I just returned from my first trip to Puerto Plata and I loved it way more than I liked Santo Domingo. I definitely will be returning. I usually don't rent a car in the DR, but I did this time. I was wondering do the major car rental places (like hertz and budget) add all the fees and charges like they do in the states (i.e. insurance, just-in-case-fees, preferred color fee, etc) thereby making it better to rent from the local car rental spots? I ask this because I truly notice that there are different prices for tourists and it seems like resorts and airports are where they suck the tourists dry.
- Thread starter Esquire
- Start date
Renting a car in Puerto Plata
Your man to talk to is Timindr. He is in the car rental business in Puerto Plata. Go to http://dr1.com/directories/car_rental/prestige_rentals.shtml or PM timindr.Esquire said:
I would only rent from the major car rental companies (National, Hertz, Avis) in the DR. Make sure you take the insurance (unless your policy at home or your credit card covers rentals). I'm guessing you are joking about "just-in-case-fees, preferred color fees". If you are tying to save money, do not rent at the airport, they charge an additional 7% tax for airport rentals.Esquire said:
My two pesos...
I can't stand all the little fees either.
To answer your questions, though:
Do the big companies (except mine
) add a bunch of fees like they do in the states? yes.
Is it better to rent from one of the local companies because of this? no.
"Why?" = This is the question and answer that brings Prestige most of its business.
The answer is in two parts:
1) Insurance. The overwhelming majority of 'local' car rental shops to not have what you or I or most of the world would consider real insurance. Often times they will tell you they have insurance, but if you dig deeper--and PLEASE, FOR YOUR OWN SAKE, DIG DEEPER--they will tell you that they have a deductible of anywhere from $1000 USD to $2500 USD to (and I am not making this up) "you just pay 40% of the damages" (you can imagine where they can go with that.)
Is insurance important here? Yes.
2) Customer Service. Customer Service. Customer Service.
Here's how we do it at our place...
Price of car per day + 16% ITBIS + daily insurance rate = total
That's it. Only possible additional charges are gas if you bring it back less than full, and/or 3.5% surcharge if you pay with credit card.
As far as damage/insurance... our full insurance has a deductible of $110.00 USD... you should be looking for something similar to or less than this when renting a car anywhere.
If you intend to use insurance from your homeowner's policy or your credit card be sure to check:
a) That it does not have an exclusion for foreign countries or specifically this one.
b) That it does not have exclusions for certain types of cars. I have seen some that will not cover any 4 wheel drive vehicles, regardless if you are going 4-wheelin' or not.
good luck and safe travels..........
tim
I can't stand all the little fees either.
To answer your questions, though:
Do the big companies (except mine
) add a bunch of fees like they do in the states? yes.Is it better to rent from one of the local companies because of this? no.
"Why?" = This is the question and answer that brings Prestige most of its business.
The answer is in two parts:
1) Insurance. The overwhelming majority of 'local' car rental shops to not have what you or I or most of the world would consider real insurance. Often times they will tell you they have insurance, but if you dig deeper--and PLEASE, FOR YOUR OWN SAKE, DIG DEEPER--they will tell you that they have a deductible of anywhere from $1000 USD to $2500 USD to (and I am not making this up) "you just pay 40% of the damages" (you can imagine where they can go with that.)
Is insurance important here? Yes.
2) Customer Service. Customer Service. Customer Service.
Here's how we do it at our place...
Price of car per day + 16% ITBIS + daily insurance rate = total
That's it. Only possible additional charges are gas if you bring it back less than full, and/or 3.5% surcharge if you pay with credit card.
As far as damage/insurance... our full insurance has a deductible of $110.00 USD... you should be looking for something similar to or less than this when renting a car anywhere.
If you intend to use insurance from your homeowner's policy or your credit card be sure to check:
a) That it does not have an exclusion for foreign countries or specifically this one.
b) That it does not have exclusions for certain types of cars. I have seen some that will not cover any 4 wheel drive vehicles, regardless if you are going 4-wheelin' or not.
good luck and safe travels..........
tim
I don't know what fees you are talking about. I've always rented from National and the only fee they charge is the 7% airport fee if I pick the car up at the airport in Santo Domingo (They don't charge the 7% in POP).TimInDR said:Do the big companies (except mine
This sounds like a fee, National doesn't charge for this.TimInDR said:
rellosk said:
National doesn't charge for it overtly, but I assure you it's part of their cost analysis. It's in there.
As for us... Yup. It's a fee. And the only one we've got. Most of our customers don't pay it.
