How to Hire a Car Abroad Without Getting Ripped Off
10 minutes ago
9 min read
I do not work for Hertz, Sixt or the man at the airport desk. I compare a few brokers, pick the one that actually has the car, and I decline the theatre at collection. This is how I do it — and how you can decide for yourself.
Do you even need a car?
Start here. A hire car is brilliant for coasts, islands, national parks and anywhere the last bus left in 1998. It is a waste of money in central London, Paris, Venice, Tokyo or any city where parking is a sport and public transport actually works.
If you only need airport-to-hotel, skip the car. Book a transfer instead:
For city hops, I still use Bolt, Uber or the local train. A car is for the days you want the map to yourself.
How car hire actually works
You seldom book Hertz directly. You book a broker. The broker shops Hertz, Sixt, Avis, Enterprise, Europcar and a pile of local firms, then you collect from whichever depot won the price.
That is why I never send you to one desk. I send you to four comparison sites. Same search, four inventories; you keep the cheapest honest quote.
Compare these four — then pick one
Open them in separate tabs. Same dates, same age, same airport. Five minutes. That is the whole trick.
1. DiscoverCars — My Default First Search
Widest global spread and the one I open first. Good when I do not yet know whether a big brand or a local firm will win. They also sell their own full-cover add-on at checkout if you want the simple version of “I cannot be bothered at the desk”.
2. AutoEurope — When You Want a Proper Brand Desk
Strong on Hertz, Sixt, Avis, Europcar and Budget. Use this when you want a staffed airport desk, English-speaking collection, or you are collecting in the US or a big European hub.
3. EconomyBookings — when the price looks too high everywhere else
A second comparison pass. I use it as a sanity check, not as religion. If DiscoverCars and AutoEurope are miles apart, this usually tells you who is having a laugh.
4. Localrent — local agencies, often the cheapest
This is the one the big brands hope you never find. Localrent works with national and city agencies rather than the airport giants. I use it in Greece, the Balkans, Turkey, the Caucasus and parts of Eastern Europe — places where a local firm with a small office beats the airport markup. Read the recent reviews for that exact depot. A cheap local car is a gift. A cheap local car from a depot with a one-star collection story is a weekend ruined.
5. GetRentacar - Big Brands & Local Desks
GetRentacar is the extra comparison I run when I want a price from local owners as well as the big desk brands. It is a marketplace in 100+ countries — you send one request, owners and small fleets bid, and you pick the offer. Useful when the usual aggregators only show Hertz and Avis at airport rates. Check excess, deposit and pickup point before you book; some deals are no-deposit, some are not. Compare it next to DiscoverCars and take whichever is cleaner for that city.
Book here: https://getrentacar.tp.st/dXvlhGpo
Which one should you actually use?
If you are… | Start with |
First search, any country | |
Collecting at a major airport and want a known brand | |
The first two quotes look painful | |
Driving in Greece, Balkans, Turkey, Georgia and similar | |
Local Cars & Big Brands |
If two sites quote the same car from the same supplier, take the one with free cancellation and the clearer excess. Price is not the only line on the voucher.
The desk will try to sell you fear
This is the bit that costs people hundreds. You have already paid. Then a smiling person points at a scratch on a laminated card and says, "The excess is €1,500 and would you like to make that €0 today for only €25–€40 a day?".
Sometimes their cover is convenient. Often it is the most expensive product in the building!
Before you say yes:
Know the excess on your voucher before you reach the counter.
Know whether tyres, glass, roof and underbody are included. They often are not.
Know whether you already bought the broker’s full cover at checkout.
Have a credit card with enough limit for the hold. Debit cards cause scenes.
Walk-away power is the only language the desk respects. If the car on your voucher has vanished, ask for the like-for-like replacement in writing. If they invent a new price, you can still cancel on most prepaid broker deals and walk to the next desk in the hall.
Insurance — buy it before the desk, not at it!
There are three different products people muddle up. Get this straight, and the desk speech loses its power.
The rental company’s CDW — usually included, but with a fat excess. This is the starting point on almost every voucher.
The broker’s “full cover” add-on — bought on DiscoverCars and similar at checkout. Simple. One extra box. Fine if you want zero thinking at the airport.
Standalone excess reimbursement — a separate annual or single-trip policy from a specialist insurer. Usually far cheaper if you hire more than once a year. You still leave a card hold at the desk; you claim the excess back if something happens.
Which? Tested the specialist policies in 2026. The desk product from Avis, Hertz, Sixt and Europcar was, on average, about eight times more expensive for weaker cover. Buy before you fly!
If you hire once or twice a year — get a specialist quote
These are the firms I would actually open. Compare two. Do not buy the first page you land on.
Company | Use it when |
First quote for UK residents. Which? Best Buy 2026 (Silver and Gold). Strong on tyres, glass, underbody, misfuel and keys. Silver is enough. | |
Second quote. Also a Which? Best Buy for Europe. | |
Third Which? Best Buy. Open it if the first two look dear. | |
Annual Europe, plus US/Canada CDW-style cover. | |
Annual hires, car clubs, vans, motorhomes. | |
The old UK name. Still compare it; do not buy from memory. | |
Not UK-only. Best for worldwide / US readers. |
These are ordinary company links, not affiliate links.
