No car hire desks at Heathrow Airport T5

Car hire companies are generally working on very tight margins and what they really don't need is the expense of staffing and paying for rental on space at airports.

It is interesting to see at London Heathrow Terminal 5, the home of British Airways that there is a very simple system located between the domestic arrivals and international arrivals.

There is a central console (pictured left) that has touch sreen information about the car companies using the facility - Hertz - Avis - Budget - National etc and telephones above. You can get basic information from the touch screen system and then speak to a representative from the car hire company on the phone.

No doubt if you have not already pre-booked, within minutes you can find out about availabilty and then make your way to the car hire depot at the airport and complete formalities.

If you are a freequent user of rental cars, you should consider buying an annual car hire excess insurance policy. This will work out a lot cheaper than buying daily policies from a car hire company. Find out more at www.insurance4carrental.com

Of course you can always pre-book your car hire in advance through a car hire broker like Holiday Autos. As we are coming into the busy summer months, it is wise to plan ahead particularly after the car hire shortages experience in 2009. Find out more about Holiday Autos at http://www.holidayautos.co.uk/cgi-bin/liveweb.sh/QSearch.w?ctryref=GBR&lang=EN&aff=xjeffreymilnerltd

Hiring a van over the bank holiday?

The UK's second May bank holiday is fast approaching and with the half term holiday this coming week, many people go off on holiday.

For others it is a time to go out and buy new furniture or re-furbish the house. You might not be able to get the items easily delivered and so the easiest alternative is to rent a van.

You might even be moving flat or house next week and don't want to pay the costs of a removal company.

Holiday Autos now hire out vans (up to the reasonable Luton box type size) in the UK and the process is simple, just go to their website http://www.holidayautos.co.uk/cgi-bin/liveweb.sh/QSearch.w?ctryref=GBR&lang=EN&aff=xjeffreymilnerltd and go the Van Hire section.

You will need to take out van hire insurance and a very good way of doing this is by taking out a daily policy via insurance4vanrental.com with insuremyvan.com their website is http://www.insuremyvanhire.com/index.asp?curID=1&langID=1&refID=188

So if you have a busy few days ahead moving - buying - selling and need a van, pay a visit to www.insurance4vanrental.com

insurance4carrental.com has six companies to choose from

Great news for those renting a car this summer and looking for car excess insurance.

There are now six companies advertising on the insurance4carrental.com site.

A few years ago the public only had one provider to use insurance4carhire.com. Then along came along several more companies (some of which actually use insurance4carhire.com products and Questor insurance.)

When you hire a car Your car rental agreement normally includes cover for Collision Damage Waiver (CDW) and Theft. However you are still liable for the Excess on CDW and Theft. When a rental car is damaged or stolen, the driver is asked to pay the first portion of the repair or replacement costs. This is known as the Excess. You will normally have to pay this excess insurance to the car hire operator in addition to the agreed rental charges.

The price that the car rental company is normally higher than that of these independents like insurance4carhire, Questor Insurance and Essential Travel. What is even more important is that if you rent more than once a year, it will work out a lot cheaper if you actually take out an annual policy from one othese insurance companies.

At the insurance4carrental.com site you have the choice of these companies: insurance4carhire and their daily excess product dailyexcess.com, Questor insurance, Essential Travel, iCarhireinsurance and Odyssey.

Each product has its own page explaining all it's individual products and prices and what is covered and not covered so there is no need to even look at any price comparisson sites.

We have a bank holiday coming up in the UK this weekend, one on the 7th June in Ireland and New Zealand so if you are off on your travels and renting a car make sure that you have arranged your car hire insurance in advance.

Odyssey Car Hire Insurance the Latest Addition to the Moneymaxim Car Hire Insurance Search Engine

26 May, 2010

The continued success of the UK’s first car hire insurance comparison service, from money saving website www.moneymaxim.co.uk continues with the addition of Odyssey Car Hire Insurance to the search engine.

The unique car hire insurance service can save anyone renting a car at home or abroad a significant sum of money.

