Ask me anything about car rentals.

[dealseeker2011]

I will try to answer all your questions as much as I can. I was a representative from a car rental agency before. I won't mention the name of the car rental. I just want to help people and give them an idea about car rentals specially for those who's planning a vacation this month.

[dragon513]

I am back to Toronto next week for my convocation. I think I just need a small sedan for a day or two on the weekend to drive around in Downtown and to drive back to Waterloo (where my school is). I am just graduated (24 years old) and I hold a full licence from BC. Could you tell me how much I should pay for a small sedan and what the best way to rent is? I hope to get the insurance too.

[dealseeker2011]

I am back to Toronto next week for my convocation. I think I just need a small sedan for a day or two on the weekend to drive around in Downtown and to drive back to Waterloo (where my school is). I am just graduated (24 years old) and I hold a full licence from BC. Could you tell me how much I should pay for a small sedan? I hope to get the insurance too.

I won't be able to give you the exact prize. But since you're only 24 years old expect to an underage fee. Usually, it cost $25 pay day additional. This is on top of the car rental and there are also taxes on top of this underage fee. The fee varies depends upon the car rental company. And it's good that you've mentioned that you'll only gonna use it to go to school. Most car rentals have capped millage. Meaning you'll just gonna get a certain number of km's in driving the car. And anything above that will be charged against your card. Are you gonna use a credit card or a debit card? If you have a credit I suggest use that. Most car rentals do credit checks if you will use a debit card. And also expect a certain amount of hold from your credit card. Usually the minimum hold is $200 or the amount of the car rental plus 20% whichever is higher. This is done for security reasons. For insurance it's better to purchase supplemental liability, this will cover the third party in case of accidents. and also get the loss damage waiver, this will cover the car rental.

For the prizes it's best to go to third party sites than calling the car rental company directly. The prizes online are much more cheaper than calling them. You could go to cheaptickets, carrental, hotwire or expedia. Just make sure to call the company after making the booking because there might be additional charges when you arrive to pick up the car. Always call the car rental company directly just to be aware of their policy. Usually these engines do not provide these options that I've mentioned (such as underage fee and insurances). And please do not purchase insurance from these sites. I have encountered one insurance from travel guard. It is not advisable to purchase this.

If you have other question just let me know. Hope this helps.:)

[lexani]

I am back to Toronto next week for my convocation. I think I just need a small sedan for a day or two on the weekend to drive around in Downtown and to drive back to Waterloo (where my school is). I am just graduated (24 years old) and I hold a full licence from BC. Could you tell me how much I should pay for a small sedan and what the best way to rent is? I hope to get the insurance too.

I'll try to help. I worked in Operations for one of the largest car rental agencies during an internship a couple years ago.

Since you're 24, yes most place will hit you with underage fee. Budget is $27, Avis is around $30. Hertz has a coupon right now valid until September 30, 2012: https://www.hertz.com/rentacar/q-8010640/save-up-to-$25-a-day-if-you-re-20-24-years-old-special-offer. They waive underage fee.

Since you're 24, you'll only be allowed up to a full-size car (Ex. Impala, Camry etc). Anything up to a fullsize is usually unlimited km so you don't have to worry. You can use your credit card if it has coverage. Read the fine print. Otherwise, take the insurance from rental car company, especially if it's for a couple days.

Check out Avis, they're usually fairly competitive, rates are good and they're very easy to give upgrades from my experience. Hertz is a little more expensive. Budget is the little brother of Avis. Discount car rental is getting better but not up there yet. Enterprise is garbage, but their bigger brother National is pretty good.

I rent about 20 days every month for business so ask away if you have any questions as well.

[lexani]

For insurance it's better to purchase supplemental liability, this will cover the third party in case of accidents. and also get the loss damage waiver, this will cover the car rental.


This is incorrect, no need to purchase it. The statement below is taken from Avis Car rental's site:

"Avis provides liability coverage for its vehicles as required by applicable law. In most instances, this will include basic public liability coverage for the renter or authorized driver up to the minimum financial responsibility limits of the applicable jurisdiction at no additional charge. In some locations the liability coverage which is provided is secondary to any other applicable coverage. "

In your rate, 3rd party coverage is included.

