Car Rental Mistakes You Need to Avoid

Renting a car is an ideal choice for vacation. It provides you with freedom as well as the flexibility you need to get most of the vacation. Having wheels is crucial, no matter whether you are taking a long family trip or traveling up the coast for a weekend. The rental cars are convenient; however, the associated costs are confusing. To ensure you get most of the downtown Miami car rentals, it is important to avoid certain mistakes, such as:

  • Getting Additional Insurance That You Don’t Require

In case you have an own insurance policy, it might cover personal liability as well as collision damage for using a rental car. And, if you use a credit card for booking and paying for a rental car, you might get secondary collision coverage. The credit card coverage would provide you something that the personal policy doesn’t, and you would need not pay deductibles.

  • Overlooking Inspection

Inspecting a rental car thoroughly is crucial before you drive that away. Otherwise, you might need to pay for the damage that you did not cause. Most of the rental cars are maintained properly. However, the damages such as dents or scratches in the body or stains, tears, or spills in the interior could go overlooked. In case you notice any defect, damage, or wear during the inspection, ensure you make the company aware of that right away. If you do not, you might need to pay for that

  • Renting from the Airport

Renting from the airport often means additional surcharges. To avoid the extra fees, ensure you choose the rental car service away from the airport. Several off-airport rentals offer transportation from and to the airport. And, it could be more convenient than booking at the airport. Rather you can rent the car before you reach the airport as this would help you find numerous choices and book the one that meets all your needs, be it size, speed, or model.

  • Not Selecting the Right Car

To ensure overall satisfaction with a rental car, it is crucial to pick the right car. In case the vehicle doesn’t accommodate your needs as well as desires, then it is a wrong choice. Some cars come with a stick-shift manual transmission that is not every driver’s choice. Therefore, while booking a car, ensure you pay attention to each factor influencing the driving experience.

  • Returning the Car Late

Usually, the car rental companies charge on a daily basis (24-hour period). Some of the companies provide a grace period of 29 minutes. Whereas some companies charge late fees or even full extra days, in case, you return the car late. Therefore, to avoid the extra fee, ensure you allow enough time on the day you are going to return the car.

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Apart from these, another major mistake is the pre-payment of the fuel/ gas. Paying in advance for gas might seem a convenient option as it helps you save time. However, paying for a full gas tank could be wrong even if you come back with a half-full tank. Therefore, it is advised to fill up the tank yourself as you could find cheap gas prices at a gas station on your way.