Car rental in Italy Provider – Where possible always rent with the company directly from their website for 2 reasons:
- Third party usually have slightly cheaper rates as their coverage often doesn’t cover as much as the company itself.
- If any claims are to be made and you’ve gone through a third party you first need to make the payments before requesting a refund (which isn’t easy).
If for example you only take out a basic coverage and you need to replace a whole car: ask yourself whether you’ve had 30k to spend before requesting it back (if you get any back) Car model – When you book you book a category (often represented by a visual on the site saying BMW x3 OR SIMILAR in small print).
And as cars are constantly churning you’ll only have access to those available from the category, not the specific model you saw in the photo.
– The company can only offer you a car from your category or above, not below.
– Check what models are in your category: there are certain areas (such as south of Rome where certain models are not used (such as BMWs, due to their high market value on the streets so pieces go missing all the time).
– IF you are planning on taking the car outside of Italy you will need to check what cars in your category are allowed (for example in some cases, BMWs and Mercedes are no allowed into Slovenia, which is a common problem in rental places such as Venice).
Insurance
– Again, book from the provider to get a no payment solution.
– Most people only book limited coverage, but it often doesn’t include tires and glass which is a common area of damage.
– Check with your provider: even fully comprehensive is not always fully comprehensive in southern Italy and due to the high crime rate you could still be liable up to a certain amount.
– If you do want fully comprehensive, book the basic package on the website and then get them to add it on at the desk. As sales agents are paid commission for upsells on insurance they’d often be likely to get you a better deal or even upgrade your car in return.
Pick Up
– Car bookings are forfeited after 1 hr of wait time as a no show. o If it’s low season then the agents MAY take the time to check the status of your flight and offer you the car on a late arrival anyway, but it cannot be guaranteed, especially in peak season when cars are extremely scarce. To mitigate try phoning the branch and telling them you will be late. It can’t be guaranteed but they MAY okay it for a late pick up.
– Always take the time to check over a car before driving away
– branches have to meet incident objectives and that means that at times they’ll be pushed by above to seek cause regardless.
– Many people think that as they have a car booked, there is a long line of them sitting in the garage waiting to be picked up.
Actually car rentals work by a revolving door policy: as old cars are being returned they get checked and cleaned just in time to be rerented. So expect delays as the agents wait for a car in your category to go through the process (sometimes by choosing a larger category car can mitigate this as they are more readily available than the smaller, compact options).
SO always factor in waiting times, I seen people wait up to 3hrs between queuing and waiting for their car to be serviced.
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE
– Get an international license if your license is not in English / EU, I’ve seen many drivers sent away without a car for this reason. Drop off – Try to get there during office hours to get someone to check the car for you.
– Ask the provider if they offer a prepaid option. You can pay in advance for a full tank and return the car empty. It is usually more effective than refilling the car at a local service station, plus avoids having to find a station and refilling (especially if you’re tight on time for your flight).