Greg Holmes at Odyssey Car Hire Insurance Ltd said of the partnership with moneymaxim:
“As a relatively new car hire excess insurance provider, adding ourselves to the burgeoning list of insurance providers on the moneymaxim car hire insurance search engine makes perfect sense. Moneymaxim consumers will be able to see the wider benefits Odyssey Car Hire Excess Insurance offers and use it to make an informed choice.”

Mark Bower, Managing Director of moneymaxim.co.uk comments on the innovative car hire excess insurance comparison service;

“We have been delighted with customer reaction to the introduction of our car hire insurance comparison service and we have clearly identified a need that was not being met until its launch. As we support our online comparison site with a telephone support team we have been to talking to customers who were totally unaware that they could save hundreds of pounds by using car hire excess insurance rather than those offered directly by car hire firms.

Adding Odyssey to our panel makes perfect sense, as they are particularly attractive for those looking for European annual cover with a range of added benefits such as lost and stolen key cover or emergency travel expenses. A key benefit of the moneymaxim service is that it is easy to compare prices and features from around 100 variations of policies in about 60 seconds.

Notes:
Visit Odyssey Car Hire Insurance at: http://www.insurance4carrental.com/Odyssey.htm

The moneymaxim.co.uk car hire excess insurance comparison service compares prices from the following companies: Blue Insurances Ltd, carhireexcess.com, icarhireinsurance.com, insurance4carhire.com, insuremycarhire.com, intasure.com, protectmybubble.com, Questor Insurance and worldwideinsure.com

Background Information on the Car Hire Excess Insurance Market:
The car hire excess insurance industry was 'created' back in 2002 when Larry Ursich launched Insurance4carhire. Having a background in the car rental business he realised that the cost of 'insuring the excess' when renting a car from hire firms had grown to such a level that there was potential to create a standalone product offering both better cover and lower costs for consumers.

Over the past 8 years further firms have joined the market, the latest, icarhireinsurance, entering the market in March, 2010. The new entrants have brought with them options and innovation and those looking for this type of insurance can find policies covering not just the hire car excess, but baggage loss, carjacking, cancellation and more. Policies catering for car club members have also recently been introduced.

Source: Moneymaxim

Hire Car Drivers Urged to Take Out Insurance With Cancellation Cover

From HALO INSURANCE**, May 25, 2010

Drivers of hire cars are being urged to take out cancellation cover with their car hire insurance to avoid expensive charges if they have to cancel at short notice.

The volcanic ash cloud and the BA strike action have affected hundreds of thousands of people, and many car rental contracts have had to be cancelled at short notice. Drivers could be charged up to 70% of the total bill, despite not needing the vehicle they had planned to hire. It seems that each of the many operators across Europe have a different policy for recent events causing confusion and uncertainty.

Some are offering replacements if taken before a set date, or waiving some fees, but not all. Others will not charge cancelation fees but you must inform them before you are due to pick up the car, something that isn't always easy. Many are insisting that applications for refunds are done in writing which just adds to the hassle.

With yet more disruption to travellers on the horizon, iCarhireinsurance.com is now urging hire car drivers to ensure they are covered if their plans change.

iCarhireinsurance.com offers low cost car hire excess insurance but annual policy holders can also protect themselves against unforeseen cancellations for just GBP 9.99 a year. Given the increasing uncertainty over travel plans, delays and journey extensions, hire car cancellation cover gives customers complete peace of mind.

Annual policies are not only great value, they also provide the flexibility required with so much uncertainty in the world of travel. With an annual car hire excess policy from iCarhireinsurance.com with cancellation upgrade, policy holders are covered;


a. If their trip is put back by a few days
b. If their return trip is delayed and they have to stay away for a few
more days
c. If their trip is postponed until later in the year
d. For any other trips that they take that year
e. For up to 60 days for each individual trip


Unlike most other policies, with iCarhireinsurance's annual and daily car hire excess insurance, customers are covered right up to the moment they return to their front-door. Therefore if their flight is cancelled and they need to drive their hire car home, their excess cover is still valid. Furthermore, if customers need to take a trip across Europe because flights are not available, their excess insurance is valid for up to 9 drivers, as long as they are named on the car rental agreement. To find out more about iCarhireinsurance visit their page on the insurance4carrental.com site at http://www.insurance4carrental.com/iCarhireinsurance.htm

