Discounted car rentals
All too often, car rental offices may overbook their available vehicles or are unable to locate your reservation. The following tips will assist you if this happens to you:
- Before you depart from home, make sure you have your confirmation number so that you can provide it to the car rental agent. It will be listed on your itinerary.
- If the rental company is unable to fulfill your confirmation, they are obligated to assist you in finding a vehicle through another car rental company.
- If they do not have the size of vehicle that has been confirmed for you, they are obligated to provide you with an upgrade, free of charge.
- If the car rental company is only able to provide you with a smaller vehicle than you confirmed, make sure that they adjust your rate or compensate you in some way, such as with a free rental day.
- Contact your National Travel agent for further assistance.
Did You Know?
- Many major cities will add surcharges to your confirmed rental rate.
- Many car rental counters have access to Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) records. You could be denied a vehicle at the counter if you have two or more moving violations in the past two years, or one Driving Under the Influence (DUI) citation within the past three years.
- Car rental rates are expected to continually increase. As a result, you can expect that rental agencies will keep their vehicles longer and with higher mileage.
- Car rental agencies may charge penalties for cancellations of rentals on premium vehicles.
- National Travel has negotiated discounts with several car rental agencies. We are pleased to extend these discounts to all of our customers. Please contact your National Travel agent.
- Car rental insurance can cost more than $15 per day in addition to the daily rate. Be sure to check with your auto insurance company as your personal policy may cover you when driving rental vehicles. Also, many major credit card companies will cover your insurance, so be sure to ask.
Safety Tips
- When in line at the counter, never allow anything to distract you from your possessions. As soon as you enter the car, lock your doors and keep them locked.
- Keep your windows closed while driving in slow moving traffic.
- Keep valuables, such as your briefcase or purse, out of sight as someone could smash your window and steal them.
- If you have a flat tire, call for assistance or drive to a safe location to replace it, even if you might ruin the tire or wheel.
- If you are bumped by another vehicle, don't stop on the highway. Signal the other driver to follow you to a safe, populated area or police station before getting out of your car.
Express Check-In Saves Time
Enroll with your favorite car rental company. Having a profile with them will allow you to bypass the counter and get on with your business without delay.
The information above is provided as a service and any details and/or industry rules and regulations are subject to change at any time. Please contact your friendly National Travel agent with any questions.
