Renting a car is often a necessary choice, whether for vacations, business trips, or simply for transportation around town. Despite the convenience it offers, renting a car can cause many unnecessary costs and inconveniences if we don't pay attention to some key details. In this article, we will reveal to you a tip worth its weight in gold, which can save you a lot of money and nerves. A simple step that you can take immediately upon picking up the vehicle will ensure that your rental car experience is as smooth and worry-free as possible. Read on to discover how you can avoid the most common pitfalls and save your valuable time and money. This is a rental car tip that will come in handy on your next trip.
Many tips are worth their weight in gold and this car rental tip is one of them. It will only take you a minute before you pick up or drop off the rental car.
We are often forced to rent a car when traveling, but this move can end up costing us quite a bit of money if we are not careful. Car rental companies may also try to sell extras to customers, many of which are unnecessary. Car insurance for example, it is often already covered by credit cards or general travel insurance, so you don't have to pay extra for an expensive policy at the car rental agency itself.
Photo: Unsplash/Leio McLarenIt is even worse if you are accused of causing damage to the car. In this case, the agency keeps the deposit you paid before the rental. The damage is often not even real. Many accusations have been made against rent-a-car companies for unfairly charging damages to customers. The latter claim that they did not cause the damage, but the agencies sent them an invoice for several hundred to several thousand euros. So whenever you rent a car, do this thing to protect yourself. Record a video or take a photo of the car, inside and out to prove you haven't damaged it.
Tip for rent-a-car: take photos and record the actual situation
Some travelers claim that the company charged them days, weeks or even months after returning their rental car for damage that they claim was discovered only after a later inspection. At this point, if the tenant did not cause this damage, there is only one way to prove it. Although you return the car to the location and the company employee inspects it properly and signs that the car is undamaged upon return, you may receive a deposit to cover the damage in your mailbox after a while. Without photo or video evidence, you will almost certainly have to pay the bill, even if it is a scam. But if you can prove that you returned the car undamaged, the rent-a-car company is more likely to withdraw its claim.
Photo: Unsplash/Jorge SaavedraThe process of documenting your car is fairly simple. Take a photo or video of the car when you pick it up to demonstrate what, if any, damage is already there. Do the same when you drop it off to prove the car's condition when you return it.
When documenting your car, you'll want to cover all angles inside and out. This will be the easiest with a video. Start by walking around the exterior of the car while simultaneously shooting the bodywork and individual details such as fenders, etc. You'll also want to take pictures of the top of the car and the undercarriage if possible. Finally, it's time to take a picture of the interior of the vehicle - make sure you take a look at the front seats, the back seats and the trunk. We recommend that you keep the recordings and photos together with the receipts from the car rental company for at least six months.
It may sound like a lot of work, but the whole process can actually be completed in a minute or so, and can save you hundreds or thousands of dollars.
