[oz_mark]

I would be a bit suspicous of the Avis rate actually - that rate looks as though it has the $20 a day excess reducing charge that the other quotes don't.

[JohnK]

Definitely did not tick any extras. I will check again closer to the trip.

[bravoecho1]

Looking at a weekly car rental late July/early August. For a Toyota Camry or similar size car, one way rental from Canberra to Sydney including excess reduction, the results are:

1. Hertz
2. Avis
3. Thrifty
4. Budget

Just goes to show, as Dave Noble said, who is the cheapest depends on the day, date and length of rental.

Note that the best results were from publically available promo's.

[markis10]

Originally Posted by JohnK

I am looking at 4 days car hire in smallest available car in HBA mid-November arriving on a Saturday afternoon and departing Wednesday morning.

Budget Group X Hyundai Getz $175.46
Thrifty Economy Hyundai Getz $210.98
Hertz Toyota Echo $250.91
Avis Group X Hyundai Getz $288.00

Looks like corporate rates do make a bit of difference, this is my quote with Hertz:

Selected Vehicle Toyota Echo or Similar s.products=";ECMR;;";34.54 AUD - Per Day
Total Approximate Charges 191.70 AUD

Location and car availability also make a difference, I have often got a tarago at a rate cheaper than an echo!

[oz_mark]

Originally Posted by bravoecho1

Just goes to show, as Dave Noble said, who is the cheapest depends on the day, date and length of rental.

Which is why I look at all four when chasing a rental

[JohnK]

I hope it is clear that I don't have a favourite hire car company. I will hire a car from who is the cheapest and I know everyone has different needs e.g car size, hire days, place of hire etc.

Originally Posted by markis10

Looks like corporate rates do make a bit of difference, this is my quote with Hertz:

Selected Vehicle Toyota Echo or Similar s.products=";ECMR;;";34.54 AUD - Per Day
Total Approximate Charges 191.70 AUD

Huge difference. The rate of $250.91 I posted supposedly has a 3% discount for being a QFF member so possibly even bigger difference. Good luck to people with the corporate rates.

[mileagemax]

You should also look at the insurance excesses with the cheaper deals. It normally is alot higher, if you read the fine print.

Hertz seems to be more targetted to the corporate market, and I know my company's CDP (discount plan) makes their price competitive. The advantage is the excess is much lower. That's why I normally pick Hertz for personal as well as corporate rentals.

[JohnK]

Originally Posted by mileagemax

You should also look at the insurance excesses with the cheaper deals. It normally is alot higher, if you read the fine print.

Thanks for pointing that out. I now take out travel insurance to cover the excess. Standard is $3000 and with a little more you can cover upto $5000 excess if you want. I don't think any of the 4 rental car companies mentioned charge an excess higher, in Australia, then the figure I quoted. I stopped paying car hire companies any excess reduction fees.

[markis10]

JohnK, maybe worth giving the companies a ring and seeing if they will set up a rate plan with a $3000 excess, if you are covered by insurance for that amount then it makes no sense to go lower as I am sure its factored into the rates.

[rwatts]

Originally Posted by markis10

JohnK, maybe worth giving the companies a ring and seeing if they will set up a rate plan with a $3000 excess, if you are covered by insurance for that amount then it makes no sense to go lower as I am sure its factored into the rates.

It is interesting how the excesses do vary between plans - my corporate CDP for leisure rentals results in an excess of just $700 for most vehicle groups (and very good rates as well !)

- Richard