Car rental through Costco

[ky.]

Hi everyone,

When renting a car through costco travel is the price I see the 'final price'? I'm seeing $457 for our week but will I have to pay any extra fees and such when I pick up the car? Last time I rented a car from Expedia from an off airport site rental place, I paid expedia about $100 'for the week' but they had to pay another nearly $400 when I picked up the car for insurance and toll fee act.

 

[CanucksRock]

The price is what you see …as long as you decline all those extras when you rent it.

 

[EACarlson]

Toll fees will still be a thing, you can get a Visitor Toll Pass and bring those costs down to actual toll charges and not pay anything extra. Accepting the insurance is dependent on your risk tolerance and what if any personal auto insurance you have at home and what it will cover. Your credit card may offer some insurance also. A minor accident could easily have $10k US in damages, plus you have to pay the rental company for loss of use of the vehicle while it's being repaired.

 

[peacefrogdog]

I have never had any issues with renting cars through Costco. If you see a good deal there, book it without concern. Can always cancel it up until a few days before too.

 

[migel]

As previous posters stated, Costco price is final. And I find renting through Costco, I don't get the usual pressure sales to get their 'add-ons', especially insurance, not that it's a huge issue, I always decline. You can find better deals elsewhere, however most of those are non-refundable.

Also, Costco prices are in USD (I'm assuming you're renting at MCO), so if you use a standard Canadian credit card, the conversion rate is bad.

Add-on insurance is optional, provided you have coverage on your credit card or personal home/vehicle insurance. I rent often and over the years I've encountered the occasional agent who tried high pressure tactics regarding insurance, even insisting it was mandatory. It's not. If you use your personal insurance, you usually have to enter the insurance company name, occasionally the policy number when you sign the documents. Good luck.

 

[dancin Disney style]

I rent through Costco every few months. A couple things others have mentioned that I'm going to disagree with. The high pressure tactics at the counter are luck of the draw and has nothing to do with booking via Costco....it depends on where you are renting from and the person at the counter. I will almost exclusively rent from Alamo. I do not go to the counter generally, they have kiosks at most airport locations. You can also add your rental company memberships (ex. Budget Fastbreak) to the booking in order to skip the counter. The optional toll transponder does not bring down the toll fees in fact it will cost you more. It's a convenience item. You will be charged a daily fee for using it and the fee is for every single day you have the car whether you use the toll roads daily or not. That said, there are some areas that do not have cash toll collection booths so in that case you have no option but to pay for the transponder. As to Canadian credit card conversion rate being bad. It is all the same unless you have a card that does not charge a Forex fee. Even if you had the option to pay cash for the rental, getting USD cash from a bank also comes with a Forex fee. If you want to nit pick there are a few options to exchange for slightly lower rates but no matter what there are fees. JMO, unless you are exchanging tens of thousands of dollars the difference in a percent or two is so minimal it really doesn't matter....if you can afford a vacation to the US, you can afford another $100. Insurance, I have only ever been asked once for proof. I have an add on from my own car insurance that allows me to extend my full coverage to any non-owned vehicle that I drive...it includes out of country. The cost is approx $40/yr. Plus, I have additional coverage from my platinum credit card and that one covers loss of use.

 

[jcourtney]

The optional toll transponder does not bring down the toll fees in fact it will cost you more. It's a convenience item. You will be charged a daily fee for using it and the fee is for every single day you have the car whether you use the toll roads daily or not. That said, there are some areas that do not have cash toll collection booths so in that case you have no option but to pay for the transponder. As to Canadian credit card conversion rate being bad. It is all the same unless you have a card that does not charge a Forex fee. Even if you had the option to pay cash for the rental, getting USD cash from a bank also comes with a Forex fee. If you want to nit pick there are a few options to exchange for slightly lower rates but no matter what there are fees.

Fully agree with everything in this post (especially the part about the credit card conversion rate) but I will clarify something about the tolls. There are a few different ways to go about paying your tolls in Orlando. Don't use the toll transponder through the car rental company. Most companies charge daily and you will be overcharged.

Toll fees will still be a thing, you can get a Visitor Toll Pass and bring those costs down to actual toll charges and not pay anything extra.

For a visitor I would recommend the Visitor Toll Pass like this post mentions. This option only charges for what you use. Make sure you are looking into the right thing: https://tinyurl.com/2an7zqkx