do I need credit card for car hire
Discussion
varies by company, some will be a flat out no, some will take a debit card but unlike a credit card it's processed as an actual transaction rather than a hold, so you'll actually see the deposit amount get removed from your bank account and (eventually) refunded back - this can take weeks
I haven't used a credit card in decades but have one pretty much just for travelling deposits and the like
I haven't used a credit card in decades but have one pretty much just for travelling deposits and the like
petemurphy said:
just noticed this in small print - do companies accept visa? I don't have a credit card and haven't had one for 20 years
Last year in Pisa I watched a long line of people get bounced one-by-one by the car hire desk, because of lack of credit card. There was one firm that would allow debit cards and, yes, the rate was far greater.Get a credit card.
Depending on where you are going you may be able to find a local company that doesn't need a deposit and you can pay in cash. Plenty such companies in Cyprus, we've used two separate ones now on either side of the island with no complaints.
The cars won't be quite as recent as the big chains, but they'll get you around the island absolutely fine.
The cars won't be quite as recent as the big chains, but they'll get you around the island absolutely fine.
A good place for car hire recommendations we've found is Facebook. We're on a couple of Cyprus specific ones where we found the cash hire places, and there are normally a few recommendations.
There may be a similar group for Sardinia? Not sure if tax efficiency is quite so baked into the culture as it is in Cyprus, hence may not be so many cash only options - worth a look tho?
There may be a similar group for Sardinia? Not sure if tax efficiency is quite so baked into the culture as it is in Cyprus, hence may not be so many cash only options - worth a look tho?
bodhi said:
A good place for car hire recommendations we've found is Facebook. We're on a couple of Cyprus specific ones where we found the cash hire places, and there are normally a few recommendations.
There may be a similar group for Sardinia? Not sure if tax efficiency is quite so baked into the culture as it is in Cyprus, hence may not be so many cash only options - worth a look tho?
Thanks will try There may be a similar group for Sardinia? Not sure if tax efficiency is quite so baked into the culture as it is in Cyprus, hence may not be so many cash only options - worth a look tho?
petemurphy said:
Sardinia - haven t booked a car yet but a couple of websites give debit card as option although seems to be a lot of gotchas. Only need something simple
Whatever you do, do not use Noleggiare.Five years ago in Sardinia we had a brand new Vauxhall Mokka off them, delivery miles on it. We treated it like our own, delivered it back impeccably clean without a mark on it. We were distracted on return because we had our then toddler with us, so had to unload the pram plus all our luggage.
Whilst I was doing that, one of the women went round the back and deliberately scuffed one of the alloys with something abrasive. I know she did it because I had walked around not two minutes previous as we first arrived to find them spotless. I had a stand up row with the f
kers in the office where they feigned bad English (despite being perfect a few mins beforehand) and eventually ran out of time because we were late for our flight. I had to cough a ridiculous amount, most of which came back via my CDW policy, but I still lost my excess. I was absolutely livid and tweeted about it. Just last week, a random British tourist replied to my five year old tweet saying they pulled the same stunt on him last week.
If you have to go with these b
ds, do a detailed timestamped video recording of every aspect of the car on both collection and return. With the latter make sure a Noleggiare employee does not go anywhere near the car until you have done that. In hindsight I can see that their scam is to come out of the return office and appear helpful with assisting you to unload and when you are not looking they inflict some damage.
They also had the biggest b
d queue at the airport on collection (we had pre-booked), it was an altogether piss poor experience that has made me completely distrusting of the rental car industry ever since. Matt.. said:
Personally I use credit cards for almost all spend now but especially travel, and definitely rental cars. Rental cars can be problematic so the additional safety of a credit card is useful over and above the fact they place holds or temporarily take money.
Agreed. Twice I’ve had to charge back via CC.Gassing Station | Holidays & Travel | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff