rapid travel chai: rental car savings at frequent travelers university seattle 2014

Rental Car Savings

Stefan KrasowskiRapid Travel Chai

©Stefan Krasowski, All Rights Reserved

What is Your Priority?

Leisure?

Business?

Domestic?

International?


My Rental Car Experience

Rented cars weekly for 2 years of NY-Atlanta commute

Lots of short US trips for 1-2 people

International rentals in many countries

Fender benders in US

Breakdown in Bulgaria

Smash and grab in Toronto

Wife threatening divorce in Saudi Arabia


Itinerary

Rental Agencies

Portals

Hotwire and Priceline

More Deals

Extras and How to Avoid Them

International

Strategy


Goal Setting

Reserving:You can spend a lot of time to save a little money

Renting:You can save a little money to have a lot of aggravation

Set goals and stick to them!


Rental Car Tradeoff Hypothetical

When to not save $10:

Orlando, FL car rental

Spring break

Huge lines at counter

Eye-rolling spouse

Screaming children

When to save $10:

Moline, IL car rental

Always off-peak

No lines

No spouse

No children


Rental Agencies


Alamo Insiders for skip the line and free additional driver

No rewards program

Few big miles and points promos

Alamo


Avis Preferred – skip the line

Avis First – 12 rentals/35 days or Chase Ink; weekend certs

Avis President’s & Chairman’s – invitation only

Double-dip with Avis Corporate Rewards

Lots of miles & points promos:

SAS & Virgin Atlantic 1,000 miles for 1-day rental

Club Carlson 9000 points for 3-day rental

Avis


Lots of international locations

RapidRez profile + FastBreak to skip the line

Technically need 3 rentals/year to keep FastBreak

No rewards program

Budget


Dollar Express/Thrifty Blue Chip to skip the line

Enroll for rewards: 16 rental days = 1 free day

Few big miles and points promos

Watch for scammy fees like huge daily toll charges

Dollar/Thrifty


Tons of US neighborhood locations

Enterprise Plus:Stingy, complicated rewards program

Must register, then separately opt in for rewards

Can credit National rentals to Enterprise

No miles and points promos

Enterprise


Gold Plus Rewards - earn and redeem in many countries

Five Star/President’s Cirlce = 7/20 rentals per year

Platinum membership fee $1,200-$1,500 per year

Amex Platinum – 4-hour grace period (must use CDP & pay)

Amex Open Business – 3-10% discount or 1-4 points bonus

Hertz


Emerald Club:

1 rental = 1 credit (8 day rental = 2 credits, 12 = 3, etc)

Free days are 7/6/5 credits depending on elite status

Credit Enterprise rentals to National

Regular 1-2-Free promo is generous

Exec Exec Elite 12 rentals or 25 days or Amex Platinum

Exec Elite 40 rentals or 80 days

Emerald Club Aisle – must reserve midsize or higher

National


Watch the fees, see Travel by Points: http://bit.ly/1mF4AOY

Offers constantly come and go, always check fine print

Avis has lots of offers:SAS & Virgin Atlantic 1,000 miles for 1-day rental

Club Carlson 9,000 points for 3-day rental

Delta & Hertz often have good offers

Earning Miles & Points

http://bit.ly/1mF4AOY


Double-dip with corporate programs

Corporate Programs


Portals


Membership or credit card to book (maybe not to rent)

Discounts/coupons are quarterly, best deals within 3 months

Typically cannot earn awards or miles

Typically cannot skip the line with frequent renter program

Typically few international locations

Often saves a lot of money

Portal Basics


Alamo, Avis, Budget, Enterprise – can add frequent renter

Fully flexible – no credit card required

Good for large vehicles

Low price finder not perfect – test coupons manually

Costco Travel


Similar to Costco but adds Dollar, Hertz & National

BJ’s Travel


Must have Capital One card, but can pay with any card

Pay with points or cash

Prepaid but can cancel up to 24 hours before rental

Capital One

Same platform, often same pricing

Chase must pay with registered card

Pay with points or cash

Prepaid but can cancel up to 24 hours before rental

No one-ways or off-airport

Chase Ultimate Rewards & Citi ThankYou



Hotwire and Priceline


The Hotwire and Priceline Tradeoff

Why to Not Use:

No changes, no refunds*

Unpleasant surprises*

No elite status recognition*

No miles and points*

*There are always exceptions and luck

Why to Use:

Save Money


Hotwire and Priceline Fees!#$Hotwire Priceline opaque rates often loaded with fees

Do not compare per day rates

Do compare total price

Portland 1 day car: Expedia $18/day=$23 total vs Priceline $18 bid=$29.34


Rates often not as good as flexible reservation portals (Costco, Capital One, Chase, etc.)

