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Money-Saving Tips for Car Rentals in Europe (cont'd)

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Pressure them to reveal all the fees involved, then get it all in writing and don't let the actual car office in Europe where you pick the vehicle up (or the one where you drop it off) try to tack on anything else, as they often will try to do. They will try to bamboozle you with fine print to cheat you out of more money. Sad, but true. Here are some (thoroughly legal) scams to watch out for.

Except in Spain and Italy, where some kick-back local laws make purchasing theft protection and CDW (the Collision Damage Waver) from the rental agency itself mandatory, you do not have to buy this insurance. Don't let them force-feed you all these extra fees. These days, almost every credit card covers CDW if you use it to pay for your rental. Tell the rental agent that. Fax her a copy of your card agreement's fine print if you have to. Don't let the company bilk you out of money for insurance coverage you already have.

On a related note, make sure the rental agent quotes you an absolutely-everything price. Don't let her get away with leaving off the taxes and such, as they can be hugely significant. In my experience, the original price quoted-just for the rental, before they get into taxes (often, multiple taxes), drop-off fees for returning to a different location, mandatory insurance, and more-turns out to be roughly half of what the final price is. Yes, I said "roughly half." It's ridiculous.

Here's an example of just one of many such battles I've waged with various major car rental agencies over the years. It's a bit of a long story, so you can skip the details if you'd like. The summation is that I was quoted a rate of $404.74, my credit card was later charged $620.11, and we eventually compromised on $488.75, but only after much effort (and much time) on my part to prove they were overcharging me. Scandalous, no?

(I'm about to pick on Avis here, but just so you know: I've been left holding the bag on excessive fees from all the car rental Big Boys-Hertz, National, Budget-so this is a condemnation of the industry, not one company. Not that that should make them feel any better about it...)

I went to Italy last fall and rented a car for seven days from Avis. The "guaranteed rate" I was quoted was $30.57 per day, which added up to $213.99. As it was Italy, they forced me to take the usual CDW at $6.54 daily, plus theft-protection at $5.54 daily. The American rental agent claims to have never heard of this, but I assured her that they will not give you the car keys at the European office until you initial that box. They insist that it's the law. At any rate, that ended up being totaling $84.56. After much cajoling, I managed to get them to cough up the amount of the "one-way fee," how much it was going to cost me to pick up in Rome and drop off in Milan: $38.73.   (continued...)