[dragon513]

Thanks everyone! I just booked at Thrifty Car Rental on Weber Street, Waterloo ON.
I used CheapTicket. The total is $45.75 for a full size sedan from the 9th of 9AM to the following morning 9AM. I will rent for a couple more days the following week, but for now this will do. Surprisingly I did not have to pay at the time of online reservation. I guess they will charge me at the counter. It did not give me the option to buy insurance or asked for my age. Looking at the terms, I guess I can't figure out what the under 25 surcharge is. Hope it's reasonable. I will call tomorrow to confirm everything, but please let me know what you all think!!


YKW - WATERLOO, ONTARIO CANADA, CANADA
Additional drivers must qualify with a valid driver's license and a major credit card in their own name. There may be charges for additional drivers including the spouse.
Loss Damage Waiver (LDW) is optional, purchase reduces renter's financial responsibility for the Thrifty vehicle to CAD 1000.00. Third Party Liability is included in the rental rate.
Unlimited kilometer rates, when available, are for Ontario only. Vehicles taken outside Ontario and/or into the USA will receive 200 kilometers per day and CAD .15 each additional kilometer for the entire rental. Vehicles are not permitted to travel into Mexico or New York City.
Location accepts the use of a Debit Card as a form of payment at the END of the rental. A major credit card will be required at the time of pick-up. PRE-PAID CREDIT CARDS ARE NOT ACCEPTED.
Non-Smoking Fleet
Free delivery and collection available within the city limits during normal business hours. Location does not service the Airport. Customer must call for pick up.
Return vehicle with a full tank of gas to avoid refueling charges.
For rentals 30 days or longer, the customer must return the vehicle for maintenance or to renew the contract every 30 days to the location.
A valid driver's license and credit card in the customer's own name must be presented at the time of pick up. Minimum age is 21 on most vehicles; please see special Vehicle Requirements. Renters under 25 may be subject to an additional fee.
Any changes to the reservation or rental may result in a change of rate or additional fees.
Customer must be 25 years of age or older to rent or drive the Mini Van (Mvar).

[G55man]

I'm looking to rent a SUV to head out to Nova Scotia and PEI this summer. Any there any rental agencies who offer unlimited kms?

Thanks

[lexani]

I'm looking to rent a SUV to head out to Nova Scotia and PEI this summer. Any there any rental agencies who offer unlimited kms?

Thanks


In Canada, the big 3-4 do not offer it, 200km limit.

Try Discount Car Rental - they have ford escapes - you can add on a $5/day km allowance but it only goes up until 3000km.

Try Thrifty - if it's a franchise location - they're more than willing to negotiate. I've gotten about 5000km thrown in for a roadtrip to miami last year. You'll have to negotiate, they won't give it to you in the first shot.

I think National in Canada also has unlimited km on their SUV's, not sure.

In the U.S. all suv's no matter what size come with unlimited mileage.

[barricuda]

I'm looking to rent a SUV to head out to Nova Scotia and PEI this summer. Any there any rental agencies who offer unlimited kms?

Thanks

Budget has unlimited kms and generally do not charge extra even if you go out of province or even to the states. Not sure if there are limitations on SUVs though. We rented an intermediate car in 2010 for a road trip from the GTA to the Atlantic provinces and returned via some of the New England states. We clocked a little over 6600 kms on the car. Budget generally has the best weekly rates too - probably depends on your location though.

Edit - Just did a quick check on Budget's website and the poster above me is right - there is a 200 km restriction for SUVs. Rent a car if you can help it. Will probably be much cheaper and better for gas mileage too.

[Manatus]

To people who have worked for car rental companies before... would you recommend the LDW? Is it true that if you decline the LDW, some companies will try hard to find something wrong with the car when you return it, e.g. arguing over whether every small scratch was there before etc.? Recently I rented a car that was pretty old, and on the walkaround the owner said that they only care about major damage, not little scratches/dings which were too numerous to catch all of them. In the end it was fine, just as he said it would be, but I was wondering if it was common that some places would try to charge you for every tiny thing that they can find afterwards.

[lexani]

To people who have worked for car rental companies before... would you recommend the LDW? Is it true that if you decline the LDW, some companies will try hard to find something wrong with the car when you return it, e.g. arguing over whether every small scratch was there before etc.? Recently I rented a car that was pretty old, and on the walkaround the owner said that they only care about major damage, not little scratches/dings which were too numerous to catch all of them. In the end it was fine, just as he said it would be, but I was wondering if it was common that some places would try to charge you for every tiny thing that they can find afterwards.

I worked closely with the operations manager for a few districts. They had no problem having their guys (the client reps) charge $9000 for a lady who smashed a Matrix on the DVP. She heavily insisted that she didn't need it. When she came back with the front end completely different than before, the branch billed her card $9000 and told her to deal with the cc company.

From my personal experience, most companies aren't too picky. Enterprise is pretty bad though, they've been known to nit pick all of the smaller surface scratches. Last month I rented from Avis, Thrifty, Hertz and Budget and none of them cared too much about scratches.

Keep in mind though, if you buy the LDW they don't care too much, if you don't you're a prey in the eyes of rental companies to ensure that the car was returned back the way it went out.

Luckily now, all business rentals include LDW in the but for personal rentals I just use my cc. It covers pretty much all vehicles. Read the fine print on your card if you choose to use it.

[dani]

To the OP:

We frequently rent cars here in the GTA, usually for a weekend or so, the last deal we got was $100 for a 3 day rental with unlimited KM (was a couple weeks ago). When pricing out cars in Moncton NB (car required between Aug 3 or 4, until Aug 12 or 13) I found that there is nothing for under like $700 (after taxes and fees)!

What gives? I also have a few promotions going on with a couple of different private websites, like perkopolis, eservus. They don't really help too much... Can you help me? Thanks!

[lexani]

To the OP:

We frequently rent cars here in the GTA, usually for a weekend or so, the last deal we got was $100 for a 3 day rental with unlimited KM (was a couple weeks ago). When pricing out cars in Moncton NB (car required between Aug 3 or 4, until Aug 12 or 13) I found that there is nothing for under like $700 (after taxes and fees)!

What gives? I also have a few promotions going on with a couple of different private websites, like perkopolis, eservus. They don't really help too much... Can you help me? Thanks!

Those days fall right around Civic Holiday Long weekend. Rates are jacked up everywhere in comparison to a regular weekend.

Your $100 / 3 days is not really a hard to come by deal. Discount car and truck rental gives out that deal every weekend if you're on their weekly email list. It's around $102.00 for a full size (Sonata, Camry, Malibu etc) with LDW included and unlimited km. They're underrated but their cars have gotten way better, higher trim models.

[toyboy]

Was looking to rent a car from Friday - Sunday from Enterprise. Although most of their locations ( other than airport - 25$ surcharge) are closed on Sunday, requiring me to rent an additional day.

Is there any way to avoid renting an additional day in this situation?

[manmanny]

Was looking to rent a car from Friday - Sunday from Enterprise. Although most of their locations ( other than airport - 25$ surcharge) are closed on Sunday, requiring me to rent an additional day.

Is there any way to avoid renting an additional day in this situation?
I think some Scarborough location are open on Sundays. Check the web site.
I dont know GTA mean where exactly you are.

[downwithto]

This is incorrect, no need to purchase it. The statement below is taken from Avis Car rental's site:

"Avis provides liability coverage for its vehicles as required by applicable law. In most instances, this will include basic public liability coverage for the renter or authorized driver up to the minimum financial responsibility limits of the applicable jurisdiction at no additional charge. In some locations the liability coverage which is provided is secondary to any other applicable coverage. "

In your rate, 3rd party coverage is included.

In regards to Supplemental Liability Insurance (SLI) do you know if this applies in their policy in the US? and do you know which other rental companies follow this policy as well? I have a G license but take the TTC regularly and am planning to rent a car in florida next month. Thanks!

[Wpegger]

This is incorrect, no need to purchase it. The statement below is taken from Avis Car rental's site:

"Avis provides liability coverage for its vehicles as required by applicable law. In most instances, this will include basic public liability coverage for the renter or authorized driver up to the minimum financial responsibility limits of the applicable jurisdiction at no additional charge. In some locations the liability coverage which is provided is secondary to any other applicable coverage. "

In your rate, 3rd party coverage is included.

