Everyone knows that renting a car can be expensive. If you are going out of town or if your car has broken down, you can bet that you will be paying a pretty penny every day to rent a vehicle that you can use to get around. But if a regular car rental is expensive – you can imagine that the costs associated with a luxury car rental will be exorbitant. Why would you even want to rent a luxury car? Well, there are a number of reasons. For one, maybe you want a more comfortable way to get around or you may want to impress business colleagues or potential business partners with a high-class vehicle to get you to and from your meetings. Here are five ways to save money on a luxury car rental.
- Make sure to lose the extra amenities. The base daily rental fees will be expensive to begin with, but a lot of rental car companies, will add a number of convenience fees. For instance, if you notice that in the contract there is a fee for filling up the car with gas after you use it, simply remember to fill the car up yourself and then let the rental car company know there is a full tank.
- Don’t sign up for the insurance plan. Yes, your first instinct will be to sign up for the insurance plan, but most of the time, these insurance plans are extraneous and you could be paying money for nothing. In most cases, if you have an insurer for your primary car, you already have coverage for rentals. So, find out with your insurance company what your plan covers. You may be surprised to learn that you don’t need to pay an arm and a leg to have your rental car insured.
- Be sure not to go super high end. There is a big difference between a Cadillac and a Lamborghini. If you want to save money, you probably don’t want to go with the Lambo. In most cases, going with the lower rate vehicles will be the best way to get a deal on your luxury car rental. Higher end cars tend to have more fees too, like cleaning fees and drop off fees – a lot of car rental companies are very protective of their most expensive fleet.
- Have your boss pay for it. If you are renting a luxury vehicle for the sake of work, why not have the company pay for the rental? There is no reason why you should have to come out of pocket for a car rental, especially if you are on the clock or heading to meetings for your company. So, be sure to ask your company if you can include the rental into your expense account.
- Share the rate with friends. If you are going out of town with your friends, you may want to think of sharing the total cost of the rental. Most likely, it will go on one credit card, so you have to make sure that one person is okay with receiving cash for their cut. In the end, pitching in and sharing a luxury vehicle is the most economical method of renting a car.
