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How to find a cheap car hire?

Each year more and more travellers opt for a car hire for their vacations, practicality (moving) and for business. When travelling, hiring a car guarantees more freedom once you get there to be able to venture off the beaten path and to not be too concerned about luggage weight and size. Freedom, in fact, is so important to travellers these days… If this type of travel seems exciting, take a look at these recommendations for finding a cheap car hire and what you need to know before you can hire a car. Once you find your car hire deal, hit the road and forget the fastest route, be spontaneous and don’t look back!

The ABC’s of car hire

Legal age

The legal age required for car hires vary depending on the country. In the UK and in most of the world in general, you have to be at least 21 years old to hire a care. If you are younger than this someone older must be the driver. The exception to this is in the following countries: USA (18 years of age), Italy (19 years of age) and Austria (19 years of age). Some countries have even more strict rules: Israel (24 years of age) and Ireland (25 years of age). For certain types of vehicles (utility, large cars, luxury cars) you have to be older than 25 in all cases. Few countries in the world have a rule about minimum driving experience, from the moment you have your driver’s licence you can rent a car if you meet all of the agent’s other requirements.

Required documents & insurance

Car hires usually require supplying many documents: it is a guarantee for the company and for you as well, in case of accident. The required documents always include minimum an identity card or passport and the driver’s licence of the person who will operate the vehicle. Some companies also require proof of address and telephone number, always bring these types of documents just in case. It is also possibly that they will ask for a local contact number. All of these documents are shown before they hand over the keys. They will also ask for a bank card or major credit card.

Rental period

Certain countries have a minimum rental period (Croatia, Israel and Norway for example). The maximum rental period is usually 30 days (UK, France, Australia…), in other countries it is up to 60 days.

Insurance

Liability insurance is usually included in the price of the care hire. To be even safer, accept the complimentary insurance offered by the car hire company. It covers the cost of repairing the vehicle in case of a problem out of your control (Loss Damage Waiver), the clause must indicate the maximum amount, beyond which it no longer takes responsibility for the charges. If you do not wish to accept the insurance, make sure to check the amount of the deductible which is usually more than £8 000. You will also be protected against theft.

Routes

In the majority of cases, you are free to choose your routes and cross borders. Always check before with the car hire company though what the conditions are if you have plans to leave the country in their vehicle.

Accepting and returning the vehicle

As soon as you go to find your hired car in the car park, always check its present condition while a company agent is present, if possible. Look at the general condition of the car in the same way you would when renting an apartment. The important things to look at are:

• Body
• Tires
• Mirrors
• Condition of the seats
• Front and rear lights
• Mileage (must be the same as what is written in the contract)

If you encounter a problem, report it or write it in the car hire contract.

Return the vehicle during office hours. The most important thing to remember is to return the vehicle with the same amount of gas as when you took it. If you forget, the company will charge you the missing litres at a fixed price, usually a lot higher than the standard at gas stations. Always return the vehicle at the agreed time; if you are late, the company has the right to charge you a half-day or a full day more.

Checklist to hire a car at the best price

Use a car hire search engine

Imagine how much time you can save by comparing numerous car hire sites on one single site. You can be sure that on liligo.com you can compare the most popular car hire companies in one click. Enter the name of the city from where you would like to hire a car and in a few seconds our search engine gathers dozens of car reservation sites where you will find the cheapest rates. After finding the right company and price, we will redirect you directly to their site to finish the reservation. In certain cases you will be contacted directly from the car hire company afterwards. You will not only save time, by only having to visit two sites instead of a dozen, but money as well. You will certainly find the cheapest car hires on the web with liligo.com as we search the biggest car hire companies (car hires Avis, car hires Europcar, car hires Budget…), independent car hire companies as well as the low cost car hire specialists.

Reserve on-line

Car hire agencies usually offer the lowest prices if you choose to book on-line. This is double savings if you find them through liligo.com!

Reserve in advance

The best rates for car hires are generally found by reserving in advance, the more time the better. You will be offered the base-price and have a better chance of getting the car you want (brand, category, etc.). If you can, try not to hire a car during peak vacation times or weekends to get the lowest prices.

Location

If you rent a car from the airport, expect to pay a little more. Also note that with car hire chains, the prices can differ from agent to agent, depending on the availability of vehicles.

Vehicle class

If you don’t plan on covering miles upon miles, you will pay less with the “limited mileage” option instead of the “unlimited mileage”. The cheapest vehicle class is type A (Fiat Punto 1.2, Ford Focus) but also note that sometimes there is little price difference between type A, B and C (but there is a huge space difference). Always look at the different types of offers for a car one class bigger, for a few pounds more, you could rent a much more comfortable vehicle.

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