What supplemental coverage (or loss and damage waiver) may covers the following (not the standard 3rd party liability):
Damage to the rental car
Deductibles
Downtime for rental car
Loss of income for the third party
Sometimes personal accident coverage

In Manitoba all rental cars are insured, which means you are only responsible for 500$ deductible. Drivers licence premium will cover the rest. Additional insurance can be bout for 2$ per day

[lexani]

Was looking to rent a car from Friday - Sunday from Enterprise. Although most of their locations ( other than airport - 25$ surcharge) are closed on Sunday, requiring me to rent an additional day.

Is there any way to avoid renting an additional day in this situation?

Some locations are open, give them a call/check website.

Why enterprise? are they cheaper? There are many other places that could beat the rate and are open sundays. Budget/Avis are good examples. Even Discount car rental.

I avoid enterprise, cars are all super basic, they're pricks about scratches and their customer service sucks.

[toyboy]

I think some Scarborough location are open on Sundays. Check the web site.
I dont know GTA mean where exactly you are.

West end - Mississauga, Etobicoke area

Was looking for a Large SUV 6 passenger and didn't see any at hertz.

Thanks, Ill have a look at budget and Avis.

[lexani]

West end - Mississauga, Etobicoke area

Was looking for a Large SUV 6 passenger and didn't see any at hertz.

Thanks, Ill have a look at budget and Avis.

If there is a Budget and Avis within the same area - they share the same cars but budget quotes cheaper. Just an fyi for when you look around.

[dealseeker2011]

This is incorrect, no need to purchase it. The statement below is taken from Avis Car rental's site:

"Avis provides liability coverage for its vehicles as required by applicable law. In most instances, this will include basic public liability coverage for the renter or authorized driver up to the minimum financial responsibility limits of the applicable jurisdiction at no additional charge. In some locations the liability coverage which is provided is secondary to any other applicable coverage. "

In your rate, 3rd party coverage is included.

I am not speaking in behalf of Avis rent a car. If you will rent from avis then do not purchase it. I worked for another car rental for 5 years but this is not the case for them. No insurance, no coverage. These two that I've mentioned are the most offered coverage. If you are renting the car it will be better to purchase what will help you prevent any additional charges that will cause from an unexpected accident.

[dealseeker2011]

To people who have worked for car rental companies before... would you recommend the LDW? Is it true that if you decline the LDW, some companies will try hard to find something wrong with the car when you return it, e.g. arguing over whether every small scratch was there before etc.? Recently I rented a car that was pretty old, and on the walkaround the owner said that they only care about major damage, not little scratches/dings which were too numerous to catch all of them. In the end it was fine, just as he said it would be, but I was wondering if it was common that some places would try to charge you for every tiny thing that they can find afterwards.


I have encountered people complaining about this. So it is better to look closely to the vehicle before getting out from the garage. Usually, they will give you something to write on so that you could note the small chips and dings of the car. Or just to be safe call the car rentals customer service hotline after picking up the car to make sure these marks are noted in the contract. You could also take pictures of these marks so that you have proofs. But as what I've said a while ago, it's better to purchase LDW so that you won't have to worry about it upon return. Prevention is still better than cure.

[dealseeker2011]

To the OP:

We frequently rent cars here in the GTA, usually for a weekend or so, the last deal we got was $100 for a 3 day rental with unlimited KM (was a couple weeks ago). When pricing out cars in Moncton NB (car required between Aug 3 or 4, until Aug 12 or 13) I found that there is nothing for under like $700 (after taxes and fees)!

What gives? I also have a few promotions going on with a couple of different private websites, like perkopolis, eservus. They don't really help too much... Can you help me? Thanks!


Well the rate changes it depends upon the availability of cars. But since it changes you could always check to see if the rates had decreased already. If you are really looking for a nice rate better check it everyday. Try to change the time of pick up and return. It weird but usually rates changes drastically by just changing the time. I was a booking agent for 5 years and I have encountered a lot of this.

[dealseeker2011]

Was looking to rent a car from Friday - Sunday from Enterprise. Although most of their locations ( other than airport - 25$ surcharge) are closed on Sunday, requiring me to rent an additional day.