Possible additional charges from National:
(Source: www.nationalcar.com referencing the cheapest car they had listed at POP airport)
""Select your Coverages Now! USD
Collision Damage Waiver 13.00
Deductible Protection 5.00
Personal Accident Insurance 4.25
Tires And Windshield Protection 3.00** ""
**Looks like the $3.00 USD might be worth it. Ours doesn't cover tires.
National is good, though... they've got a good reputation around the world. If someone feels more comfortable renting with them, then they should.
It's all about what makes you feel comfortable and happy.
Car rental questions??
I read your email with interst as I have never been to D.R. and I want to rent a small car. there are 4 of us and we like to tour around. We are staying in Cabarete.
You never mentioned where you rented from.
My Capital one mastercard covered me insurance wise, but I still purchased the extra liability from a private car rental place in St.Maartens when I was there. I wonder if the same applies in D.R.
Any info you could give me would be great.
Thanks.
Meg
Hi TimTimInDR said:I can't stand all the little fees either.
To answer your questions, though:
Do the big companies (except mine
Is it better to rent from one of the local companies because of this? no.
"Why?" = This is the question and answer that brings Prestige most of its business.
The answer is in two parts:
1) Insurance. The overwhelming majority of 'local' car rental shops to not have what you or I or most of the world would consider real insurance. Often times they will tell you they have insurance, but if you dig deeper--and PLEASE, FOR YOUR OWN SAKE, DIG DEEPER--they will tell you that they have a deductible of anywhere from $1000 USD to $2500 USD to (and I am not making this up) "you just pay 40% of the damages" (you can imagine where they can go with that.)
Is insurance important here? Yes.
2) Customer Service. Customer Service. Customer Service.
Here's how we do it at our place...
Price of car per day + 16% ITBIS + daily insurance rate = total
That's it. Only possible additional charges are gas if you bring it back less than full, and/or 3.5% surcharge if you pay with credit card.
As far as damage/insurance... our full insurance has a deductible of $110.00 USD... you should be looking for something similar to or less than this when renting a car anywhere.
If you intend to use insurance from your homeowner's policy or your credit card be sure to check:
a) That it does not have an exclusion for foreign countries or specifically this one.
b) That it does not have exclusions for certain types of cars. I have seen some that will not cover any 4 wheel drive vehicles, regardless if you are going 4-wheelin' or not.
good luck and safe travels..........
tim
I read your email with interst as I have never been to D.R. and I want to rent a small car. there are 4 of us and we like to tour around. We are staying in Cabarete.
You never mentioned where you rented from.
My Capital one mastercard covered me insurance wise, but I still purchased the extra liability from a private car rental place in St.Maartens when I was there. I wonder if the same applies in D.R.
Any info you could give me would be great.
Thanks.
Meg
Given all the positve feeback I've read on DR1 about Prestige, I will violate the "if it ain't broke, why fix it rule" and probably give you a try next time I rent a car in the DR.TimInDR said:National is good, though... they've got a good reputation around the world. If someone feels more comfortable renting with them, then they should.
It's all about what makes you feel comfortable and happy.
megamania said:
Thanks to all for your help. I just wanted to say to Meg that I dont know how the roads are in St. Maartens, but they are horrible in the DR(especially in PP and west of PP). While I was there I got a flat tire and a rock hit the windshield of my rental car. Insurance is a must. In spite of all the problems, the people are soooooo nice. A young Dominican boy (about 15) noticed me changing my tire and went out of his way to help me. The funny thing was he didn't seem to be expecting any type of payment becuase I had to basically chase him down to give him some pesos for his much appreciated help.
megamania said:
If the Credit Card insurance covers you, that's great. (Remember to call your Credit Card company and check for exclusions.) The extra liability is probably overkill, but if you're only talking about $10 USD or so it might be worth it to avoid hassles with paperwork---I've no idea how hard or easy it is to process an insurance claim through your credit card company.
I'll send you a PM with more info.
Tim your advice to check with the credit card company is great advice, renters also may want to check with their insurance companies back home, sometimes their personal policies may cover rental cars.TimInDR said:
Buying the extra liability may run contrary to what you think. Years back I took the insurance offered by the rental company even though my Amex provided coverage. Unfortunately when I got in an accident and contacted Amex, they said since I took the insurance offered by the rental company, that would take precedence over their insurance and I would have to pay the deductible under the rental car companies insurance. To this day I still fail to understand how I paid more to get less.