If you want it bundled with the car, DiscoverCars Full Coverage (or the same box on AutoEurope / EconomyBookings). Lazy-good. Rarely the cheapest if you hire several times a year.
How to choose, quickly..
One week in Spain or Greece, UK resident: Cover4Rentals Silver vs SimplyExcess.
Three or more hires this year: annual from Cover4Rentals, iCarhireinsurance or Questor.
USA or Canada: proper CDW/LDW — iCarhireinsurance US & Canada / Worldwide Plus, or RentalCover.
Van, motorhome or car club: Questor first.
Standalone cover reimburses you after the rental firm has taken the money off your card. You still need a credit card limit at collection.
Who I skip: GoldCar
GoldCar often wins the comparison table. That is the trap. The web price is low because the real conversation happens at the desk — Super Relax, a four-figure hold, and a wait designed to make you pay to leave. I do not book them. I would rather pay a bit more to a desk that hands over the keys. If GoldCar is the only cheap result on DiscoverCars, I change the dates or the supplier before I change my standards. Same rule for any voucher that looks half the price of Hertz and Sixt: read the excess and the deposit before you fly, not when you are jet-lagged in Arrivals.
There are three different products people muddle up:
The rental company’s CDW — usually included, but with a fat excess. This is the starting point on almost every voucher.
The broker’s “full cover” add-on — bought on DiscoverCars and similar at checkout. Simple. One extra box. Fine if you want zero thinking at the airport.
Standalone excess reimbursement — a separate annual or single-trip policy from a specialist insurer. Usually far cheaper if you hire more than once a year. You still leave a card hold at the desk; you claim the excess back if something happens.
Do not let the airport desk be your first quote. Their excess-reduction product is the convenient one, not the cheap one. Know which of the three you are buying before you collect the keys.
What I always check before I pay..
Free cancellation until pick-up. Plans change.
Mileage. “Unlimited” is not always unlimited. Read the cap.
Fuel policy. Full-to-full. Never accept pre-purchase full-to-empty unless you enjoy donating petrol.
One-way fee if you drop in a different city. It can exceed the hire.
Cross-border rules. Croatia, Kosovo, Greek islands, Morocco from Spain — some contracts forbid it or charge a permit.
Age. Under 25 and over 70 get surprise fees. Put your real age in the search.
Second driver. Often free if named at booking; expensive if added at the desk.
Automatic vs manual. Automatics cost more in Europe and vanish in summer. Book early.
The depot, not just the airport name. “Airport” can mean a shuttle 4 km away and a 40-minute wait.
Licence, Cards and the Boring documents
Take the physical photocard licence. A phone picture is not a licence. If you have the old paper counterpart still floating around, leave it at home — it is obsolete in the UK — but some countries still ask for an International Driving Permit. Check the destination, not a Facebook comment.
An IDP from a UK Post Office is cheap and solves arguments in places that like stamps on paper (Japan, parts of the US, some of Eastern Europe). It is not a substitute for your real licence.
The credit card should be in the main driver’s name. The hold can be £200–£3,000 depending on whether you took their cover. If the card declines, they do not have to give you the car! So make sure you have a decent credit card - I can't stress this enough! I personally use American Express, VISA & Mastercard. I carry these everywhere I go. My preference is AMEX - as they offer greater rewards - but all are crucial, as some car rental companies may only take VISA or Mastercard.
Where you stay still matters
A cheap car and an unparkable hotel is not a saving. I still book stays on Booking.com first, then I look at a second window if the area is sold out.
Search stays on Booking.com, compare on Hotels.com
Apartments with a parking space beat design hotels with a “nearby NCP” that costs more than the room. For longer stays, I still look at Airbnb.
A simple order of battle
Decide if you need a car at all. If not, book a transfer.
Search the same dates on DiscoverCars, AutoEurope, EconomyBookings and — if it is a local-agency country — Localrent or GetRentacar.
Keep the quote with free cancellation, a sane excess, and a depot you can actually walk to.
Decide cover before you fly, not while a queue sighs behind you.
Photograph the car on collection: all four sides, roof, wheels, windscreen, fuel gauge, dashboard warnings. Do the same on return. This email to yourself has saved me more than any policy wording.
The collection walk-round
Do not be British and apologetic. Circle the car slowly. Point at every mark. Make them write it on the report. If they are in a hurry, you can be slower. A scuffed alloy you “didn’t notice” is an email from a collections firm three months later.
Return it with a full tank to the same standard of station, keep the fuel receipt, and do not assume “the fuel card they sold you” is a bargain. It seldom is!
When I would not hire
One night in a capital city.
A drinking holiday. Obvious, ignored constantly.
Winter mountain roads in a two-wheel-drive “summer tyre” special.
A country where you cannot read the alphabet on the signs, and you refuse to download offline maps.
I am The Wondering Englishman. The Wonders of the World are Yours and Mine to Discover! I wander on purpose, not in circles. If this saved you an argument at an airport car rental desk, use the comparison links above — and tell me in the comments which broker actually won for your trip. I update this when the market shifts! So Bookmark this page!
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