Ernesto Suarez, founder and CEO of iCarhireinsurance.com said, "These days, there are no guarantees when it comes to travel and tourism. The Iceland volcano and airline industrial action have resulted in many trips being cancelled or disrupted, and with both these problems set to continue into the future, hire car drivers need to protect themselves against unforeseen circumstances. Customers of iCarhireinsurance's cancellation cover have peace of mind in all the confusion and chaos.

"At iCarhireinsurance.com we've created a range of policies that are cheaper and more comprehensive than those offered at car rental desks. Furthermore, our website has been designed to cut through the insurance mumbo jumbo, making it easier for customers to find the cover they need and buy the right policy at the right price."

**iCarhireinsurance.com is a registered trading name of Halo Insurance Services Limited. Halo Insurance Services Ltd was founded by Ernesto Suarez, a leading insurance professional with 10 years experience in the industry.

Source: Halo insurance

Irish vehicles offered for sale are still on finance!

19th May 2010

Statistics published today by Cartell.ie indicate that buyers have a 1 in 4 chance of purchasing a two year old vehicle with finance outstanding. Unsurprisingly finance companies can and do repossess vehicles.

Cartell.ie, Ireland’s online car history checking company has discovered a worrying trend in the second hand car market that could have serious financial implications for used car buyers.

Statistics published today by Cartell.ie indicate that buyers have a 1 in 4 chance of purchasing a two year old vehicle with finance outstanding. From a sample of over 5906 vehicles offered for sale and checked on the Cartell.ie website, the figures show that for 2008 and 2007 registrations, the percentage of vehicles on finance is 26 and 23% respectively

Jeff Aherne of Cartell explains,”Once again we urge buyers to be extra vigilant when it comes to checking the financial situation of a second hand car. Car finance differs from personal finance in that the finance company holds an interest in the vehicle until all monies have been paid. Unsurprisingly finance companies can and do repossess vehicles. Only in certain circumstances can a buyer of one of these vehicles get to keep it without paying the balance.”

Consumers have the ability to check before they buy with companies like Cartell.ie and therefore the defense of innocent purchaser is less applicable.

Usually car finance terms are three to five years. However it cannot be taken for granted that a 2005 vehicle is clear of finance just because the current year is 2010. It can be seen from the graph that 16.5% of 2005 vehicles offered for sale are still on finance. Even for 2002 vehicles the finance rate is still 7.1%. It’s not until you purchase a 2001 vehicle that the likelihood of it being on finance drops to 2%. One of the reasons for this is that the value of the 2001 car is such that financing it as a used vehicle would not make sense.

The 2009 figures buck the upward trend for vehicles on finance. Only 15.56% of the 2009 vehicles checked were on finance. This means that there is a greater chance of the 2005 vehicle being on finance than the 2009 vehicle.

It also proves that finance was not given out at the same rate as previous years and that the car industry will find it difficult to recover while funds are unavailable. Below are the top five finance companies which return a match for finance on the Cartell.ie system when a vehicle for sale has been checked. This does not represent market share however.

◦Irish Permanent Finance – 20.6% offered for sale with finance owing
◦Lombard & Ulster – 15.4% offered for sale with finance owing
◦Allied Irish Bank – 15.1% offered for sale with finance owing
◦GE Woodchester – 14.7% offered for sale with finance owing
◦Bank of Scotland Ireland 13.5% offered for sale with finance owing

Clearly the message Cartell.ie is trying to convey is that you need to check before buy and also if you do have a vehicle on finance and you are in difficulty, contact your lender to arrange a payment extension or some other method of payment reduction. Do not sell your vehicle to someone who could have the vehicle repossessed on them by your lender, as no decent person wants to cause financial hardship to another.

If you have bought a vehicle on finance, or have received a letter of intent from the financial institute looking to repossess, contact a solicitor immediately.

