What's Included - Florida and US Car Hire FAQ
return to main FAQ page - Are there any hidden costs?
- What is a Customer Facility Charge (CFC), and is it included?
- What is UMP Insurance / HSF? Is this included?
- What is SLI Insurance? Is it included?
- What is CDW / LDW Insurance? Is this included?
- Do your rates include all the taxes?
- Do your rates include the various surcharges?
- Is amendment and cancellation cover included?
- Is Insurance Excess Waiver Included?
- Is Personal Insurance included?
- What is the California Tourist Tax?
- Is free 24 hour roadside assistance included?
- Are any items NOT included in the car insurance?
- Is there a mileage limit?
Are there any hidden costs?
No. Prices charged here are absolutely all inclusive prices. You will not be required to pay for any extras, with the exception of baby car seats and an underage surcharge if applicable (See above). The only extras are those options you choose at the time of collection, and are optional, such as Sat Nav, Child Seats, Personal Insurance, optional extended road side assistancxe, car upgrades.
Note, when you collect your car, you will sign a rental agreement. There is a clear section showing any charges due. Before you sign, you must ensure that you are not signing for any items you have not agreed to. Once you sign and agree to this, there is no way to refund any charges.
Note: Rentals collecting from California locations only, there is a "California Tourism Surcharge" levied on collection of the car. This is a small fee amounting to 2.5% of the rental cost of the car.
What is a Customer Facility Charge (CFC), and is it included?
Customer facility charges are now built in to our rates within the USA with
the exception of collections from Orlando International Airport (MCO)**. Please see here for further details.
** Orlando International Airport (MCO) has
just announced it is imposing a new Airport Customer Facility Charge starting on
1st October 2008.
This means customers collecting cars (with all on-site rental companies, booked
through any agent or directly with the rental company) from
the airport from 1st October 2008 onwards will be charged the fee.
This does not apply to Thrifty as their desk is off-site.
The fee is $2.50 per day, up to a maximum of $12.50 total. So for rentals of
over 5 days the fee will not exceed $12.50
This is beyond the control of the car rental companies, as they have had it
imposed on them by the Airport, so are simply collecting the fee and passing it
to the airport authority. Note, if you are collecting prior to October 1st 2008 you can ignore the note on your voucher that says this is payable.
What is UMP Insurance / HSF? Is this included?
UMP stands for Uninsured / Underinsured Motorist Protection and is included in our rates. This covers you in the event an unisured motorist causes damage to your vehicle.
HSF stands for Homeland Security Fee and is a charge made usually at airport locations and contributes to the costs involved with airport security and border control. This is included in our rates as standard.
What is SLI Insurance? Is it included?
- SLI stands for Supplemental Liability Insurance
and is included in our rates. This is equivalent to '3rd Party' insurance and
covers you in the event you cause injury to a 3rd party, or damage to their
property.
What is CDW / LDW Insurance? Is this included?
- CDW (Collision Damage Waiver) which also
incorporates LDW (Loss Damage Waiver) is included in
our rates. This covers you for damage to the car or loss (theft) of the car.
Do your rates include all the taxes?
- Yes, all the taxes are included in our rates.
Do your rates include the various surcharges?
Is amendment and cancellation cover included?
- Yes, unlike a lot of other companies, our price as quoted includes cancellation and amendment cover.
Cancellation Cover means that if you cancel your booking and inform us prior to 48 hours before your rental commences then you are entitled to a full refund. Note, in some cases, refunds may not be made until approx 2-6 weeks after your booked return date depending on how long it takes the rental company to provide us with the appropriate paperwork. In most cases however, refunds are made shortly after the cancellation request has been made.
Amendment protection means that if you make a change to your booking (times, date, car type, name etc) then you will not be charged any admin or amendment fees. You are allowed an unlimited number of amendments. Many other companies chaged around £25 per amendment, or add on an extra fee at the time of payment for amendment protection. Bear in mind approx 50% of all bookings are amended in some way before the car is collection, so this is particularly important. Occasionally it may not be possible to make an amendment such as amendments made just a few hours before a rental comences, or if you request an amendment over the weekend and your rental is due to commence on the Monday. We will always do our best to accommodate late amendment requests.
Is Insurance Excess Waiver Included?
- Our price includes Insurance Excess Waiver in the USA with Dollar, Budget, Thrifty, Alamo and U-Save other than for collections from New York and Alaska. This means that in the event of damage or loss of the car, or to 3rd parties or their property, then you are completely covered with nothing to pay towards to cost.
Is Personal Insurance included?
No, this is only required if you have no travel insurance (which is very unwise!). This is the only insurance not included in our rates since most customers have travel insurance that includes personal cover.
If you do not have travel insurance then you can opt to purchase Personal Protection cover when you collect the car. This option will be clearly stated on the paperwork you complete with the rental company, and the associated costs will be listed. Typically, personal insurance is around $5 - $10 per day.
What is the California Tourist Tax?
Since 1st April 2007, rentals commencing from California locations only, there is a "California Tourism Surcharge" levied on collection of the car.
This is a small fee amounting to 2.5% of the rental cost of the car.
Is free 24 hour roadside assistance included?
Free 24 hour roadside assistance is included with all car types. There
are some exceptions to the cover where you may be expected to pay a call-out fee
as follows:
- Running out of fuel
- Locking yourself out of the car
- Windscreen replacement
- Tyre Replacement
- Key Replacement
- Flat Battery
More often than not the rental company will not charge you for call-outs for
some of the above, although Alamo and Dollar offer (a non-compulsory) 'Roadside Service
Plan' payable on collection of your car at approx $6 per day. Note, you are not
required to accept this service if offered, and you can not claim back
the fee charged if during your rental you do not use the Service Plan.
Are any items NOT included in the car insurance?
In line with all rental companies, none of the rental companies cover the following items, so you would need to
cover these costs yourself:
- Flat Battery (if you leave your lights on - OK if faulty battery)
- Damage caused by putting the wrong fuel type in the car (e.g. putting
diesel in a petrol car)
- Broken Windows
- Tyre replacement (e.g. hitting a curb. Covered if worn)
- Key replacement if you loose the key
- Roadside assistance if you lock yourself out of the car
- Damage to underside of vehicle if you are found to be driving 'off-road'
which is not permitted
- Damage to the roof of the car if you place goods on the roof
- Damage to the interior (caused by spilling drinks, cigarette burns in
seats etc)
In actual fact, in many cases the rental companies will not charge you for
the above but that is at their discretion. Costs incurred by the above may be
claimed back from your travel insurance but ensure all receipts are retained.
Is there a mileage limit?
All the contracts we have allow unlimited mileage at no extra cost. The only exception is if you hire a car with collection in Canada, then drive over the border in to the USA, there is a daily limit of 200km per day whilst driving the Canadian car in the USA.
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