We are looking to book for Sept 24-Oct 1 pickup and dropoff in Avignon, France. I just did a comparison of the AutoEurope (AE) UK site vs. USA site based on another question in the forums, and noticed substantial savings on their quoted rates. I'm trying to figure out what the gotchas on here. As an example, I did a search for: Class: Compact/Midsize Car: "Audi 3 or similar" Insurance: "No insurance excess (deductible)" Dates: September 24 to Oct 1 Pickup: Avignon
Drop-off: Avignon AE-US site = 610.32 USD AE-UK site = 180.89 GBP (~286.616 USD according to XE.com on 9/11/2011) (Note: The AE-UK site says it is with "Fully Refundable Excess" which I'm assuming is the same as "No insurance excess (deductible)"). That is an incredible difference in price even when I factor in a 3% surcharge by my Credit Card for an international charge. What am I missing? What are the gotchas?
Posted by
Tilburg, Netherlands
2829 posts
Just geographic targeting, I've used such deals before (from the Italian site). Indeed, I got the point of using the Italian site to book a car rental in US while living in US at the time!
Posted by
OP
Seattle, WA, US
16 posts
One thing I did notice is that it doesn't seem to be possible to decline CDW on the UK site, whereas on the USA site you can get the "Basic" coverage which excludes it. This is important for me because I'm using my premium coverage from American Express which will act as my primary insurance. However, this requires me to decline CDW.
Posted by
winston salem, nc, usa
1078 posts
No gothcas here. I consistantly use Expedia.co.uk to rent and sometimes to buy inter-EU flights on flag carriers that just don't show up on US sites and the prices reflect your post.
Enjoy!
Posted by
Knoxville, TN, USA
7209 posts
There were no gotchas when I rented from autoeurope.eu instead of autoeurope.com The price was much cheaper and I got zero deductible insurance which was not even possible from autoeurope.com I was a little nervous showing up to claim my vehicle...expecting the worst, but everything was fine.