Source: Cartell

Looking for insurance products in Ireland? ( Property - car hire excess - Travel and more) Visit www.irishpropertyinsurance.com

Car hire insurance market has become more competitive

The car hire excess insurance market now has numerous insurance providers. Only some eight years ago in 2002 that Larry Ursich founded insurance4carhire.com. Now in 2010 there are at least 31 companies offering car hire excess insurance.

There is a full article on this subject called "There is a lot of competition about in the car hire insurance market" that has just been released onto the Internet and can be found at articlebase.com and on the insurance4carrental.com site at http://www.insurance4carrental.com/Competition_in_Car_hire_Insurance.htm

Increase in car hire fleet in South Africa for World Cup

South African Car Hire Fleets Increased by 20% To Cope With World Cup Demand

Holiday Autos , the world’s largest car hire broker, has been working with its partners to make more cars available to hire during the World Cup period.

Larger vehicles such as SUV’s, mini buses, minivans and motorhomes have been amongst the first vehicles to be snapped up and are now practically sold out. However, those looking for smaller vehicles such as a Renault Clio or Ford Focus can still find cars available, if they are quick. Prices start from £140 for a 7 day rental.

Stuart Nassos, Managing Director for Holiday Autos says: “Normally car hire is one of the last parts of a holiday to be booked. Over the last year the industry has seen a reduction in overall fleet sizes in key locations making availability an issue, so booking at the last minute is risky.

“Busy booking periods, such as the World Cup and summer holidays, will always prompt a supply shortage. We are keen to ensure that holidaymakers don’t end up with a car that doesn’t suit their needs or pay over the odds and so have been working hard to make more cars available during the forthcoming World Cup period.”

More information about holiday autos:
Holiday Autos is the world’s largest car hire broker operating in over 5,000 locations around the world. Working with partners including Avis, Alamo, Europcar, Sixt, Hertz, National, Thrifty and Budget, holiday autos offers competitively priced car hire and a high level of service to all its customers. As well car hire, holiday autos also offers campervan hire, van hire, prestige and hybrid car hire as well as chauffeur drive services.

Travellers can book online at http://www.holidayautos.co.uk/cgi-bin/liveweb.sh/QSearch.w?ctryref=GBR&lang=EN&aff=xjeffreymilnerltd

Car hire companies and holidaymakers

On the day after the Sunday Mirror had a report entitled "Investigation reveals car hire costs us more than holiday" and featured on this blog earlier today at http://carhireexcessinsurance.blogspot.com/2010/05/sunday-mirror-investigates-car-hire.html Mark Bower, Managing Director of moneymaxim.co.uk publishes a Press Release entitled "Car Hire Companies Failing Holidaymakers".

This makes interesting reading and you can see the release at the insurance4carrental.com site at http://www.insurance4carrental.com/Car_Hire_Companies_Failing_Holidaymakers_May_10.htm

It seems to make a great deal of sense to buy car hire insurance wisely.

Sunday Mirror investigates car hire costs

The Sunday Mirror ran a story on Sunday 16th May 2010 entitled " Investigation reveals car hire costs us more than holiday"

The consumer investigation said "Renting a car for a summer holiday abroad can now cost more than the package deal, a Sunday Mirror investigation shows.

Rental charges have surged, with prices in Spain almost 200 per cent more than they were two years ago."

Industry experts expect prices to soar again this summer because of a shortage of cars. Rental firms cut fleets because of the world recession - and will now force up prices.

The Sunday Mirror compared the cost of hiring a medium-sized family car during next month's school half-term with online package deals.

Stephen Hayward's article quoted these high costs.

Cooperative Travel are offering seven nights' self-catering in Faliraki, Rhodes, for £284 per head while a car on the Greek island with Avis costs £360 for the week.

On Spain's Costa Brava, a week's bed and breakfast with Bookable Holidays is £278 per person, while a car costs £300 with Nationalcar. At Alicante, Spain, the daily car price has jumped from £16.50 to £31.