Guaranteed major agency – but includes Dollar/Thrifty

No off-airport, no one-way

Must be age 25+

Hotwire Hot Rates


Pick-up up to 24 hours late – book Sun night, pick-up Mon(call agency to hold a car on peak times)

Hotwire Hot Rates

Atlanta Sun 10 pm pick-up $63.65 vs Mon 8 am $81.26


Always unlimited miles (important for international)

30-minute grace period on returns

Extensions at agency rates – can be very expensive

All add-ons billed at agency rates(e.g. Dollar/Thrifty huge toll charges)

Hotwire Hot Rates


Rates often 10-30% lower than Hotwire

Alamo, Avis, Budget, Hertz, and National only

My experience is most often Avis

Rates not always available – change search parameters

No off-airport, no one-way

Always unlimited miles (important for international)

Extensions and add-ons at agency rates

Drivers under 25 allowed for additional fees

Priceline Name Your Own Price®


Example: Wilmington, NC Aug 23-25, midsize car

Step 1: Get a baseline at Hotwire or others:

Priceline Cars – Bidding Strategy

Hotwire $17.95/day, $57.84 total


Step 2: Priceline Lowball Test

Enter a lowball bid and click “Choose”



Step 2 (cont): Lowball triggers “low chance of being accepted”


If you don’t get this screen, you are starting too high


Step 2 (cont): “Previous Page” and step up the bids



Step 2 (cont): Priceline Sweetspot when goes to offer page


You’re not done yet!


Step 3: Bid around Priceline Sweetspot

For short, economy rentals, $1-$2 under often works

Longer rentals and bigger cars can widen the gap

Can be more aggressive depending on lead time


Needed car next day so bid $16, final price $54.36 with Hertz


Same trip wait 24 hours to re-bid

Can immediately re-bid for different car type (up or down)

Compact may be same price as economy

Change return date may allow re-bid (e.g. Tue 6 am, then try Mon 11 pm – you get the car for 24-hour days)

1-2 weeks in advance is good time to bid

Priceline Cars – Re-Bidding


Warning: use at your own risk

Enter the wrong credit card security code

Or enter a low balance Visa/MC/Amex gift card

Priceline Re-Bidding Hack


If bid is accepted you get a processing error

If not accepted, no processing error

You can enter correct number or abandon

Priceline does not (yet) hold customers to the purchase

Priceline Re-Bidding Hack


Can try to have multiple accounts (use at your own risk):Register a different email address Don’t repeat exact personal infoDon’t use same credit cardDon’t use same computer & connectionOr different browser + VPN to switch IP

Priceline Multiple Accounts


Other Deals


Check out Million Mile Secrets 12-Part Cheap Car Rentals http://millionmilesecrets.com/category/rental-cars/

Endless Sources to Try

http://millionmilesecrets.com/category/rental-cars/


OTAs are mainly a starting point, rarely the best deal

Kayak is useful for meta-search

Priceline often has good flexible rates

Are OTAs Useful?


$20 for $40 certificates at Alamo, Enterprise, National

Read the exclusions, except some hassles in redemption

Check out FrequentMiler: http://bit.ly/1hoI3Vy

Discover Certificates

http://bit.ly/1hoI3Vy


Corporate codes can be useful IF YOU ARE ELIGIBLE

Often good for eliminating one-way fees

Risky to use non-eligible codes – invalidate insurance

Corporate Codes

SEA-PDX: $62 vs $198 with my corporate code


Check locations on agency websites

Reach by walk, hotel shuttles, public transport

Verify hours – closed Sunday, charge till Monday

May pick you up (but not at airport)

May drop you off (possibly at airport)

Many portals do not include off-airport

Off-Airport


Atlanta Mon peak: airport $66.71 vs off $48.15/day

Off-Airport Example

Verify Business Hours

One Subway Stop Away


Cashback deals for rental agencies and OTAs

Always check the fine print, especially for OTAs

Don’t Foget Cashback Portals


Extras and How to Avoid Them


Most credit cards provide CDW secondary to any insurance

Chase United Explorer and Diners Club are primary

Amex Premium Rental Protection is primary but only CDW ($19.95/$24.95 per rental)

If you are comfortable using your own auto insurance, you don’t need CDW

Business cards typically limited to business rentals

Example: smash and grab in Toronto on business rental with Chase Ink Plus – claim process took 3 months

Insurance - CDW


Credit cards only cover CDW, nothing else!!!

