How to Avoid Paying Extra Car Rental Fees When You’re Under 25
When you are over 24 years old, you have limitless possibilities in life – at least when it comes to renting a car. But if you’re a young driver, you’d better straddle the idea of renting an old minivan with crazy additional fees.
Smarter Travel recently addressed the huge car rental premiums you have to deal with when you’re under 25. The reason for the extra fees is simple: young people are considered the riskiest drivers and car rental companies want to protect themselves from them. this risk through the imposition of fees, restrictions and even restrictions on certain types of vehicles for young drivers. No Porsche for you!
These limits also depend on the state in which you live. You may have trouble renting a car if you are under 21, although states such as New York and Michigan are an exception. (You can rent a car at 18 in both of these locations.) And if you’re under 18, you have several options, if any.
For those between the ages of 18 and 25, paying young tenant rent can be avoided if you rent through certain companies or through your employer.
Rent from Hertz
If you want to avoid the additional charge for under 25 years of age, Hertz is allowing a young renter fee waiver in its new partnership with AAA. This removes its standard $ 30 daily fee for drivers between the ages of 20 and 25, although you will be limited to certain types of vehicles.
If you haven’t joined AAA yet, it might be worth joining in the long term as well. “AAA membership is pretty cheap (from about $ 50 a year depending on where you live) and offers many other benefits and savings, so it’s not difficult for anyone under 25.” – Chris Luth, Chief of Operations in Autoslash , the email said.
To receive a fee waiver, you will need to contact AAA to obtain a code and apply it to your Hertz rental if you book online.
Book through your employer
If you are new to the workforce, you may want to avoid paying a young renter through your employer if it is a larger organization. Companies often negotiate corporate rates that cancel these fees. Even if they haven’t, the negotiated rate through your employer will still be cheaper than you would probably have booked otherwise.
Use a car sharing app
Car sharing apps like Zipcar allow drivers 21 years of age (and up to 18 in some states) to rent their cars without the young renter’s commission, but you have to factor in the costs. Zipcar will charge a registration fee as well as a monthly or annual membership fee in excess of the actual rent. However, they also offer a student discount that can lower some of these costs.
You may find Zipcar the best solution for really short term rentals, such as one to two hour rentals where you might be charged an hourly rate compared to the daily rate at a traditional car rental agency; The $ 25 Zipcar application fee plus the standard $ 7 monthly membership fee and two $ 10 hours for each particularly cheap car can be a lot cheaper than renting a day car through Hertz or Enterprise. (You can also cancel your Zipcar membership at any time.)
Rent through USAA
As we mentioned earlier , if you are an active or retired member of the service or a child, you can also claim the waiver from four different rental agencies (such as Hertz and Budget) through the USAA. You can rent directly through the organization’s website and find other travel discounts.
Tenant insurance may not be needed
If you want to save a little more money, renter insurance isn’t always necessary – your existing auto insurance may already cover car rentals (at least in the US), Lut said. Be sure to check if your policy includes third party liability and full liability for collision and damage so that you are protected in the event of an accident. If you are abroad , check to see if your auto insurance already covers; otherwise, your credit card may provide you with free coverage.