Too much luggage causes Holiday disputes says Holiday Autos

According to new research from Holiday Autos, the car hire firm, packing too much luggage causes disputes between couples on holiday. About 25% of all couples on holiday will have an argument over the best way to pack their belongings into a rental car before their journey even starts.

This study has found that men tend to pack more than women when going on holiday to the beach, with about 33% admitting that they have had to leave some baggage behind at the airport due to it not fitting into their hired vehicle. On the other hand, only 17% of women have admitted that they have had to leave some of the luggage behind.

Holiday Autos also revealed that 82% of men feel like it’s their job to book the rental car for their holiday. However, the company also found that men tend to concentrate more on the make of the car and the size of its engine instead of how much baggage space it will give them. So it’s no surprise that about 18% of men admitted that they have returned to the car hirer’s desk to trade their vehicle to a larger one so that their luggage will fit.

Stuart Nassos, the Managing Director for Holiday Autos, said that many holidaymakers seem to forget the fact that the car they book for their holiday will likely be smaller than the vehicle they use while they are at home. Therefore, they tend to bring more baggage than what will fit safely in the hired car, he continued.

Nassos also suggested that customers check their Car Features Guide before making a decision on which model to book. The vehicle should either be large enough to accommodate the holidaymaker’s baggage or the amount of baggage should be reduced, he added.

Source: Holiday Autos - Looking for car rental from Holiday Autos? Follow this link

Good report on insurance4carhire on Dublin Forum

On the day that we posted a brief article called

"I live in Ireland can I buy car hire insurance via insurance4carrental.com?" Here on this blog came across this section in Tripadvisor "Dublin Forum: GOOD REPORT- Insurance4carhire.com".

In our article about was it possible for Irish residents to buy car hire insurance via insurance4carrental.com, we explained that several of the advertisers catered for the Irish Market.

Well it appears that insurance4carhire.com have done well in Dublin.

"12 August 2010, 8:15
Before leaving for Ireland, we purchased the SCDW through insurance4carhire.com. We had an accident and were charged the deductible (approx $1700) by Murrays/Sixt (don't get me started on the terrible experience we had with them re. the accident and follow up- they were HORRIBLE).

Once we were able to get the accident report from Sixt (a month later- again, don't get me started)- Insurance4carhire wired the money to our bank account within hours of receiving the necessary documents.They were easy to contact, always prompt in their replies, and sent our money very quickly.When I was researching them I had a hard time finding anyone who had actually had a claim - so wanted to let others know of the good service we received. The only down side is that you must pay the charges ($1700) and wait to be reimbursed. We knew this going in so were prepared - just not expecting the lack of service received from Sixt."

A visitor to the Tripadvisor site from Loughrea, Southport said "It is a good point that you knew the money would be deducted and not reimbursed for a while. Many people taking out 3rd party insurance are under the impression that the 3rd party (Insurance4carhire or others) sorts everything out and gives the payment straight away. Sorry you had a bad experience with an Irish car hire operator, unfortunately you are not alone and it isn't restricted to just one company."

Another from Kilkenny said "sorry for the problems you had...but it doesn't matter which rental agency you use...if you don't buy your scdw from the rental counter, you always have to have the large hold put on your card and you have to be out the money if there is an accident and collect from whomever insures you.... usually, one of us will tell you that...don't know how we missed it.....do you mind telling me how much the insurance4carhire cost, for how many days?.....i would be interested in looking into it for my next trip....."

There are further replies and if you want to join in go to http://www.tripadvisor.com.au/ShowTopic-g186605-i90-k3848844-GOOD_REPORT_Insurance4carhire_com-Dublin_County_Dublin.html

In the meantime if you are living in ireland (or other parts of the world) and require car hire insurance for business or a holiday visit the insurance4carhire.com site Here.

I live in Ireland can I buy car hire insurance via insurance4carrental.com?

insurance4carrental.com is an advertising site for car hire insurance companies and it is not just resticted to UK customers.

On the contrary, most of the advertisers offer products for residents in countries worldwide and give prices in € Euros, $ Dollars and £ Stirling.

This means if you are a resident of France, Ireland, Spain, South Africa, USA etc you can buy this important insurance on your credit card in your local currency.

