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Trusting
travelers tripped up by Holiday Car Hire pitfalls – Wise up
or pay up, says Insurance4carhire.com
31
March 2008
- Watch
out for costly add-ons
- Awareness
of industry practices can avoid shock credit card charges
- Keep
paperwork, take photos, follow the rules to keep costs down
As
thousannds of families with school age children prepare to
hit the road in hired vehicles this holiday period, standalone
Excess insurance specialist Insurance4carhire.com
warns of a number of key pointers drivers need to be wary
of when using car rental firms at home and abroad.
While
the basic cost of a hire car can appear very reasonable, add-ons
- especially for ‘damage' incurred to a vehicle during the
rental period - can run into hundreds of pounds.
Insurance4carhire.com
advises that one of the most common areas where holidaymakers
are tripped up is when there is damage to the vehicle's windows,
tyres, roof or undercarriage - areas which are not normally
covered on the rental firm's own excess cover.
"So
many people are innocently caught out on this, yet these are
precisely the areas that people don't think about," says Insurance4carhire.com
spokesman Larry
Ursich.
"We
have also had many reports of drivers being asked to pay for
scratches or dents on the rental vehicle that they believed
they had nothing to do with. Our advice is to make sure you
take digital snaps of the vehicle at the point of hire."
Ursich
also recommends making notes of the condition of the vehicle
on the hire company's form, taking care to photograph, if
possible, any old scratches or dents it may have as these
can be the prime source of dispute.
"Inspection
of a returned vehicle's condition almost always takes place
after the keys have been handed back, but it is essential
to be there when the inspection is done. "Don't just drop
the car off, otherwise you may have bumps and scratches unfairly
assigned to you. If you can't be there, again, take photos
and notes to prove there were no problems; and make sure you
record the mileage."
Insurance4carhire.com
Top Tips on Car Hire
- Take
photos of the vehicle before and after the hire period -
it's the best way to avoid being charged for damage you
didn't cause.
- Ask
for all paperwork to be completed on the spot and keep it
until your credit card statement arrives and you are happy
with the charges.
- Always
return the vehicle with a full tank - car hire firms can
charge double the pump price to do it themselves.
- Don't
leave before the final inspection is completed - and don't
sign anything unless you and the hire firm are in agreement
- The
person renting the vehicle must have a credit card - most
car rental companies will not accept debit cards or cash.
- Don't
return the car late - you could face an extra day's hire
charge.
- Make
sure the car you get is the same class as the one you booked
- if they choose to give you an upgrade this should be free
so check the small print as they may charge you more
- If
you do have an accident, keep all relevant paperwork as
you will need it to make a claim when you get home.
- Some
countries have their own legal requirements such as breakdown
kits - if the car doesn't have one you may be a risk of
police fines Insurance
4 Car Hire has developed an alternative that will save
motorists a small fortune: low annual car rental Excess
insurance products to protect customers whenever they rent
a car, with peace of mind that the total amount ofExcess
will be covered.
Europe-wide
cover costs just £49, covering the policyholder and all
additional driverson the car rental agreement for multiple
use throughout the year.
Annual
Worldwide cover costs just £59 to provide protection anywhere
in the world where Excess is charged.
Notes
about this Press Release
Founded
in 2002 Insurance
4 Car Hire is an innovative online insurance company whose
core business is the provision of car rental Excess insurance.
The business was born out of the high costs being charged
by the car rental companies for Excess cover. Insurance4carhire
strives to bring customers annual Excess insurance products
offering customers convenience, peace of mind and very significant
savings when they rent cars.
In
2005, for the second year running, Insurance4carhire received
the accolade of "World's Leading Innovative Ecommerce Travel
Product" from The World Travel Awards. These annual awards
celebrate achievement in the travel industry and are based
on votes cast by travel industry professionals throughout
Europe.
To
reflect the increasingly global reach of its products, Insurance4carhire
changed underwriters to AIG UK Ltd, a member company of American
International Group, Inc., (AIG) in December 2007. AIG is
one of the worlds leading insurance companies with operations
in more than 130 countries.
Insurance
4 Car Hire is now part of the Towergate
Partnership the largest independently owned insurance
intermediary in Europe.
Source:
Insurance4carhire.com
See
also - other Insurance4carhire.com Press Releases
Insurance4carhire.com's
Best Drives in the US - January 2009
Money
saving, Peace of Mind and Top Tips from
Insurance4carhire.com
this Winter - December 2008
Insurance4carhire.com
appoints Hills Balfour Synergy for PR Representation - December
2008
Don't
forget to take car hire excess insurance and travel insurance
for a Christmas or New Year break - December 2008
Drivers
Down Under Hit by biggest Car Hire Excess Charges – Don’t
go the distance without protection, warns INSURANCE4CARHIRE.COM
- Excess charges incurred by drivers in Australia disproportionately
high compared to other motorists - June 2008
Drivers
Abroad are stumped by hefty Car Rental Excess costs, but could
save £££’s on the holiday budget with an annual policy - April
2008
Confusing
car rental jargon, unclear insurance policies and excessive
excess – The Big 3 pitfalls that can leave you out of pocket
when hiring a car on holiday, warns Insurance4car.com - April
2008
Age
no barrier to protection for older drivers – Low cost excess
waiver policy helps over 75s stay on the Road - March 2008
Brits
set to get stung this Easter with Sky-High excess insurance
costs – EU car rental firms cash in on UK drivers with massive
excess charges - March 2008
insurance4car
hire.com - March 2008
Brits
go holiday crazy reckons major survey – but Insurance4carhire.com
says watch out for excess car hire charges - March 2008
Trusting
travelers tripped up by Holiday Car Hire pitfalls – Wise up
or pay up, says Innsurance4carhire.com - March 2008
The
Great Excess Insurance rip-off - EU Car Rental firms fleece
Brit drivers with massive excess Penalties - February 2008
Towergate
Partnership announces the acquisition of Insurance 4 Car Hire
Agents Ltd - January 2008
Lower
prices for car hire excess insurance from December - December
2007
Annual
Car Rental Insurance Renewal is here again - October 2007
ALSO:
Exercise your constitutional rights in the air - January 2001
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