Is there any way to avoid renting an additional day in this situation?

Don't they have an after hours return? You could verify that with them. Most off airports locations offers return even if they are close. if they don't offer returns after hours try returning it to the airport. Usually, if the pick up location is close to the airport they won't charge you for returning it to the airport. You could also try checking with other car rentals of none of these work.

[glover78]

Which car rental place will give me the best weekend rates - this includes renting car + Insurance. I am 29 years old so the "under 25" surcharge won't be applicable.

[Kris81]

Does anyone rent a truck/suv with a trailor hitch? Looking to move a boat from one place to the next, but none that I call will do it

[bluewaker]

I'm planning to rent with Advantage. I noticed that the rate difference between 4 days and 5 days is significant. The price with Advantage goes from 250 to 400+ if I choose 5 days (it gives me a week rate instead of a per-day rate). Same thing happens with Hertz. Why is this and can I circumvent it somehow?

[wolfsburg04]

Can I rent a car in Montreal(24h) and drive to the burlington airport with it and leave it there?

if yes can i do the same thing backward BVT to MTL and leave the car here?

thank you

[dealbreak3r]

Is it true that there is a certain day in a week where you can get a cheaper quote compare to other days? if so when will that be?

[lexani]

Is it true that there is a certain day in a week where you can get a cheaper quote compare to other days? if so when will that be?

Monday/Tuesday, this is when the rental companies roll out specials for that week. These are weekly deals only.

[lexani]

Can I rent a car in Montreal(24h) and drive to the burlington airport with it and leave it there?

if yes can i do the same thing backward BVT to MTL and leave the car here?

thank you

It's called One way rentals. Everyone offers it. Is it more expensive? Probably.

[lexani]

I'm planning to rent with Advantage. I noticed that the rate difference between 4 days and 5 days is significant. The price with Advantage goes from 250 to 400+ if I choose 5 days (it gives me a week rate instead of a per-day rate). Same thing happens with Hertz. Why is this and can I circumvent it somehow?

1-4 Days count as individual days (you get billed by day/hour).

5-7 Days - is a week in rental car lingo. They don't care if you have it for 5 days or 7 days, same thing.

[lexani]

Which car rental place will give me the best weekend rates - this includes renting car + Insurance. I am 29 years old so the "under 25" surcharge won't be applicable.

Anything but Hertz, try everything else.

[lexani]

Does anyone rent a truck/suv with a trailor hitch? Looking to move a boat from one place to the next, but none that I call will do it

Go to the dealership and take a SUV/Truck for a weekend test drive. My buddy did that last year. Worked like a charm.

[wolfsburg04]

It's called One way rentals. Everyone offers it. Is it more expensive? Probably.

So which company offers it cause two majors didn't want to do it.

Canada-us

Us-Canada

[Col127]

what's the best rate for a 1-week rental for a car in the GTA right now?? wife's flying back to visit home and she'll need it from july 5-july 12. best price so far is around $250 - i find that high but haven't seen anything better with the various companies...

would prefer pickup/dropoff to be in markham... but we're open to other places if it's cheaper :) she's flying in from porter. thx!

[Superboot]

Going up to a rental cottage in July and looking to rent a SUV for a weekend. I have a car but i dont want to take it on the forest trails near the cottage. Anyone know a good place?

[dealseeker2011]

Does anyone rent a truck/suv with a trailor hitch? Looking to move a boat from one place to the next, but none that I call will do it

I have not heard of a car rental who provide this. That is because this might damage their car rental. So I don't think you will find one. But you can still check

[cutcopypaste]

I'll be traveling from London with one other person and spending a few days in Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec city. I have up to 2 weeks but may not be able to afford the whole time. Wondering price wise what's likely to be best between taking a train and using public transportation, renting a car for the whole time, or doing short rentals for each step

I'm over 25

[JACKIE26]

Does anyone rent a truck/suv with a trailor hitch? Looking to move a boat from one place to the next, but none that I call will do it

Go to home depot they rent trucks and trailers, so I am pretty sure their trucks have hitches.

http://www.homedepot.ca/content/tool-rental/

[StartHere]

On Nationalcar.com, click "more options", enter "XVC1092" under Contract ID field.
All codes include LDW / insurance.