Some insurance companies of course may not sell their produtcts to non-uk residends, however when there is an option to have the price in Euros you know that if you are in Ireland (or other countries using the Euro)you will have no problems. In fact one of the car hire insurance companies is even posting up a compliment about the service they had received and this person lives in Dublin.

So if you live in New Zealand, Denmark or Spain (just to mention 3 coutries) you should be able to buy car hire excess insurance from a company advertising on www.insurance4carrental.com

Car rental Nice extra insurance?

Just came across this at Tripadvisor - "Nice Forum: Car Rental - Extra Insurance"

A visitor from the USA " Car Rental - Extra Insurance
Aug 16, 2010, 11:13 PM
Renting a car in Nice for 1-1/2 days. Is it highly adviseable to take out extra insurance? Our credit card covers car rental insurance so we usually don't take out the extra but maybe in Europe, we should. Thoughts?"

8 replies at 18th August - " If you rent from one of the major companies, the rental cost normally includes insurance but with an excess (deductible) of maybe €1000. You need to check whether your card will cover this.

Even if your card covers your insurance, if you damage the car you will have to pay for the damage (up to the excess) and then lodge a claim with your card company or the insurance company that it uses. The rental company cannot make a claim on your insurance."

"Many people pay the extra for CDW because they are afraid of making claims and want the "piece of mind" that the auto rental companies sell for a very high price. Most travel experts recommend against purchasing what they consider "ripoff" CDW coverage and rely on using their credit cards policies, which in some ways are superior (and much cheaper) than those offered at the rental counter.

First, check with your credit card company to see if you are indeed covered. Most Visa cards offer the coverage, and the premium MasterCards and most all Amex cards. But you do have to follow their rules when submitting a claim."

"The French are nightmare drivers and even worse at parking. Many times I have seen my car being "nudged" out of the way so that another car could park in front or behind me and there are dents and scratches all over it!Honestly, if it isn't essential to hire a car for a day and a half then I really wouldn't bother, particularly since public transport in the area is so good."

Your question is really 2-in-1 which is why there are some potentially contradictory responses

1. Do the risks in Europe mean you should take out insurance? Yes - road and parking space is tight, you are unfamiliar with the driving style and you do carry the risk of scrapes and bumps. If you take out CDW that comes with "all inclusive packages" you will still be exposed up to the limit of the "excess" or "deductible" which means that you could end up paying Euros 1000

2. Should you take out insurance with the rental co if you are already covered by your credit card? Obviously there is no need to pay twice. But you need to check your credit card terms & conditions or seek advice from TA members in the US as to what exactly is covered"

Want to carry on the discussion? Visit Tripadvisor at http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g187234-i138-k3861294-Car_Rental_Extra_Insurance-Nice_French_Riviera_Cote_d_Azur_Provence.html

If you are renting a car in Nice, France buy your car hire insurance in advance from a specialist provider. Six of these - insurance4carhire - Questor Insurance - dailyexcess.com - Essential Travel - Odyssey - icarhireinsurance.com are advertising at www.insurance4carrental.com

Motorhome and Van Hire insurance sales increasing

Campervan and mototorhome hire excess insurance has only been advertised on insurance4carrental.com for less than a month, but several sales have been generated, meanwhile van hire sales increase.

insurance4carrental.com only started marketing Mototorhome hire excess insurance under a month ago on behalf of Questor Insurance and it is proving to be a very popular product for those hiring a campervan.

Read the full Press Release HERE

Ways To Make Your Car Rental Experience More Enjoyable

Ways To Make Your Car Rental Experience More Enjoyable

Carhire in USA - Do I Need Car Hire Excess Insurance?

Came across this at MoneySavingExpert.com

Carhire in US - Need Car Hire Excess Insurance?

Hello - off to the US later this month and hiring a car for most of the time as travelling from Yosemite to Yellowstone. Have hired quite a few cars before in NZ, South Africa and Canada last year but continue to get confused to whether I need to purchase exces cover. I did this with insurance4carhire.com in NZ but seem to remember not needing it last year in Canada. How about the US

I have booked it through Hertz and my charge includes - Loss Damage Waiver, Tax and other charges, Liability Insurance Supplement, Vehicle Licensing Cost Recovery, Transaction Fee, Drop fee and estimate mileage.

