# Key Post: General tips on car hire including hiring child seat



## ajapale (6 Jan 2005)

Has anyone any tips or advice concerning car hire in South East England?

Ill be tavelling 'en famile' at Easter.

Thanks,
ajapale


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## Dr Moriarty (6 Jan 2005)

*Re: UK Car hire*

I've praised www.arguscarhire.com in the past, 'though I've never used them in the UK before...

They're not a rental firm as such, rather an online 'broker' service (and Irish to boot!)


> Argus will source for you the best fully inclusive rental rates from the worlds top 100 approved car rental companies both local & international with just one click.


Good service, though. You could try them for a quote and then try the given rental company's site directly..?


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## ajapale (6 Jan 2005)

*Re: UK Car hire*

Thanks DrM, thats a very useful site!
ajapale


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## Dr Moriarty (7 Jan 2005)

*Re: Ryanair Car Hire*

Y'welcome!  

It's always worth cross-checking directly with the company — see my previous post below:

*Dr Moriarty
Frequent poster
Ryanair Car Hire* 

Bringing the family to Spain for a week in March, and — having booked Ryanair flights — clicked through to their "special discounted rates" for Hertz car rentals. Priced a Ford Focus Ghia Estate for 6 days @ €249.03 and thought "hmm, not bad..."

Then went over to the main Hertz site and got a quote for the same car, same time, same place — without any mention of Ryanair.

Have just booked it direct for €227.31...
And that won't be debited to my card until the day I pick the car up.
And they accept American Express, so I'll get a further 1% discount for using my Amex Blue. Net cost €224.58, net saving for not taking the Ryanair "discount", just under €25. Price of a meal for two, where we're going...!  

Dr. M.


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## sueellen (20 Mar 2005)

*Re: >>General tips on car hire*

*Some other posts*

*ajapale
Moderator
Car Hire and Child Car Seats/Restraints*

Does anyone have any advice on how best to approach Car Child Seats and Restraints in car hire situtation.

Specifically, is it expensive?
Are there some car hire companies better than others?
Are there any third parties offering this service?
Does the car hire firm fit the seats?
Is bringing your own an option?
What manufacurer is recommended for car child seat hire?

Im interested in the uk but welcome comments regarding Ireland or the rest of the world also.

Thanks,
ajapale 

*zag
Administrator
Re: Car Hire and Child Car Seats/Restraints*

* is it expensive? - yes, it can often be cheaper to buy a seat on your first day there or bring one with you if hiring for more than a few days.
* Are there some car hire companies better than others? - possibly. Experience has shown that they simply have a bunch of more or less crappy looking seats in the office, so possibly going with a larger company may increase your chances of getting a newer (better condition) seat.
* Are there any third parties offering this service? - hiring car seats ? Unlikely.
Does the car hire firm fit the seats? - not in my experience - they just hand it to you and leave it up to you to fit it. You could always go back to the desk and complain if it doesn't fit properly, but you may get that spotty 17 year old from the Krusty Burger place in the office and that will be of no use when you have a tired and screaming child/spouse on your case.
* Is bringing your own an option? - absolutely. We traveled with a styrofoam-type seat (for older childred) for 6 months and had no problems. It only weighs a kilo or two, so it doesn't impact significantly on your allowance. However if you have one of those all-in-one-super-de-duper things that weighs 15 kilos or something you may need to reconsider.
* What manufacurer is recommended for car child seat hire - no idea.

z 

*rainyday
Moderator
Re: Car Hire and Child Car Seats/Restraints*

A friend of mine hired a car somewhere round the French/Spanish border and booked the two car seats in advance. However, when they arrived to collect the car there were no seats available. The rental guys were apologetic but unhelpful. 

*sueellen
Moderator
Re: Car Hire and Child Car Seats/Restraints*

"What manufacturer is recommended for car child seat hire "

I always understood it to be Britax.


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## RainyDay (29 May 2006)

*Re: >>General tips on car hire*



			
				zag said:
			
		

> * is it expensive? - yes, it can often be cheaper to buy a seat on your first day there or bring one with you if hiring for more than a few days.


How would this work? We're picking the car up at JFK airport, so we really need to have a car seat available at the airport - How could we pick one up over there?

Is there such a thing as a 'portable' car seat - one that folds down for easy packing?


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## zag (30 May 2006)

Rainy - it may not be easy, but basically deposit other half & kid(s) in the airport somewhere, pickup the car, drive to nearest Walmart/Costco/whatever, buy seat, return to airport and pick up family.  It will cost a bit of time and this is why it may not be easy.

Depending on the age of the child it may be easier to bring one of the large (full size, with back support) styrofoam seats with you since these won't use much of your weight allowance.  At worst, it could get the whole famliy as far as the Walmart/Costco/whatever where you get to buy the proper seat . . .

The thing with car hire company seats is that you really don't know how good/bad they are going to be anyway, so bringing/buying your own at least gives you an element of certainty in this regard.

z


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## galwegian44 (1 Jun 2011)

Just booked a car yesterday with www.arguscarhire.com and cancelled today. When I booked I chose 'Volkswagen Golf TDI or similar' and when the booking processed I found that my similar cars were:

Suzuki Swift 1.3 D, 
Fiat Punto 1.3 D, 
Fiat Linea 1.3 D, 
Renault Clio D 

After checking the website of the Car Rental company I found that the Volkswagen Golf belongs in Car Group E while the similar cars were in Car Group P1....not even in the same Car Group.

Phoned Arguscarhire this morning and a very pleasant lady told me that having booked a Volkswagen Golf TDI or similar I could indeed be offered a Fiat Punto at the car rental office....so I cancelled.

Seems like Car Rental is still an area of smokes and mirrors!


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## Sandals (1 Jun 2011)

Heard on radio one sat morn "on the business" a woman who has come up with the idea of an inflatable booster seat and the inflatable car seat.

I just google 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/inflatable-booster-seat-Baby-Products/s?ie


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## nai (1 Jun 2011)

I booked a car on carhire3000.ie for portugal - got a good price but was told after booking that child seats were payable locally - checked with the company and rental was 14.75 per day for two seats - big sum onto the rental rate.


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## huskerdu (1 Jun 2011)

nai said:


> I booked a car on carhire3000.ie for portugal - got a good price but was told after booking that child seats were payable locally - checked with the company and rental was 14.75 per day for two seats - big sum onto the rental rate.




Always worth checking the cost of a car seat. 
Some companies charge per rental, some per week, some per day, which can  make a huge difference to the overcall hire cost. 

In general, if you get a very good price quote from a small hire car company  in a tourst resort, check the extras very carefully - petrol, car seat, insurance. Often, they can bring the price up a lot.


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