How To Secure A Cheap Summer Rental
Posted on February 05, 2009 by Fiona Hilliard
So we’ve waved goodbye to the days of last minute bargain car hire (Argus Blog, Feb 4th), but don’t fret-all is not lost in the cheap car hire game.
When you think about it, three main ingredients go into planning any trip: You’ve got airline tickets, your hotel reservations and your car hire. Once your destination is sorted, car hire usually falls into place. We say usually. Not this year though, as availability is going to shrink to an all-time low (sorry to remind you again). Ensure you get a set of wheels this summer and don’t pay over the odds with the following tips:
1. Book Early and Be Flexible
Planning ahead and being flexible with your pick up time, location and vehicle type means you’ve got a much better chance of getting a cheap deal. This shouldn’t mean dropping your standards. All you have to do is a bit of clever searching in our booking engine. Compare price differences for different pick-up times and locations and you’ll be surprised by how much you’ll save. It’s also a good idea to ask yourself some questions like whether you really need a compact-sized vehicle when a mini/economy might fit all your legs and luggage in just the same.
2. Sign Up for the Newsletter
Argus Car Hire sends out a newsletter every two weeks bursting with special offers and deals at popular destinations. Sign-up is free and gives you a heads-up on where the cheapest car hire is to be found. Intrigued? Click here to find out more.
3. Join the Loyalty Club
Argus Car Hire has its very own VIP club that offers special discounts for members. It’s called MyArgus. If you haven’t signed up yet, you’ll be happy to know that it’s 100% FREE to join. Follow this link to learn more.
Discussion: 4 Comments
4 Responses to “How To Secure A Cheap Summer Rental”
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Mark
- 9th Feb, 09 03:02pm
One more tip. Make sure that when you’re taking all of the Argus car hire / cartrawler advice about trying many different combinations of pick up time and location, that you always check you’ve got the dates correct before you book.
This may seem an easy mistake to make, but it will prove costly when Argus charge you 25 euros to correct it, even if you do let them know your error straight away.
If you’re really unlucky you could mistakenly book a date a few days away from the current date. Despite this being a simple error it will cost you 3 days car rental. Don’t expect any ‘good will’ from them, even if you let them know straight away. No, whilst they’re hiring that car out to another paying customer, you’ll be charged as much as they can take from you.
Good customer service, especially in the current economic climate, must be seen by most businesses as essential. If you want customers, you treat them well. If you don’t want them you take their money and spit them out. Unfortunately customers vote with their feet and mention their bad experiences to others. What was a minor customer service issue, quickly turns into a growing bad reputation.
fhilliard
- 12th Feb, 09 10:02am
Hi Mark,
Thanks for your comment. You make a good point here which we believe is worth sharing with others. It is the customer’s own responsibility to check (and double-check) that all dates are correct before they proceed with their booking, as unfortunately Argus Car Hire does not currently have the provision to change booking dates that have been entered incorrectly without the customer incurring a fee for the dates they have selected. As customer satisfaction is paramount to us, we apologise for any inconvenience caused.
Editor
Argus Blog
Tony Vincent
- 11th Aug, 09 04:08pm
A holiday in Italy was spoiled as the hired car had no 12v supply for a GPS unit or phone charging
Apparently this was either disconnected or faulty and not checked. We found ourselves in the wilds of Tuscany with no GPS and no way of getting this fixed before our return. A GPS is now as essential as lights etc when you are travelling through a foreign country.
Comments?
fhilliard
- 12th Aug, 09 09:08am
Hi Tony
Thanks for getting in contact. We would like to take this opportunity to assure you that Argus Car Hire makes every effort to ensure that all vehicles in our fleet meet our high standards of service and we apologise for your unsatisfactory experiences with one of our suppliers in Tuscany.
However, please be aware that although some of our suppliers’ vehicles come equipped with Sat Nav, we currently offer GPS as an optional extra and cannot guarantee that all of the vehicles in our suppliers’ fleets offer cars with GPS capabilities.
If you would like to discuss this matter further, please contact customercare@arguscarhire.com.
Editor
Argus Blog