On Nationalcar.com, click "more options", enter "XVC1092" under Contract ID field.
https://www.nationalcar.com/index.do?action=resRentalInfo.do&contractId=XVC109 2

On Enterprise.com, enter "XVC1092" under Optional Coupon, Customer or Corp Number filed.
https://www.enterprise.com/car_rental/deeplinkmap.do?cnty=US&bid=002&cust=xvc1092

Stack your saving with additional coupons:
Free weekend day https://www.nationalcar.com/index.do?action=resRentalInfo.do&contractId=XVC109 2&couponId=NF5817ZDT

$20 Off Weekend Rentals. https://www.nationalcar.com/index.do?action=resRentalInfo.do&contractId=XVC109 2&couponId=ND3156ZDW

$25 Off Weekly Rentals. https://www.nationalcar.com/index.do?action=resRentalInfo.do&contractId=XVC109 2&couponId=ND3166ZDQ

Free car class upgrade https://www.nationalcar.com/index.do?action=resRentalInfo.do&contractId=XVC109 2&couponId=NU3637ZDJ

One Free GPS day with 2 day weekend rental https://www.nationalcar.com/index.do?action=resRentalInfo.do&contractId=XVC109 2&couponId=NP1931DDB

[REP]

I would like to pickup a car rental from the Vancouver airport and subsequently return it after a couple days at the Pan Pacific hotel where we are staying. The websites seem to ask if I want to return to a different location, but it seems to always point me back to the airport.

Any suggestions?

Best price seems to be with Thrifty - Is there a reason why...

Excuse me as I never rent cars.

Thanks

[agiga]

Hi,

I will be renting from the same city and likely same location in my home town 4-5 times per month. Instead of buying a car, I think this will prove to be cheaper since o need the car so infrequently.

What is the best strategy to get the best rates?

I will sign up for the frequent rental offers ie rent three times and next one free etc. But since I don't have any loyalty to a specific company, would it be best to rent in advance and walk into a location or airport right before they close to ask for a last minute rate? And if there isn't one I have the booked rental in case? Are there such deals as walk up rates esp before closing? Is friending a rental agent for these regular rentals beneficial from a deal perspective? I don't care about upgrades etc, main thing is getting the best rate each time so I don't feel it's costing me as much as leasing a car would cost!

[lexani]

Hi,

I will be renting from the same city and likely same location in my home town 4-5 times per month. Instead of buying a car, I think this will prove to be cheaper since o need the car so infrequently.

What is the best strategy to get the best rates?

I will sign up for the frequent rental offers ie rent three times and next one free etc. But since I don't have any loyalty to a specific company, would it be best to rent in advance and walk into a location or airport right before they close to ask for a last minute rate? And if there isn't one I have the booked rental in case? Are there such deals as walk up rates esp before closing? Is friending a rental agent for these regular rentals beneficial from a deal perspective? I don't care about upgrades etc, main thing is getting the best rate each time so I don't feel it's costing me as much as leasing a car would cost!

Enterprise has 9.99/weekend day with 100 free km (total 300 for weekend). That's pretty good. For certain locations, you can get unlimited km for 9.99 as long as car is within ON.

[agiga]

Enterprise has 9.99/weekend day with 100 free km (total 300 for weekend). That's pretty good. For certain locations, you can get unlimited km for 9.99 as long as car is within ON.

I forgot about the enterprise deals, thank you. And now I see they have a frequent renter program too, not sure how new that is. Seems to work out to about a free rental every 16 rentals or so. Not as good as Nationals emerald club program but you can't beat $9.99/day!

[lexani]

I forgot about the enterprise deals, thank you. And now I see they have a frequent renter program too, not sure how new that is. Seems to work out to about a free rental every 16 rentals or so. Not as good as Nationals emerald club program but you can't beat $9.99/day!

National is only (or for the most part) at Airport locations only, so that won't help everyone. But Enterprise is everywhere and they're a lot cheaper (low end fleet).

[ukhan90]

Hi I am looking for a rent a car form a month in toronto. WHat is the best deal I could get?