Car Hire Insurance

- A major component in the cost is likely to be not just the rental charge but the insurance you need to go with it to protect you against third party claims, accidental damage and theft.

- Not only does this rental car insurance tend to be a significant proportion of the cost, but it also typically comes with a high excess – often greater than a thousand pounds, depending on the car you have hired and the country in which you are driving.

- The size of the excess lends itself to what the Money Saving Expert website describes as a “scare trick” in which hire car customers to turn on the hard sell to persuade customers to buy the excess insurance cover they offer.

- The rental company’s insurance typically adds an extra daily premium to the hire of the vehicle, but still fails to cover damage that may be caused to some parts of the vehicle (such as the wheels and tyres, windows, roof and undercarriage).

- To protect yourself against the risk of high excess charges an alternative exists and is typically more comprehensive and cost-effective than that offered by the car rental company.

- Through providers such as ourselves here at Bettersafe, for example, it is possible to buy excess insurance online before you set off on your travels by payment of a single premium and the peace of mind in knowing that any excess is going to be reimbursed.

- If you are a regular traveller, you might save even more money on your car rental insurance by buying an annual policy – again with just a single premium payment for cover in the part of the world you generally travel – from such an independent insurance provider.

- Our car hire excess policy also covers those parts of the vehicle typically not covered by the rental car company’s cover – namely the roof, undercarriage, tyres etc.

Early Booking

- Thinking about insurance for your car hire in advance like this may also be a helpful spur to another money-saving decision – booking the vehicle as early as possible.

- Rather than the air tickets you may be buying in order to reach your destination, the widest choice and the lowest prices tend to fall to those who book well in advance.

Car Seats For Children

- Throughout Europe car seats are compulsory for children under the age of three.

- Some car rental companies take advantage of this necessity by charging a high daily rate for the hire of the seats you need.

- It may be worth checking whether there are alternative nearby suppliers of child car seats for hire – or even consider taking your own.

Sat Nav

- These days sat nav or GPS devices may be considered by many drivers to be an essential piece of equipment.

- In response, car rental companies typically offer them for hire for a given daily charge.

- Once again, however, there are alternatives – such as taking your own from home (you may need to pay a fee for uploading local maps before you go, but this could still save you money in the long run).

- If you are on holiday, though, you might even dispense with sat nav altogether and discover the joys of getting lost – and enjoying the diversions – in a foreign land.

- With a little planning and forethought, therefore, it may be possible to make significant savings on the cost of hiring your next rental car.