Surviving the Rental Car Experience

San Francisco has excellent public transportation, so you may not want to rent a car at all. Nonetheless, having a car at your disposal is a tremendous convenience, and you will need one if you want to take a trip across the Bay to Oakland or Berkeley, or if you want to take a day trip up to Napa Valley.

Renting a car is not without some hassles, so we have accumulated these tips that you might find useful:

1.Reserve early. The rental companies seem to run out of cars at the oddest times, so it is a good idea to reserve early to be sure you will have transportation. Better yet, you usually get a better deal if you reserve early. Here are some phone numbers of the major rental car companies:

Alamo (800) 327-9633
Avis (800) 331-1212
Budget (800) 527-0700
Dollar Rent-a-Car (800) 800-4000
Hertz (800) 654-3131
National (800) 227-7368

Or better yet, make your reservations online.

2. Check for damage. Look the car over carefully before you take it off the rental lot and make sure the staff marks down any damage on the vehicle. If you don’t do this, you may be held responsible for damage done before you had the car (especially if you do not observe tip number 6 below).

3. Refuel the car yourself. Do not return the car with less fuel than it had at pick-up time because the rental company will charge you ridiculous rates per gallon for the missing fuel.

4. Don’t top off the tank. This is second nature to us, so we often put every possible drop in the tank before we return it. Why bother? So long as the fuel gauge needle is somewhere near the full mark, the rental agency is unlikely to charge you for fuel (especially if you follow tip number 6).

5. Decline the insurance. The insurance premiums the rental companies will charge you are another rip-off. Many credit card companies include this insurance as part of your benefits if you rent with their cards. Check on this before you leave for San Francisco – be sure to check on both the liability and collision coverages.

6. Clean your trash out of the car. Why should you do someone else’s job? Because it will take less than a minute and it will endear you to the rental staff. Who cares? These people have the ability to hold you accountable for damage done to the car and they also can hit you with refueling charges. This can be especially critical if you really have damaged the car and/or did not fully refuel it.

7. Beware of drop off charges. If you drop off your car at a location other than where you picked it up, (which is not uncommon), you may be hit with a "drop-off" charge of as much as $70.

Good luck!

QUICK CLICKS
Check out Cheaptickets.com "Cheap of the Week" and save BIG on featured destinations!
Find 4-star hotels at 2 star prices at Hotwire.comand get up to 60% off retail rates!
Luggage Online carries top brands in luggage, briefcases and travel accessories at great prices.
Add one of these once-in-a-lifetime vacation experiences, including skydiving, helicopter rides, hot air ballooning and much more, to your San Francisco trip -- you'll be glad you did!