Vehicle Rent Blog

Most Common in car rental...

Many people that rents a vehicle for the first time, are encountered with the terms that do not understand. For easier understanding of the jargon we have prepared a basic guide which will help you with your next car rental. 

Fuel – Fuel policy is one of the more confusing parts of the rental for most customers. There are different policies with the different car rental companies or even within car rental company. Here are four different fuel policies: 

1. Customers will collect the car with a full tank of fuel and should return it full. Here customer doesent have any additional cost with the fuel. 

2. Customers will recieve full tank of fuel and will be charged for the fuel. The customer should return the vehicle as empty as possible, because there are no refunds for unused fuel. 

3. Customers will collect a car with certain amount of fuel and should return it with the same amount. There is no additional cost when returning the car.

4. Customer will recive a vehicle with ceratin amount (usualy half) and should return it empty as possible. Customers are charged for the fuel.

Many customers are not informed about different policies that is why we at Vehicle Rent, advise to all our customers that specificly ask at the rental desk, what are the terms and conditions of renting a certain vehicle.

Excess – An excess when hiring vehicles is somehow the same as with the normal car insurance. This is the amount for which the driver is responsible, in the event of an accident or theft, resulting in the vehicle. The remaining amount of damage is paid by the insurance company or in the case of renting a vehicle, car Rental Company. Certain parts of the vehicle, does not belong to this type of insurance and the driver is fully responsible to pay the damage. These components are: undercarriage, glass/windscreen, tires, roof, interior and clutch.

Zero Excess – To rent a vehicle with zero excess means that full insurance is already included in the price and you are not responsible for the damage. Usually the full insurance excludes damages to: undercarriage, glass/windscreen, tires, roof, interior and clutch. In these cases the renter is fully responsible for the damage. It is also worth of mentioning that no insurance covers damages that were result of negligence, driving under influence of drugs or alcohol, driving off-road etc. 

We advise our customers, even if the vehicle has zero excess (full insurance), that they carefully read the terms under what circumstances full insurance is not valid.

Security deposit - Is the amount that car Rental Company, block your credit card, to secure the vehicle in the event of damage or that is not returned with a full tank of fuel. If the vehicle comes with excess, the amount of security deposit is usually the same as excess plus price for the fuel. Even if the car comes with full insurance there is usually a security deposit for the parts of the vehicle that are not included in the insurance and fuel. This always has to be stated in the general terms and conditions of the rental agreement. It needs to be added that for security deposit a credit card needs to be present. It is usually not possible to leave cash deposit, check or debit card.

Insurance Packages - There are different insurance packages. Some insurance are already available for purchase on the website where you book your vehicle. With these packages, it is worth noting that you will still have to leave security deposit at the rental counter and you will, in the event of an accident also charged. To restore security deposit or the amount you were charged, you need to send your insurance provider all the necessary documentation about the event and they will reimburse you the paid amount. You can also buy insurance at the time of collecting the vehicle and in this way, in many cases, it is not necessary to leave the security deposit. Insurances differ from company to company and have different conditions and coverage’s. Below you can see some basic ones.

Collision Damage Waiver (CDW) - CDW is the basic insurance in the event of an accident or damage and is usually included in the price, it is advisable to check before booking, if the offer includes it. This reduces your liability insurance with the total value of the vehicle on the manageable amount in case of damage of the vehicle. Usually this amount is equal to excess (see above).

Super Collision Damage Waiver (SCDW) – Is insurance that reduces the above described responsibility. This insurance you can usually buy purchase when picking up the vehicle, which is usually an amount per day and is calculated depending on the rental duration and on the size and group of the vehicle. It is advisable to check terms and conditions, what SCDW covers and what not.

Personal Accident Insurance (PAI) – This is insurance for persons inside the vehicle, which is usually not included in the price and is available for purchase at the time of collecting the vehicle. Usually your traveling insurance covers this kind of events that is why, in most cases, this insurance is not necessary to buy.

Additional Drivers – Means that the vehicle can only be driven by the person who is stated and has signed the rental agreement. Some offers already include the first additional driver, others may offer this for and additional charge. Always check in terms and conditions what is included and what is the cost for additional driver.

Optional Extra Equipment - When renting a vehicle, you can rent the optional extras that you could need. These accessories are such as child seat, navigation system, winter accessories, etc. These extras are always payable on destination and never included in the rate. Usually extras are charged by a daily rate for the usage of the equipment.

At Vehicle Rent we want to make these kinds of terms as transparent and understandable as possible. That is why we advise our client to check terms and conditions before going on a trip, so that there won’t be any bad surprises. Only the good ones!