Martin Lewis issues urgent holiday warning about ‘trap’ for anyone renting a car – can you avoid huge bills?
MARTIN Lewis’ MoneySavingExpert.com (MSE) has issued a warning to holidaymakers over rental car “trap”.
In the latest MSE newsletter, Martin warned drivers to watch out for excessive insurance costs.
The newsletter said that customers could be encouraged to pay when they pick up their rental car.
He said: “Car hire usually includes basic insurance, yet at the pick-up desk, they almost always try to push you to get ‘excess cover insurance’ costing up to £25/day using scare stories of huge bills for just a scratch – or sometimes implying you have to do it.”
Instead, drivers should buy insurance in advance as this could cost them as little as £2 a day – that’s a potential daily saving of £23.
On top of that, MSE warned people that the pick-up desk may try to dissuade you by claiming the insurance you pre-purchased won’t work.
They may therefore ask you to leave a refundable deposit of £1,000.
The MSE team said not to worry about this: “Not a problem, as long as you have one, just keep calm and carry on.”
You can find cheap car insurance by using comparison sites like MoneySavingExpert, Compare the Market or Go Compare.
Try and get yours as early as possible as that’ll usually give you the best deals.
How can I avoid car hire nightmares?
One way to usually keep costs down with car rentals is by booking your car early.
But this year things are different.
New figures show holidaymakers heading to Spain and Portugal could save up to £150 by cancelling and rebooking reservations made earlier in the year.
Check your paperwork carefully for the cancellation terms because the rules vary by country and by company.
Then, do another comparison search on a website such as Skyscanner, Kayak or Travelsupermarket to find out if you could save cash.
In future years, book early but choose a company that does not charge for cancellations, in case prices fall.
Drivers could also save up to £200 in some holiday hotspots by booking with firms or branches based outside the airport. Sometimes they offer a free shuttle.
Avoid hiring extras such as satnavs or children’s car seats, which can cost more per week to rent than they do to buy new.
Many airlines will let you check a child’s car seat into the hold for free.
When using smartphone satnav apps to navigate abroad, make sure you have packed a proper phone holder and download maps before you set off, to beat roaming charges.
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