Extra car rental charges – Avoid surprises when you rent a car

When you visit Ireland, you can rent a car for your holiday. Good car rental deals are available online or over the phone. Athough there are a couple of extra charges that you should not overlook.
Here are a few hints how to avoid surprises when you hire a car.

Airport fee/ Premium location
It is common with most car rental companies to charge an airport fee for collection at an airport or at a premium location. When you book a car with airport pick-up, always make sure that your quote includes airport fee or you have to pay locally.

Young and mature drivers surcharge
These age-based fees depend on the car rental company, the location and the size of the rental vehicle. If you are under 24 or older than 70 years, the young or the mature drivers surcharge may apply. You may find more flexible age restrictions with some car rental agencies. When you make an online car hire booking, in most cases you need to give your age too.

Additional driver
If your partner or spouse is planning to drive your rental car, it may come as a surprise to find out that most car hire companies charge 5 to 10 euros per day for each additional driver. In certain countries you may have one additional driver for free.

Special equipment
You can also request special equipment for additional charge, like infant child seat, child toddler seat and booster seat. It is usually around 50 euros per rental. It is also possible to rent cars with GPS navigation. It will cost you around 15 euros per rental.
These are available on request and payable at the car rental counter. If you are travelling with your children, you can save money by bringing your own child safety seat. You can also use your own GPS navigation in your rental car.

Fuel surcharge
Fuel is not included in the rental price. There are some different fuel policies:
• Pick up full, return full, it means that your car will be supplied with a full tank of fuel and you need to refill the vehicle before you return it.
• Pick up full, return empty, upon collection of your rental car you will be charged by the car rental company for a full tank of petrol.
• Same level fuel policy, at the end of the hire you return the car with the same amount of petrol as when the vehicle was collected.

Out of hours extra charge
Out of hours pick up or drop off is also available for additional charge. Confirm always with the car hire provider company.

Oneway rental fee
Oneway rentals usually have an extra charge. This fee is based on the distance between the rental and the return locations. It always depends on the length of your rental.


The collision damage waiver - CDW
It is also known as loss damage waiver (LDW), this is not technically an insurance product, but instead shifts liability for collision damage from the person renting the car to the car rental company. If the vehicle is damaged, you will be covered for the cost of repairing the rental car. You will, however, have to pay an excess charge towards the cost of repair.
For example, let's say you want to hire a car at Dublin Airport in Ireland. Depends on the size of the rental car your liability (excess) would be 800-2000 euros. If you want to reduce your excess, you can purchase additional coverage online from 2.99 euros per day before you travel to Ireland. Here are some companies who protect you against excess charges, for example: carhireecxess.com or dailyexcess.com.

Your holiday in Ireland is supposed to be relaxing, so don't forget to check the fine print when you rent your car. Plan always ahead and book your car online, so you can save time and get a good car rental deal for your money.