Following on from our own ‘Nasty Surprises’ survey earlier in the summer revealing that car hire was the most common unexpected additional cost on Brits’ holidays, the Daily Mail have today announced similar findings in their own investigation, which found many consumers are being caught out by ‘hidden’ charges.

As part of our Raising the Standard campaign, we want to help you gain fairer deals and stop you from paying over the odds. So, to help you avoid being caught out by surprise car hire costs, we’ve put together our essential tips on keeping car rental costs down:

• Credit Card Requirement – Many car hire firms require a credit card in the lead driver’s name in order to collect the car. Some companies do accept debit cards, but it must be in the lead driver’s name – a friend or family member’s card will not suffice. The card details are taken in case any charges are incurred during the rental.

• Excess Insurance – All car hire companies offer excess insurance policies at collection, but these are often more expensive than booking in advance with a third party and aren’t always as comprehensive. If customers already have a Collision Damage Excess Waiver policy in place, then it is their right to refuse any extra policies from the car hire company, but in case challenged on this, it is advisable to have a print out of the policy agreement to hand.

What customers do, however, need to be aware of, is that even with a Collision Damage Excess Waiver policy, if the hire car is damaged, the charge to cover this will be taken on their credit card, but with a Collision Damage Waiver Excess policy this amount will be fully refunded by the insurance company. Carrentals.co.uk offers Collision Damage Excess Waiver policies from Questor Insurance for only £3.99 a day.

• Border Charges – If hiring a car close to a country’s border, make sure you check the individual supplier’s policy, as some will charge extra to take the car into a different country.

• One Way Rentals – anyone planning to hire a car one way only should be aware that many suppliers will charge a fee for this (which can be much as £300 in some cases), as this leaves them with the task of relocating the vehicle themselves. It is advisable to contact the specific car rental company directly to confirm any costs for one way rental fees before confirming a booking.

• Out of Hours – one of the less common considerations when hiring a car is the opening hours of the rental office. If the collection point is in a major international airport, then there is unlikely to be an issue, but in smaller locations, especially away from airports, it is important to check the opening hours. If customers wish to collect a car ‘out of hours’, they will be charged a fee to cover re-opening the office. Some locations, especially in smaller locations can sometimes be closed all day on Sundays.

• Fuel Policies – Again these depend on the individual rental provider, but the most common policies are; collecting the car with a full tank and returning it with a full tank; collecting the car with a full tank and paying for what is used; and probably most controversially, collecting the car with a full tank and returning it empty, which means getting value for money requires customers to use at least a tank full, even if this is not needed. If customers have a full to full policy, it is well worth making sure the tank is full on returning the vehicle, as if not, car hire firms may charge up to 40% more than pump prices to top up the tank.

• Child Seats – These can be rented from car hire suppliers, but their price and availability do vary. In some cases, costs can reach over £60 a week for rental. If baggage restrictions allow, customers may find it more economical to take their own.

If you’ve got a story to tell on your car hire experience or have an outstanding issue you want resolving, why not head over to our forum and tell us about it.