Gareth Robinson of carrentals.co.uk, which tracks the cheapest deals, said: "The recession has had a major impact with hire firms unable to increase the number of vehicles due to lack of funding.

"A limited supply of cars has restricted availability and seen prices increase - a trend set to continue this summer."

There was a hire car quote in Crete for example with the dearest car hire deal being an Opel Astra at Avis Costing £361.12 or cheapest being a Ford Focus at Alamo Costing £205.49

There were numerous examples and the Sundat Mirror article suggests where to get the best deal from:
You can save hundreds of pounds on holiday car hire by shopping around.

No one car hire firm or buying method - phone or online - is consistently the cheapest or the most expensive.

Comparison websites such as travelsupermarket.com and carrentals.co.uk are good for finding the lowest prices.

But brokers such as Holiday Autos ( http://www.holidayautos.co.uk/cgi-bin/liveweb.sh/QSearch.w?ctryref=GBR&lang=EN&aff=xjeffreymilnerltd ) and Holiday Cars Direct also offer reasonable deals by negotiating rates with car hire companies. Airlines and tour operators can also be a good bet as they usually have an agreement with one of the international car hire firms.

You can sometimes get a cheaper deal through links on their websites rather than contacting hire firms direct. But these prices are still unlikely to match those on cost comparison websites."

The article went on to mention car hire insurance, a popular topic on this blog. "The biggest bugbear for drivers hiring a car abroad is all the pitfalls associated with insurance.

Some firms charge you the first £300 of any repair bill, others as much as £1,000.

Extra insurance known as excess waiver is essential if you don't want to get stung for a tiny dent.

Most hire fees include basic insurance. But you should also say yes to the excess waiver, likely to be £5-£10 a day. If you are offered this when you pick up the car, check you haven't already paid for it via a separate policy with your UK supplier, often much cheaper. Airport reps often try to sell you more cover regardless of what you've arranged at home. Daily and annual policies are also available.

That should allow you to claim back any excess should you damage the car.

Rochelle Turner of consumer group Which? said: "Check the extra waiver covers you for everything. Some won't cover the windscreen, wheels, tyres, roof or underside of the car."


No individual providers were quoted, but by following this link http://www.insurance4carrental.com/#Click There are a few to choose from here.

Could we be in for another summer of car hire shortages as last year? It is sensible to book early so at least you can guarantee the price and car. One car hire representative told us last August that the way they got round the shortage of car hire vehicles was to put the prices up! We don't want too much of that this year, thanks.

Full Sunday Mirror report here http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2010/05/16/investigation-reveals-car-hire-costs-us-more-than-holiday-115875-22261647/

iCarhireinsurance.com been awarded membership of ABTA Trade Industry Partner Scheme

May 2010

Halo Insurance Services Ltd becomes ABTA partner

Halo Insurance Services Ltd, and its registered trading name, iCarhireinsurance.com, have been awarded membership of ABTA’s Trade Industry Partner Scheme.

ABTA represents over 5,800 travel agents and tour operators throughout the British Isles. Its Trade Industry Partner Scheme is open to companies involved in the travel industry and is designed to strengthen links between travel industry suppliers, ABTA and ABTA members

The Trade Industry Partner scheme has been in operation since 1996 and includes tourist boards, accountancy firms, legal practices, airlines, PR companies, insurance companies and many other leading businesses involved in the travel industry. Whilst not bound by ABTA’s membership rules and code of conduct, partners are required to adhere to the scheme rules.

Halo will be a valuable ABTA partner. It’s new product, iCarhireinsurance.com is a groundbreaking new online insurance service that takes the jargon, hassle and expense out of car hire insurance by offering policies that are cheaper and more comprehensive than those sold at car rental desks, can be used with all car rental agreements worldwide, and quick and easy to choose and buy.

Ernesto Suarez, Founder and CEO of Halo Insurance Services Limited said, “We are proud to be a Trade Industry Partner of ABTA and look forward to working closely with other ABTA members and partners.”