Am I ok then? And I don't need either the USA&Canada or Worldwide policies attached below?

http://www.insurance4carhire.com/Products.asp?subRefID=&pageID=37&langID=1&refID=188&curID=1

Below is also a quote from the Hertz website. It suggests its an optional policy but from reading elsewhere I think that whenever you book US carhire from outside the US its normally chucked in as part of the total cost

Loss Damage Waiver (LDW) an optional service, which for an additional daily charge relieves you of all financial responsibility for the loss or damage to the rental car, whether or not you have insurance to cover such damage, provided the car is used in accordance with the terms of the Rental Agreement.

EDIT

Also just (to strengthen that bit above about LDW/etc being automatically added when booking from outside the US), just done a quote directly on hertz.com saying I am a US citizen and it gives a total price and then options for Liability Insurance Supplement at 12.95 USD per day and Loss Damage Waiver at 15.00 USD per day

The Canada / USA situation does look confusing.Came across this question earlier.

Question: August 2010: Can you please advise me, does your worldwide insurance policy Cover me for international Collision Damage Waiver (I.C.D.W.) Which will allow me to hire a vehicle abroad without paying The rental companies insurance charges (including rental in the U.S.A.) If so how much is an annual policy? Thanking you in advance.

Reply: Dear Sir, Thank you for your email. We can only cover you annually for the CDW/SLI in the USA and Canada. The policy costs £109 and can be purchased on ww.insurance4carhire.com When you hire a car in the USA, you have the choice of taking a rental that is either fully inclusive, or fully exclusive, of car rental insurance.

If you hire a car on an exclusive basis, no car rental insurance is included in the car rental price. In those circumstances, it is necessary to purchase Collision Damage Waiver/Loss Damage Waiver (CDW/LDW) and Supplemental Liability Insurance (SLI). CDW/LDW covers damage, loss of use and theft of the rental vehicle, and SLI covers third party liability. These insurances are sold at the car rental counter and cost between US$20 and US$30 per day.

Our USA & Canada policy covers:

Supplemental Liability Insurance (Third Party) up to US$ 1 million

Collision Damage Waiver/Loss Damage Waiver (CDW/LDW) - covering damage, theft and loss of use of the rental vehicle - up to US $80,000

Uninsured Motorist up to US$ 100,000

Hit & Run Motorist up to US$100,000

Excess if excess is charged (it is generally not charged in the USA)

Damage to windows, roof, tyres & wheels and the undercarriage.

If you have taken a rental that is exclusive of car rental insurance, then our Policy will cover you for your car rental insurance requirementsWe do not recommend this Policy for use with Fly Drive programmes (a package that includes a flight and possibly a hotel, with car rental included at minimal or no cost).

Fly Drive programmes are generally structured so that the car rental company makes very little money on the rental, and looks to make its profit from add-ons such as insurance. For that reason, companies which participate in Fly Drive programmes do not always readily accept this insurance.

If you are doing a Fly Drive programme, it would be sensible to contact the car rental company, tell them you can provide your own insurance, and confirm that they will accept it.

Kind regards Insurance4carhire.com

Hope this clarifies the issue!

The A to Z of car hire reviewed

The Independent's travel supplement had a feature on Saturday 7th August 2010 entitled "The A to Z of car hire".

We are now in the middle of the 2010 summer holiday season and there do not appear to have been many reports of car hire shortages this year - possibly as a result of the old supply and demand rules - higher prices at peak time.

The Simon Calder article is interesting coming up with interesting facts in the A to Z. F - Ford owned the world's largest car hire company Hertz for a decade up till 2005.

The twenty six topics are covered well and some have been mentioned in this blog or in artices in the insurance4carrental.com site. Here is a small selection

"Brokers: Intermediaries who may, thanks to their extra buying power, be able to get you a better deal than going direct." Holidayautos.co.uk is quoted.

"Insurance: - where many elements of the car-rental industry make lots of money, selling "supplemental liability insurance", "personal accident insurance". Book and pay for everthing in advance and for the one element to which the usual rental is exposed - collission damage - you can buy a fixed-rate annual waiver in advance. Just search on line" - No insurance company was quoted, however by going to www.insurance4carrental.com there is a choice of six.
insurance4carhire, daily excess, Questor Essential Travel, Odyssey and Icarhireinsurance.

Empty: - the state of your wallet if you return the car without fuel when the company is expecting it to be full to the brim. A punitive price for fuel is usually applied........" This has been covered on the insurance4carrental site in detail with one car hire company in Ireland actually putting a sticker on the speedometer to return the car empty.

