Hiring a car in France.

Hi,
We will be flying to France in April and will need a hire car for a week in the middle of the holiday, the week after Easter approx. Does anyone know if its better to book a car now from here, with the airline or directly with a car hire company or if it would br better to wait until we are there in April?
Thanks.

On the Complaints Bureau recently on the RTE Player there is mention of car hire and flights being delayed so maybe its something to bear in mind. Have a look here.

I usually book in advance on general websites offering rentals from different companies with free cancellations. I tend to choose well known companies and their subsidiaries. I often check the price again closer to the date to see if there's a better option. The Easter holidays in France this year end on the 28 th of April. That might have an impact on the availability and price depending on where you are going. If you arrive at an airport, to try to avoid issues, I look closely at the opening times of the rental office and make sure my flight number is in my booking. From experience, it can help in case of delays but issues can still arise sometimes.

I always book a car in advance through https://www.autoeurope.ie/ who are basically a broker. It's easy to compare prices across multiple rental companies that way. I would never book a car with the airline personally, the price is always significantly more any time I checked.

Always book in advance, the rates you will pay at the desk will usually be higher. Argus are an Irish broker who I've used a few times over the years. Like Premos I stick to the bigger names who tend to be more conscious of their reputations. Look up the operators where you're going to and look at their reviews on Google Maps or others. Given you need the car in the middle of your holiday, try find a convenient off-airport location as they will usually be cheaper (airports locations include a premium to cover the additional costs of operating there).

Pay for excess cover through a specialist like CarHireExcess, AIG, or Blue, far cheaper than the car hire prices.

I have used skyscanner to compare different hire companies when booking cars for France last couple of years. Ideally if you are near an airport, you can book to pick up and drop back there. In my experience, the bigger the airport the better options and price.

Thanks everyone for great advice. I will definitely book in advance and will check out the brokers you mention and paying for the excess separately. I always take that and it is a significant extra cost. Not sure how that works, doing the two separately? I guess I would need to have the car hired already?
Stitcher

Stitcher said:

Not sure how that works, doing the two separately?

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You simply go to a site selling excess insurance, and choose a policy that suits you. I think the excess policies are very similar to each other. The only differences I find are for the max value of the car you can cover with it, and the value of the cover for loss of the keys. I buy by the year, rather than for an individual rental period. The usual cost is circa €50 per year for cover in Europe.

You then make sure to decline the excess cover both when booking in advance, and again at the counter. The person at the counter might try to tell you that your cover is not valid, but this will be untrue. I was once asked to prove I had such cover, but I've no idea why, or even if the hire car company was entitled to ask. I guess they have targets to hit like anyone.

Hopefully you will have no need to make a claim. If however you damage the car, and they hit you with the excess (the limit is around €2000) then they will probably hit you for all of that, and you have to pay yourself, and notify your excess cover provider. You then get all the details of the repair from your rental company, and proof of payment by you (e.g a credit card statement) and get re-imbursed by your excess cover provider. It's more hassle than getting cover from the hire company, but vastly cheaper. Also, your key hope is that you won't have to make a claim.