theshortfinal

Going to Rome in July for two weeks (flying into Rome but driving to Molise for my stay). Rental price for automatic trans is $600.

Two questions:

• Anyone have experience saving good money on int'l reservations?
• Anyone ever use Citi ThankYou points to get rental certificates for overseas rentals?

Side question:

• Anyone have a hard time using these rental certificates at FCO?

AutoSlash

You can login to the Citi ThankYou travel portal and check rates there. Often you can pay with points, points+cash or straight cash depending on the situation. I don't have any experience purchasing rental certificates from a specific rental company with TY points and trying to use them, but I'd caution you to read the T&Cs carefully as the European operations of the major rental companies are usually run as separate companies and may not accept certificates issued their U.S. counterparts.

Obviously, we'd recommend using the link below to get a quote from our system. Even if we're not lowest, we'd recommend booking a non-prepay rate or a rate that's cancelable without a penalty and then tracking the reservation with us as rates often do drop as the pickup date approaches.

rcspeirs

That price looks low to me for automatic in peak summer, though you haven't specified what vehicle so it could be something tiny like a Fiat 500 (which had the worst automatic gearbox is ever driven).
Have you verified what insurance is included?

AutoSlash

Insurance is always included by law on all rentals in Italy. It is the only country we know of where this is the case. All renters are covered with basic LDW and liability in the rate paid, but upgrades to things like "Super Cover" are typically offered.

See --> 5 Tips for Renting a Car in Italy

rcspeirs

Autoslash - yes, I agree, and Italy is not alone, it's needed throughout the EU.
My point was some sites quote a price without the insurance element then load that on at pick up.

AutoSlash

Not sure what you mean when you say, "and Italy is not alone, it's needed throughout the EU"? My point is that every site includes insurance for Italy rentals because it is required by law, and Italy is the only country in the EU where this is the case. If you have seen a site that quotes a rental in Italy without insurance, we'd be curious as I've never come across one.

rcspeirs

I'm not sure where you're going here. Every member state of the EU requires the owner of the vehicle (so in this case the rental company) to insure that vehicle before it can be registered for use in the public roads - Italy is not different from other EU States on this.

AutoSlash

No, but Italy is different in that the cost of basic LDW included in the price of every rental. That means that if you as a renter has an accident in a rental vehicle in Italy, at least some portion of that damage will be covered by the rental company. Head over to Hertz.com and see if it's possible to book a rental through their website without including these two items:
.

• Collision damage waiver
• Theft protection

Now go to Avis.com and see if you can book a rental without these two line items included:
.

• Collision Damage Waiver (CDW) -INCLUDED
• Third Party Liability-INCLUDED

See what I mean?

rcspeirs

I think we're still at cross purposes. Any customer who hires an Avis car in the UK has a contract with AvisUK, even if the reservation was made through the US. Here's the UK insurance leaflet - you'll see that third party insurance (the minimum that is legally required) is included and is never an optional product.
https://www.avis.co.uk/assets/pdf/UK...ce_Leaflet.pdf

AutoSlash

I can't honestly comment from a UK resident's perspective but let me give this example from a US renter's perspective:

If I, as a renter from the U.S., rent a car in the UK and have an accident with that rental car, I will be liable to pay for the damages to that vehicle if I did not pay for additional collision damage protection at the rental counter and have no 3rd party coverage.

Contrast that with a renter from the U.S. renting a car in Italy in the same circumstances. Any damages incurred to the vehicle by the U.S. renter in Italy would be covered by the mandatory CDW which is required by law and included in every single rental contract. The rental company (or the rental company's insurance company) would pay for the damages and the renter would not.

That's about the clearest example I can come up with to illustrate the difference.

rcspeirs

Last time I rented from Avis in Italy my contract had a €1,000 excess (deductible), which indicates that there was not full CDW included, at least not for the full value of the car.
They upgraded me to a huge estate (station wagon) - wish I'd declined that upgrade as driving a large vehicle around the Naples area was a nightmare!