The Importance Of Understanding Your Car Rental Agreement

Travel Articles | April 4, 2011

You show up to pick up that rental vehicle and the agent places this 2 page document in front of you and tells you to sign it and initial here and here. You know you really should examine the document completely before you sign but the children are having a fit and you're just ready to get on your way. You initial, initial, and sign and you are on your way but now you have no clue what you agreed to and you are not alone. This is a very common practice when it comes to most legal agreements. Most people don’t ever read what's written in them.

Now surely if you rent your vehicle, don’t have any complications, and give it back with a full tank of gas at the correct location, on the right day, and at the right time you should be set, however, this isn't always the case. Every company has their own rules and not reading through that agreement can bring a world of hurt to your rental experience.

Reading your rental documents is a necessity and when at all possible you should try to get a copy of the rental agreement in advance to look it over before you arrive to pick up your rental. It is not advised to look on the internet at their rules and regulations simply because in many instances these will not be the same as those written into the rental agreement that you'll be signing.

Some of the information that will be outlined in the actual agreement will be the rules governing the rental such as who may drive the vehicle, what to do if you're in an accident with the rental vehicle, and what to do if you have complications while you are on the road. A lot of companies used to offer emergency road service as part of their rental agreement but now some companies are offering this as an add on service with an extra charge and if you choose not to take it then you'll probably be left on the side of the road fending for yourself if your vehicle breaks down.

Other issues that will be addressed in your rental agreement will be the charges for extra hours, extra miles, and how much the additional insurance will cost you. You'll want to make sure these amounts are exactly the same as the amounts that you were quoted at the time of your reservation. Also, in this agreement will be documented the exact length of your rental as well as exactly when you are expected to return the vehicle and how much of a grace period you are going to be given before you will be charged for another day.

Now if the company refuses to offer you a copy of the rental agreement prior to picking up the vehicle then make sure that you at least get a copy to take with you once you have signed it. Often you will need to refer to this document in order to contact the rental agent if there is an issue or to find out procedures for what to do if there is a problem. In any case

, you certainly want to read the rental agreement prior to signing it and then keep a copy in the glove box just in case you need it down the road.

Article Tags: Rental Agreement

Source: Free Articles from ArticlesFactory.com

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

When you're looking for an international Car hire it's always a wise idea to go with a company that you're familiar with. One such Car rental company is Budget. You can visit them on the net at budget.com.au.