Getting to grips with rental charges

HELPDESK:Answering all your motoring queries

From JH Gibson, Co Kilkenny: Following on from your response to a reader charged for excessive repairs to a rental car, may I offer some advice based on my daughter's personal experience. You will need a digital camera, or any camera that automatically produces a time/date watermark on images. Take some photographs of the exterior of the car at the point of collection, covering all areas and have a rental firm representative in at least one of them.

When returning the car repeat the process, again including the rep from the rental company. If there is any damage, record the full details very carefully with greatest emphasis on the damaged area(s).

My daughter got a bill for $800 from a rental company after a vacation in Mexico, but once she e-mailed the images showing no change between "before and after", she got an immediate and full apology and a cheque for $200.

From James Wrynn: I refer to your recommendation on taking our cover for the "excess" on car rentals. Last month I was in France and I rented an Audi A3 (in advance) for seven days at a cost of €260. When I went to collect the car, the rental office informed me they were deducting the excess of €1,300 from my credit card and would return it if car came back intact. I panicked and agreed to pay extra insurance of €18.80 per day plus VAT of 19.6 per cent.

So, I had paid the equivalent of an annual premium (€18.80 by 365) of €6,898 plus VAT of €1,303, for a risk of €1,300.

Next week I am going to Spain. The cost of rental for five days is €200. Excess insurance is €6.20 per day, annualised at €2,263 for a risk this time of €300.

From T Kirwan, Dún Laoghaire: Like your reader of July 30th, we are just back from Italy had a very large excess of €2,000 on a Fiat Ulyses seven-seater. We were offered "Super Insurance Cover" by Hertz (in addition to CDW) at the rate of €27 per day to cover this excess.

[ www.insurance4carhire.com ]

While I wholeheartedly agree that those excess cover charges are ridiculously excessive when annualised, you need to consider the potential risk you face financially if there is any damage while you are on your holiday.

The excess for Mr Wrynn was €1,300, and cover for this came to €157.43 including tax. That's a crazy price to pay. However, if there is any damage to the car, I'm sure the bill from the rental firm will come to more than €157. It's really about weighing up the risks.

The good news, as Mr Kirwan points out, is that there are several firms offering independent insurance for the excess.

These cover the driver rather than the car, so the rental firm will still seek the excess from your credit card, but you then seek recompense for this expense from these insurers.

There is one more point to be made about driving holidays: if you are taking your own car, be sure to check with your insurance firm that you are fully covered while abroad.

It's not automatically the case, and some insurers will only cover you on third-party while driving on the Continent.

From DL: I've heard several rumours about car dealers in financial trouble. I recently bought a new car from one such dealer. What will this mean for my warranty if the dealer goes out of business?

If the car is new, your warranty is with the local distributor and not the dealership so, if the worst does happen, you will be covered when you go to another dealer for that brand. It's the same with car finance: invariably that is operated through a bank or lending institution and the dealership only organised the financing as a middleman.