Liability – state mandated minimums enough for you?

Personal Accident, Theft – evaluate based on your needs

Insurance - Other


1. Avis, Budget & Enterprise – free for spouse or partner

2. Alamo, Hertz & National – free for program members

3. Book through Costco Travel portal

4. AAA, AARP & USAA membership & using their codes

5. California law

See details at Million Mile Secrets: http://bit.ly/QAZ8Bv

Additional Drivers

http://bit.ly/QAZ8Bv


20 years old can rent with Hertz, 21 at other agencies

Under 25 surcharge varies by agency and state, $15+/day

Free membership with USAA (no military affiliation required) and book with their codes waives the fee at Avis, Budget, Enterprise and Hertz

See details at Million Mile Secrets: http://bit.ly/QHW0nc

Young Drivers

http://bit.ly/QHW0nc


Most agencies charge per toll plus daily fee for entire rental

Dollar/Thrifty charges per day for unlimited tolls

Trip one toll and you are charged for the ENTIRE rental

Ways to avoid:

1.Get a toll pass for frequent destinations

2.Pay tolls online with toll authority right after rental

Tolls

Welcome to Newark - $17.49/day


Refill or prepay

The less than 75 mile rental scam – must have fuel receipt

Fuel


International


International Driving

Exhilarating or stressful?

Is driving the best option?

Will your companions be a nuisance?


International Driving Alternative

Charter a taxi for a day• Pick a moving taxi, not one parked by your hotel• Test driver first with a short trip• Be very clear about route, time and costs


My Guide to International Driving

Driving on the left is surprisingly easy

Driving a manual in tight, hilly European towns is not easy

Automatics are rare and expensive


International Driving Permit

Valid only for 1 year, can be forward dated for trip

Need to get in home country (get at AAA in US)

Relatively few countries insist on IDP to rent

Absolutely must have in Japan and South Korea

Must carry driver license as well


International Booking

Booking sites often ‘location not found’/’sold out’

Try rental agency websites

Try AutoEurope for unlimited mileage (not just for Europe)


International Rental Process

Major agencies are almost all local franchise

Rarely get elite benefits (some exceptions like Australia)

Slow, slow, slow rental process in many countries

Frequent renter program preferences can mess things up like insurance options that are not equivalent (ex: I have had Avis US liability become EU Supercover)


International Gotchas

High mileage charges – I had a 0 km rate in Macedonia!

After-hours pick-up/drop-off charges – especially Europe

Winterization – Europe again

Mandatory insurance – Mexico & Central America

Cross-border fees and paperwork

One-way drop charges

Administrative fees for traffic violations


The Avis/Budget Home Currency Scam

Avis/Budget default opt your credit cards to bill in home currency at terrible rate plus 3% fee

Update each card and rebook any existing reservations

Uncheck!!!


International Gotchas

Riga, Latvia: $43 to pick up at 8 pm!

Ayers Rock: 100 km fee + $0.23 per km!


International Insurance

Credit card CDW exclusions – Ireland, Israel, Italy and more

Many Chase and Citi cards now cover ALL countries – get certificate of coverage for rental agency (Ireland, Israel)

Insurance often mandatory, sometimes included in rate:• Canada rates include liability• Mexico/Central America required adding liability• Basic CDW included in Europe – Supercover enhances• Kuwait temporary license and insurance


International GPS

T-Mobile phone with free data in 120+ countries

Offline map apps for iPhone and Android

GPS device – buy region map chips on ebay


Strategy


My goal: economy to mid-size for cheap

1. Baseline check at Hotwire

2. Costco or Capital One provisional booking

3. Recheck 2-3 months out (new portal coupons)

4. Recheck and try Priceline 1-2 weeks out

My key: keep discipline to avoid endless rate searches

My US Strategy


My goal: basic car, no surprises

1. Check portals (though often cannot find location)

2. Check agencies & verify location, hours, charges

3. Check OTAs like AutoEurope and Priceline

My key: major agency with unlimited mileage

My International Strategy


Seattle economy rental May 12-15

Costco: Enterprise $118

BJ’s: Enterprise $129

A Sample Test


Capital One: Enterprise $123

Chase & Citi (often the same): Budget $151

A Sample Test (cont.)


Priceline (not Name Your Own Price): Budget $141

Hotwire: $128



The winner: Costco Enterprise $118

Compare to enterprise.com: $129

For peak/holiday times the savings are usually bigger

Costco can cancel and skip line with Enterprise Plus



What’s Your Strategy?


Thank You

[email protected] @rapidtravelchai

rapidtravelchai.com