I am renting a car in Dublin for one day. The choice is between Enterprise and Hertz. Similar in cost. I am 75 so that is a concern.
Has experience shown one is better than the other , especially for an older driver?
Posted by
Mountains of S. Oregon
741 posts
A car is a car, but the fine print about age needs review. Several companies require a "certificate of good health" from an MD for 75 and over (or over 75?). Just check the T&Cs for the individual companies.
I've rented from both, and am only 73, so I haven't investigated age yet. I found Enterprise to be pretty obnoxious on the CDW issue but that's probably clerk dependent.
Posted by
Colorado Mountains, USA
7937 posts
In 2018, Enterprise had the best price, most convenient pick-up and drop-off locations (will they even still pick you up and drive you to their pick-up office?), and were no problem letting us use our VISA card’s CDW coverage so we didn’t have to buy insurance through them. This year, their prices are much, much more expensive- did you find a deal?
For our upcoming trip, Dollar (as well as their corporate associated company Hertz) had much better prices, but both said that even though they’d allow us to use our VISA coverage to waive having to buy insurance at their counter, they were still requiring paying for “some” insurance, because credit cards allegedly don’t provide full coverage. That was wrong, and a deal-breaker. Some VISAs no longer provide coverage, but one of ours does, and I got written confirmation from them to show any rental clerk who questions that.
So for this year, Enterprise was too expensive, and Hertz was too restrictive regarding CDW policy. If you’ve got a good price from Enterprise, go with them. If you’re buying insurance deductible buy-down through the rental company anyway, go with the one with the best overall price.
But then I found that Avis had a better deal all around, and we’re using them for our trip this year.
Posted by
Mid-Atlantic area
7146 posts
On our last few European trips we’ve used Enterprise. It’s been a good company and we never got the hard sell for insurance or extras.
Posted by
Mountains of S. Oregon
741 posts
We've used Enterprise, Hertz, Dollar, and Thrifty. I'm sure it's a matter of the particular desk agent, but you're always likely to have a "prove it" argument over the CDW. I had Hertz reserved for a trip next week since last summer, but Thrifty beat their price by 15% just today for a 2 week rental, but they have a NI surcharge of $30, so I only saved $100. Someone really needs to create a car sharing service !