  You’re then back to the first scenario where either you will have to pay well over the normal rate to actually get a car or take a taxi.

The best way then is to not only pre-book but to also pre-pay by credit card for your hire car, this is by far the safest way to ensure you actually get a car on arrival.

The earlier you book the car the better rate you will get because there are a finite number of cars in each location and they’ll make more money from late bookings, it doesn’t work like flights where the plane is going to be flying anyway!

Are you thinking of coming to the UK and renting a car? Then you need to be aware that compared to most other major European countries, UK roads are not as good! Does this mean you should not rent a car? No, it just means you need to be a little more careful when dring it.

The Road Safety Foundation has said that only about 50% of UK roads reach the top marks of four stars, the overall best roads are the motorways of which 50% receive four stars, the A roads however fall short of this number, with dual carriageways and minor roads getting less stars than that!

So what should you do? After all, renting a car is still the best way of getting around the UK and seeing the country, it’s also probably  the most economic if there are two or more in your party. It is also possibly the most convenient, especially if you want to see more out of the way places in the UK.

The problem for you the driver on UK roads are potholes and the aftermath of the huge number of repairs and/or remains of utility companies digging up roads to repair or install underground pipes etc. So the trick is to be alert, before you set off, make sure you are fully familiar with all controls in your rental car. It’s surprising how distracting it can be to find the windscreen wiper is in a different place than you are used to on your own car.

Keep to the speed limits, you’re more likely to spot a pothole or repair bump or dip if you’re not imitating Jenson Button or Jeremy Clarkson! Besides, if you drive a little slower, you’ll be ale to appreciate the countryside more and have more time to spot a quaint little place to stop and take tea!