Tips on Car Hire in France

MICKEYG

Heading to France for two weeks in July. There are a lot of sites out there but it is very confusing as they are often not clear on what the insurance cover is and what the excess is. Has anyone rented there and if so any tips? Thanks in advance.

skibum

Don't buy the excess insurance from the hire company, it will work out very expensive, we use these guys http://www.axacarhireexcess.ie/ there are plenty of insurance companies that offer these.

These policies cover pretty much everything, punctures, damage to glass etc, well worth it

Also get a satnav, makes life a lot easier.

Enjoy your holiday

peckerhead

I've found www.argusrentals.com very good; they're a Dublin-based company who search all the local providers for the best deal, and their customer service is top-notch. I made a mistake in my booking once and they sorted it out very pleasantly over the phone in 5 minutes.

No other connection than as a satisfied customer.

undo

I tend to use brokers such as autoeurope.com and economycarrentals.com. The first one has rates with and without extra insurance that brings down the excess to €0. The second one always includes the insurance, so €0 excess.

Remember though that with these brokers and with places such as AXA Car Hire Excess, you have two contracts: One with the car rental company, with an excess of say €750, and another one with an insurance company that promises to pay those €750 in case of an accident - but only if you follow their rules to the letter! So make sure to read the rules before you go. For example, if you have even the tiniest of accidents, you are most likely asked to get a police report. You might not normally do this. But if you want the insurance to cover you, you have to.

As for sat navs: Very useful indeed, I never leave the house without one. But do not rent one from the car hire company. It is one of those extras that will cost almost as much as the car itself. Just buy an entry-level model that has European maps before you set out. You can get them for €50 easily. And if you buy any Garmin model, you can install OpenStreetMap maps - free worldwide maps, free upgrades for life .

WastedSpace

economycarrentals.com for your car hire and icarhireinsurance.com for your insurance is a pretty cheap combination