"Premium location surcharge : - usually for big cities. In Ireland, Dollar has a €28 fee for picking up in Dublin or Cork rather than from smaller towns." This subject has been covered a lot on the insurance4carrental.com site under "Topics on car hire and van hire to take a look at....A-Z listing"

Another subject covered on this blog in June was about "Drink drive limits" http://carhireexcessinsurance.blogspot.com/2010/06/lower-drink-drive-limits-in-ireland.html
Under "Wine – even a sip will send you over the limit, and invalidate your insurance in Pakistan, Cuba, Indonesia, Romania, Jordan and Nigeria, according to Rhinocarhire.com, which produces a comprehensive guide.."

"Xs: -industry shorthand for insurance excess, ie that amount you have to pay towards damage or loss. Typically £500, €500 or $750, unless you pay insurance to reduce it." Again no mention of companies offering this, but if you go to http://www.insurance4carrental.com/#Click you can find those six providers.

A very interesting article and this can be viewed on line at The Independent's web site Here

Car Hire Accidents And The Excess Reduction

Came across this article on "Auto Insurance Davenport Illinois"
Although appearing on a US website blog links go back to webbcarr.com - Australia and New Zealand Car Rental.

Car Hire Accidents And The Excess Reduction

This eventuates in the rental company self insuring the hire cars. In doing so they take on the cost of the accident damage themselves and offset that expense by offering a CDW to you. This is a much more ecomonical way for them to maintain the rental car fleet and the company do not pay the insurance companies the big premiums for every car.

Car Rental companies are in business to make money and this aspect of car rental becomes an extra revenue raiser itself and that is why the sales staff at the car hire branch will do their best to sell you this option. In regards to vehicle accidents, Australian law states that the liability lies with the owner of the vehicle unless you are acting as an agent for the owner, and as the hirer it is therefore unlikely you would come under that clasification.

Serious thought should be given as to whether you accept the offer of excess reduction to reduce your liability. One obvious reason to take up the offer is to reduce the stress on yourself and not drive around knowing that in the event of an accident you would have to pay a high excess that in most cases has been inflated to scare you into taking the CDW. In all hosesty it does not take long for the CDW costs to add up and amount to more than paying the excess in the unfortunate event of an accident. Here is the dilermma!

Some credit card companies offer their clients insurance to cover excess liability when renting cars and some clients think they are covered when they are not you should check with your credit card company and get it in writing that you will be covered and under what circumstances are you covered for. Sometimes the credit card companies will only cover you if you have not been offer excess reduction by the car hire company or their cover may only cover the difference between the two.

At the time of booking is when you should be giving thought to all these things and make a decision as to whether you take the CDW. The car hire company will be doing their best to encourage you to take this option afterall it is in their best interests.

Next we have the situation where the unthinkable happened, a car accident. Assuming no one was hurt, in which case an ambulance should be called as soon as possible, the first objective will be to approach the other driver or drivers and collect their full particulars. This will include sighting their driver’s license and noting its full details. A tip here is to confirm that the address on the license is in fact their current address. If the accident has occurred in a busy location you may need to move the vehicles but it is always best to leave them if possible unless the police instruct you to move the cars. The police will need to be called depending on the severity of the accident or if anyone has been injured.

The accident isn’t the only thing you will have to contend with, the tow truck drivers are very competitive and sometimes extremely pushy. Try not to be taken for a ride, under no circumstances allow them to tow the rental car unless you are given the OK by the car hire company or told to do so by the police. Tow truck drivers or companies are paid a higher rate for what is call a police tow. Someone will have to pay for this tow and that could be you.

Tow truck drivers also receive commissions from panel repairs if he delivers the damaged vehicles to thier facility. That is why they are so anxious to get your vehicle off the road it isn’t because they want to look after you it’s because they wish to look after themselves. If he gets your rental car attached to his truck it is almost impossible to get him to release the vehicle.

Your next problem to deal with will be paying the excess to the car rental company and then attempting to recover it in the event that you were not at fault. This process may take a very long time and to some extent depend on the honesty and integrity of everyone involved.

Do your homework when it comes to insurance and car rental and be reassured that there are only a very few collisions. Drive Safely

If you are travelling to Australia or New Zealand or travelling from those countries don't forget you can arrange your car hire excess insurance at www.car-hire-insurance.info