Holidaymakers planning to hire a car in the UK this summer should check the price of the car hire ‘extras’ they need, as the cost at the rental desk can differ by hundreds of pounds.
That’s according to a study of Sixt, Europcar, Enterprise and Hertz in eight UK cities includding Swansea by iCarhireinsurance.com, provider of stand-alone car hire excess insurance.
The cheapest place to hire a medium compact car, e.g., a Skoda Octavia, is with Europcar in Leeds, where a week’s hire costs £189, from 25 July to 1 August 2020, however once extra items at the rental desk are added the price increases to £609. (This jumps to over £970 on average for London car hire).
These ‘extras’ are £98 for an extra driver (or £273 for a young driver, under 25), £126 for Super Damage Waiver, £91 for a child’s car seat, £105 for sat nav hire, all adding up to £420 and leaving the driver with a final bill of £609, more than three times the original quote.
The most expensive place for a week’s car hire is London, where you will be paying around £340 on average for the week, followed by Glasgow (£293), Belfast (£258), Birmingham (£245), Swansea (£240), Newcastle (£218), Manchester (£215) and Leeds (£205). The average weekly price to hire a car in the UK is around £250.
While it may be useful to have an extra driver on a car hire rental policy it can really add to the final bill. The study found that the average price, across the eight pick-up points is £103. A young driver, generally under 25 years, adds a massive £268 on average, however Enterprise do not charge under 25s extra, but they do limit the vehicle types they can hire. To hire a child’s car seat costs around £90 on average and a sat nav costs £97 on average.
Excess Liability is the amount drivers have to pay if the hire car is damaged or stolen, even if it is not the hirer’s fault. The study found that the average excess liability for damage is around £1,200 but Europcar has a £1,400 starting excess in all destinations.
Excess Waiver Insurance, which protects drivers from this excess liability, is the largest cost for travellers after the cost of the rental. Many hire car companies offer two different policies, Super Damage Waiver (on average costing £150) and Tyre and Windscreen cover (on average costing around £60), totalling on average around £210 a week. However, this can rocket if hiring from Sixt, which charges £192 for Super Damage Waiver and £73 for a Tyre and Windscreen Waiver, in all destinations, coming to £265 for a week’s cover.
This is nine times more expensive than a policy from a specialist excess insurance provider, like iCarhireinsurance.com, which charges only £27.96 for a week’s policy or £3.49 a day, and which covers damage, theft, as well as tyre and windscreen cover. Annual European polices are from £42.99.
Ernesto Suarez, founder and CEO of iCarhireinsurance.com, said, “The UK is generally more expensive than many European destinations to hire a car so it’s important to do your research and ensure you get a good rental rate as well as factoring in any extras you might need. You can also save a fortune on your excess insurance by buying from a standalone provider in advance, and by bringing your sat nav and child car seat with you.”
Table of average price of extras in the study, for a week’s car hire from 25 July to 1 August 2020.
Car Rental Rate | Super Damage Waiver | Extra Driver | Sat Nav | Car Seat | Total (Incl extras) | |
London | £339 | £174 | £101 | £95 | £82 | £971 |
Birmingham | £245 | £165 | £103 | £97 | £82 | £692 |
Manchester | £215 | £156 | £103 | £97 | £82 | £653 |
Leeds | £205 | £156 | £103 | £99 | £82 | £654 |
Glasgow | £293 | £138 | £103 | £95 | £80 | £709 |
Newcastle | £218 | £138 | £102 | £95 | £80 | £633 |
Swansea | £241 | £129 | £103 | £105 | £91 | £669 |
Belfast | £258 | £143 | £102 | £95 | £80 | £678 |
AVERAGE | £252 | £150 | £103 | £97 | £82 | £707 |