A Cheap One Way Car Rental
It always seems to be so much more costly whenever you have to rent a car or a vehicle to travel only one direction. This may be because you are moving, traveling to an airport to take a plane or even for some type of a business trip. Smaller discount car rental services that only have one or two locations tend not to offer any type of one way car rental, much less a cheap or low cost service. One way car rental programs are difficult for smaller companies to offer since the vehicles need to be brought back to the main location, requiring an additional expense for the company. Typically these types of companies charge a very hefty drop fee, which is basically charging the customer for at least a part of the cost to hire someone to bring back the vehicle.
To avoid these drop charges there are several strategies that consumers should consider. The first and most common option is to stick with a discount car rental company, however select one that has an office in both the location you are in and at your destination location. Most car rental deals , especially those to airports or major transportation hubs will include no additional cost for a one way car rental, provided the end of the rental has the vehicle located at the transportation hub. This is because it is easy and extremely likely that the vehicle can be very shortly rented out to another traveler.
Another option for car rental deals , even for one way transportation, is to use points or rewards earned through credit cards. Many of the major credit cards offer some type of discount or point system that can be applied to car rentals, so even if you do end up paying a slight fee it is absorbed by your rewards points and results in no additional out of pocket expense. If you aren’t sure if your credit card company offers points, check with the car rental service or the card company itself. Also, keep in mind that your credit card may also provide additional insurance on your rental, meaning you don’t have to use the car company’s insurance policy.
Cheap one way car rentals are also possible by booking your travel during the off season or at least during the week and not over the weekend. When there are vehicles on the rental lot the agencies are typically more willing to negotiate on dropping charges or modifying the contract to ensure that the vehicle is rented rather than sitting idle. Always take the time to phone around and find out what the various car rental companies are offering with regards to low or discount rates, specials or even weekly features and don’t be worried about sharing this information with the competition. Some of the cheap one way car rentals will definitely match or beat a competitor’s price, however as the customer you have to know what the going rate is within your market.
Finally check on the internet as many of the national car rental companies offer online specials. They may have points or rewards programs themselves for those that rent vehicles frequently. These programs can result in deep discounts, waiving of various fees and even other features such as upgrades to other types of vehicles for the same price, even with one way rentals. Since some of these upgrades can save a lot of money and result in a much more comfortable vehicle, it is well worth considering joining a program if you do rent vehicles on a frequent basis.