Holiday car rental more costly than before

Those visiting Mallorca will pay an average of £247 (across all car categories) for a week’s car hire, compared with £142 last year and £93 in 2008. Car hire companies are struggling to access credit which means they are unable to expand their fleets or replace old vehicles. This results in a lack of supply and increasing prices for customers.

Extra charges, often hidden in the small print, can also push your final bill dramatically higher than the initial quote. Things to look out for include:

Petrol: Car hire companies will offer one of the following on petrol use - to accept the car with a full tank and return it full, to buy a full tank of petrol and return it empty, or to pay for what is used during the rental period. Some companies insist on filling up the tank themselves and charging as much as 40 per cent more than pump prices.

Petrol vs. Diesel: Some companies add an extra daily charge if you choose a diesel over a petrol car, seemingly on the grounds that you pay a little less for diesel at the pump and you get greater fuel efficiency from a diesel. The companies that work on this basis feel that they are entitled to share in some of your savings so it is up to you to decide if the distances you will be travelling make the overall saving worth it.

Additional drivers: Some companies will charge extra for additional drivers, one company we asked charged €20 for an extra driver over the person who booked the vehicle. Our Car Finder service conditions allows a 2nd driver included and then €9 for each extra driver after that.

Car seats for children: Some companies charge 500% more than others for the hire of child car seats. One seat could cost as much as £60 a week. An option is to bring your own. Most airlines allow passengers to carry child seats for free. Ryanair charges £20 return, which could still be significantly cheaper than renting one abroad. You can also buy inflatable, easily packable toddler seats for about £25 +P&P, see http://www.bubblebum.co.uk/.

As a guideline our Car Finder service states the following: 'Booster seat: €3 per day, maximum €36 includes 16% tax - on request; child toddler seat: €3 per day, maximum €36 includes 16% tax - on request; infant child seat: €3 per day maximum €36 includes 16% tax - on request. special equipment/optional extras may be requested at the time of booking, but they are not included in the rental price. They are paid in the local currency at the rental desk.'

The hefty ‘excess waiver’: Most car hire includes some insurance but it often carries a hefty excess which means that you could still be liable for costs that can run to hundreds of pounds should the car be damaged whilst in your care. When you arrive to pick up your vehicle, the company will invariably encourage you to pay for a top-up insurance policy to reduce the excess to zero. For example, some companies sell excess waiver insurance for as much as £10 a day. However, standalone insurance products sold by specialist insurers, can be a much cheaper option. Carhireinsurance.com, for example, charges £23.94 for a week’s cover, or £39.99 for an annual product. You must also check what is covered by the “excess insurance” policies.

Again, our Car Finder service offers a very 'open' approach to its pricing - take a look in the 'Rate Details' for each result but in general we found many examples where there was 'No Excess' included in the price of the rental when it came to the waiver, with the exception of tyres, windows and undercarriage unless you opt for extra cover.

A good idea is to try and take a photo before and after using the vehicle. This way you can help ensure you won’t get any surprise charges on your credit card for damage you didn’t cause by having some proof of the condition of the vehicle when you received it - but make sure the registration plate shows in any images you take otherwise it is difficult to prove it is the right vehicle.

Booking in advance is also another way of reducing the overall cost involved, a lot of companies will advertise specials if you’re booking in advance and for a period of more than three days.

Generally, car hire prices will be less with rental companies which are not based at the airport but we found that there is a trade-off with convenience. Many non-airport companies will drop off the car for you at the airport, or at your hotel, and there are some companies that offer a shuttle service to the rental park; but when you are in a rush on departure day the convenience of arriving last minute at the airport still counts for a lot.

Our general impression was that cars from the airport companies tended to be in better condition and have newer models (other than specialist rentals and luxury cars) than the non-airport operators - a definite correlation between what you pay and what you get, although to offer a competitive 'headline' rate they were amongst the worst offenders for hidden charges.

As a result of this article, we did some cross-checking against other car rental companies in Mallorca, and we were pleased to find that our Car Finder service genuinely offered very competitive rates and an open pricing policy. We are therefore confident to recommend it for your holiday rental.