Large numbers of Irish holidaymakers getting stung by unexpected car rental charges

Many get talked into unnecessary insurance or face ‘hard sell’ at desk

Holidaymakers have been warned about the pitfalls of car hire after a survey showed large numbers had charges added to their bill they were not expecting

Charlie Weston

Holidaymakers have been warned about the pitfalls of car hire after a survey showed large numbers had unexpected charges added to their bills.

Research also found that almost one in five found damage on a hire car that was not marked on the checkout sheet at pick-up.

The survey, commissioned by ­CarHireExcess.ie, also found a similar proportion of those hiring a car had been talked into buying extra insurance at the desk when they picked it up.

Results from the survey have prompted a call for people hiring a car to do their homework before they travel.

This is to avoid feeling the pressure of the “hard sell” at the pick-up desk.

The survey of more than 500 people, carried out by Opinium on behalf of CarHireExcess.ie, also showed 16pc of respondents had experienced a “hard sell” from agents at a rental desk.

This is typically where agents try to persuade the holidaymakers to take a larger and more expensive car for hire.

One in six renters were told by a sales agent they had to buy the excess protection cover from the rental company.

Excess insurance, also known as excess waiver insurance and car-hire excess insurance, is an optional insurance policy that protects you against any excess charges you may incur in the event of your hire car being damaged or stolen.

An excess is the value of the claim that has to be borne by the policyholder themselves before the insurer will cover the cost of the damage or loss.

One-in-six car renters did not have a credit card with them when hiring a car, so had to buy the rental company’s excess insurance.

The survey found that 17pc of respondents had charges they were not expecting added to their bill.

Thirteen per cent said the rental company told them it wasn’t necessary to note down minor damage on the check-out sheet. This is in contrast to the advice of personal finance experts, who say people hiring a car should note down and photograph any damage to the vehicle as soon as they get the keys to it, and show the damage to the sales agent.

Nineteen per cent of respondents to the survey found damage on a hire car that was not marked on the checkout sheet at pick-up.

Meanwhile, 21pc said they were concerned that a rental company would charge them for damage to a hire car that they were not responsible for, the survey found.

CarHireExcess.ie’s Christian Bennett advised holidaymakers not to pay more than they have to for car hire excess insurance.

Rental companies offer damage waivers to cover excess amounts if a hire car is damaged. The most common types of these are super damage waiver and tyre and windscreen cover.

A recent study put the average combined cost of these waivers at more than €220.

However, savings can be made by buying a stand-alone car hire excess reimbursement policy from a specialist insurance provider.

Mr Bennett said a week’s protection can start from less than €25 and includes cover for damage and theft, as well as tyre and windscreen cover.