There are country-specific differences when it comes to rental cars. However, the following tips apply to Pakistan:
Price comparison portals are always cheaper!
Always book through price
comparison sites. From there, you will usually be redirected to the car rental
company website, but you will get better conditions (you can often see the
discount code in the URL). That can be a better price, and often better rental
conditions are included.
Weekend: Friday 12 p.m. to Monday 9 a.m.
Car rental companies do most of
the week's business with corporate customers. Accordingly, the parking spaces
are often full on weekends. That is why particularly favorable weekend rates
are offered. However, these do not only apply on Saturdays and Sundays. You can
pick up the car on Friday at 12:00 p.m. and bring it back on Monday at 9:00
a.m. for the same price. You only have to enter this data when renting.
The myth of a cheap upgrade
When you pick up the car, don't
let yourself be talked into a chargeable upgrade unnecessarily. Be prepared and
check the landlord's website again before picking up what the next higher
category costs. If possible, an inconspicuous view of the landlord's parking
lot is also helpful. Check whether the category you have booked is in the yard
at all. If the landlord offers you an upgrade, it is usually because your
renting category is overbooked. The landlord must therefore offer an upgrade
for individual customers. It doesn't have to be you, though.
Negotiate! If you are offered an
upgrade for 20 euros, ask if it can also be cheaper. A "hmmm, 10 $ is my
pain threshold" at the right time helps.
Keep a cool head! The great
convertible upgrade can turn out to be more expensive than on the website. And
if the convertible is available, it will probably be because the weather is
bad.
The airport is always more expensive
The stations at the airport
always have the largest selection, but a service fee is always added for rental
and return at the airport. If you have the option of taking public transport to
the city center from the airport and there is also a station there, then you
can save money.
Rent countercyclical
The fun cars are expensive at the
weekend. Classic representative cars (e.g., BMW 3-series and 5-series station)
during the week.
If you have flexible schedules,
you can save a lot of money by taking advantage of this knowledge.
Reservation is not guaranteed
A rental car is like flying or
staying in a hotel. You cannot rely 100% on a booking. Overbook car rental
companies. So more rental car contracts are being concluded than there are cars
available at all. Most of the time, this works because many tenants do not come
or cancel early. But sometimes, it just doesn't work, and then the discussion
starts at the rental car counter.
Important: The person
behind the switch sits on the longer lever! Insults and self-importance are
useless. You should pay for the car when you rent it. Then the landlord can
still withdraw from the contract, but this happens less often with these
contracts than with the reservations that have not yet been paid.
If no option to pay directly is
offered when renting, this can indicate that the booking situation is already
tense.
Swap cars possible
If you want to rent a Business
Class plane, but the rental company only has a 5 Series BMW, you can easily
swap the car at another station of the same rental company. Always within the
booked category. In this case, ask when you rent whether the car you want is
available at another station. Usually, the car can be reserved for you via the
small official channel.
The navigation system is usually built-in
With the small rental car
categories, you can usually book a navigation system at the same time. That
then costs 50-80 $ per day. As experience has demonstrated this option, you can
save yourself because most rental cars have a built-in navigation system
anyway. If you gamble too high, you can still use the navigation system on your
mobile phone.
Rental car companies remember everything
If you upgrade often, you'll be
more likely to pay more than less to upgrade the next time you rent. This is
because the computer system in the background optimizes the offers based on
your customer profile. However, this is an optimization for the landlord and
not for you. So be prepared and only take cheap upgrades.
If you don't require a
reservation any longer, you can cancel it directly on the website. However, even
if you do not need this for most contracts, customers who cancel correctly are
treated better (see point 6).
Insurance companies are money traps
The employees of the car rental
companies are trained to offer you various additional services. It is not uncommon
for people to work with fear. "Are you driving in the auto car? Wouldn't
you prefer to take out additional rockfall insurance?" or "You know
that you have a deductible of 1,500 $ with this insurance? I can also offer you one for 500 $."
Here too: keep calm. You have no
time pressure. Ideally, you have thought about it in advance. Do you need additional
rockfall insurance for 75 $a day, or do you take the risk and pay for a new
windscreen if the worst comes to the worst?
In all honesty: I've fallen for
this trick umpteen times and bought insurance that I didn't need. Most of the
time, I was pressed for time. The important thing is to learn from the mistake
and not be put under pressure the next time.
Bonus tip: 1 hour of goodwill upon return
Most car rental companies offer
an hour of goodwill when you return the car. So if you have booked by 3:00
p.m., it is usually enough to bring the car back at 3:59 p.m. In addition, it
quickly becomes expensive.
A car rental service is best
because it makes your journey easy. If you need a car for your destination,
Carlay Car Rental provides you rent a
car in Islamabad.
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