If you would like to know more about iCarhireinsurance.com car hire insurance products visit this page http://www.insurance4carrental.com/iCarhireinsurance.htm

New car hire insurance added to insurance4carrental.com

Odyssey Insurance is the UK`s leading online excess insurance provider, giving business and leisure travellers the best deal to easily insure their car rental Excess insurance, thus avoiding paying out additional monies (Excess Waiver charges) to a car rental company.

This product is now being advertised on the insurance4carrental.com site.

They have a choice of policies from £3.99 per day to policies for 75 to 85 age group at £59.99 and £69.99 for worlwide cover.

To find out more about this new car hire excess insurance provider go to:
http://www.insurance4carrental.com/Odyssey.htm

Reassurance of having car hire excess insurance

It is always worrying when you drive a rental car that you could accidently damage the vehicle and even the thought of minor damage can be of concern, so it is wise to always make sure you have car hire excess insurance that will cover you for those extra incidents of damage.

In late December 2009, I rented a new style Volkswagen Polo over the New Year and early part of January. The car only had a few kilometers on the clock and I must have only been the second or third hirer.

After having a car rental experience back in 2000 where I like a lot of other people were charged money for alleged damage after returning the vehicle, I have always ensured that I have an annual car hire excess insurance policy and check the car over before leaving the car hire provider’s premises.

Naturally there are times when this proves harder, if it is dark or raining or both. Quite often the vehicle will just have come from the car wash and any damage would be difficult to spot.

On numerous occasions I have found an attendant after spotting marks on the car and have had these signed off by the representative before driving away.

With the December / January rental the car was clean and looked ok and it was parked quite close to other cars awaiting collection and there were four of us who wanted to get our liggage in the car quickly and get to our destination after the flight.

A few days later I parked the car and went close to the curb of the pavement. I looked at the car afterwards and thought there was damage on the hub cap. This was a plastic one and not an alloy wheel.

I immediately thought, should I try and find a VW dealership to buy another, or was I covered under the insurance policy that I had taken out with insurance4carhire.com.

I went onto the Internet accessing the site via http://www.insurance4carrental.com/ and saw that this long established company covers the policyholder for excess on damage to the rental vehicle including the undercarriage, excess on theft, and damage to windows and tyres. I contacted the company explaining the situation regarding the hub cap and was told I would be covered.

I returned the car and before I took the keys back to have it checked over pulled out the rental agreement and saw that damage to the offside wheel had been noted. I had not damaged the wheel trim as a result of my parking. In fact thinking back on the situation it would have been impossible to do as the curb was not high enough for this to have caused any damage.

It was certainly reassuring to know however that had I actually caused damage there, the car hire insurance policy would have covered the issue.

World Cup car hire from Holiday Autos

The World Cup is kicking off soon, so why not sort out your car hire with holiday autos and get the car you want.

With 10% off South Africa car hire on selected cars for bookings and rentals until 31 May, make sure you get there early to catch the action. For great ideas on where to go on non-match days why not visit the holiday autos useful guide, or visit their World Cup page for more details on the football.

To make a booking or find out more follow this link to holiday autos
http://www.holidayautos.co.uk/cgi-bin/liveweb.sh/QSearch.w?ctryref=GBR&lang=EN&aff=xjeffreymilnerltd

Car hire from holiday autos for Grand Prix May 10

Formula 1 season starts today in Barcelona Spain. If you are planning on visiting one of the European Grand Prix races this summer and need to rent a car, look no further than holiday autos.

09 May - Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix, Barcelona
16 May - Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix, Monaco

30 May - Formula 1 Turkish Grand Prix, Istanbul

Don't forget your travel insurance either.

For more information about holiday autos follow this link
http://www.holidayautos.co.uk/cgi-bin/liveweb.sh/QSearch.w?ctryref=GBR&lang=EN&aff=xjeffreymilnerltd

Don't forget you car hire excess insurance as well, if you are renting a car a few times a year consider taking out an annual policy. This is great value. There are several insurance providers advertising on the insurance4carrental.com site - insurance4carhire - questor - daily excess.com - essential travel and iCarhireinsurance.com

Enjoy the motor racing season ahead.