Luxury Car Rental – How to Save Money With Luxury
From the globe-trotting tourist to the traveling businessman, most travelers experience a shock when they hire a luxury car rental service. Fuel charges, insurance fees, other fees, and taxes often add up to the final bill. However, most of such fees are avoidable. Here is a simple guide on how you can save money while going for a luxury car rental.
>Use frequent hirer programs
Like hotels and airlines, a major luxury car rental firm will track their clients’ rental history and offers preferential services to faithful customers. Most of these rental services offer regular renter programs which can earn you free hires and upgrades.
>Book wisely
Landing at the rental service and swiping down your card before the executive is never the best method to attain a good value. In fact, it is the worst. You would save both money and time if you ring up your travel agent directly or hire your car over the internet.
>Becoming a favored renter
Most major luxury car rentals offer preferred hirer club membership or programs. When you become a member of such a club, you get preferred treatment, which enables you to sidestep rental counters. Though most of such programs are available at a price, most rentals would waive the fees if you call or write to them and insist on a waiver. They are likely to do it as the luxury car rental service industry is competitive.
>Maximizing your clout
Choose at least two companies for your luxurious hiring requirement. The first would be your main provider. This is the company where you would put majority of your trust so that you can get the best preferential services. The second rental company would be a hedge against local market variations. Similar to the hotel industry, availability and rates of the luxury car hiring industry varies according to location. Often, the rates of a rental company could be grossly out of proportion. By availing two preferred programs, you will not end up paying inflated bills when your aim is to reduce expenses.
>Get upgraded
While hiring a luxury car rental service, ask your agent to record your name for a free upgrade depending upon availability. This would greatly boost your chances of getting an upgraded car when it arrives to pick you up. An alternative is to inform the on-site rental manager about your arrival in advance so that he can enlist you for an upgrade. Most on-site rental managers are quite accommodating.
>Think small
Check out the smallest car available at the rental company and then check the rates for the next bigger car. Most often, you can upgrade to a larger car from the compact one for only a few dollars, adding to the safety and comfort of your travel.
With more company’s offering the best of services, the hirer has a large selection available for choosing. However, the bottom line should always be to ensure that the services promised are being delivered and you are not being taken for a ride.