Reader mail: If you’re under 25, how do you rent a car without huge surcharges?
First time here? Check out the site's "greatest hits" or read a random post from the archives. Feel free to ask a question, and consider subscribing to the latest posts via RSS or e-mail. Thanks for visiting!
Reader Kristin writes:
My boyfriend and I are planning a trip to Alaska this summer and realized we’d save a lot of money in our travels by renting a car once we get there (the Alaska railroad is *expensive*). The only problem is that we will both be under the age of 25 when we’re there (he’ll be 24, I’ll be 23) and every rental car agency I can find would charge us a huge daily fee. We both have impeccable driving records (not even so much as a parking ticket between us), good car insurance, and AAA. Is there anything we could do to get around this fee, or any company out there that trusts us under 25s?
This is a tough one. For the most part, rental car companies aren’t very flexible with the surcharges for under-25 renters, unless you’re renting your car as a government employee. You can be the greatest driver in the world, but that’s not going to matter here. Your age means higher rates. Sorry.
There are some minor exceptions, so it’s important to shop around. But don’t get your hopes up.
Check the local rules. Most national chains, perhaps with a whiff of irony, will charge $25 per day for an under-25 renter. But those policies are national guidelines, not hard-and-fast rules. Many local outlets of major chains will charge less than the maximum. Others, such as those in New York, will charge more. For example, a quick search shows me that National Car Rental charges only $10 per day surcharge at its Anchorage Airport location. It’s still a fee, but it’s less than they could charge, and less than their peers are charging.
Try mom-and-pop shops. Another option is to call (instead of surfing the web) to contact smaller, local providers. Find them in the yellow pages (or an online directory) and then work the phones. These shops might not rent the newest or nicest vehicles — ten years ago, I rented a crappy little Ford Fiesta for a few days from a no-name local rental company on Kodiak Island. But these local companies may be more forgiving with the under-25 requirement. This may take some legwork, but it could save you a bundle. Mentioning your clean driving record might have more influence on a family-owned one-shop rental joint than on a global corporation’s local representative or franchisee.
Work your memberships. Finally, if you’re a member of any organization that has a group discount code with a car rental company, see if you can use that affiliation to waive the surcharge. It depends on the terms of the umbrella agreement that the association negotiated. Again, you might need to use the phone to get the straight story. I get little cards for car rental discounts from my insurance company (USAA), my credit union, my alumni association, professional associations, and even my gas bill. Check your member benefits, and see if something works. You may need to show a member card when you show up at the rental counter.
If you reserve via the web, print copies of everything, including the general rental policies. Many rental chains won’t give you the under-25 surcharge up front, but will bury it in their FAQs. Look carefully, and print a record of it.
Also, print a copy of your personal auto insurance policy and take it with you when you travel. Having proof of insurance could assuage a nervous rental agent.
Bottom line: When it comes to car rentals, being under 25 stinks. You’ll need to work harder to get a deal, if you get one at all. But if it’s any consolation, you still have your youth.
(image)
RSS Feed / Subscribe
Subscribe to Posts by Email
April 9th, 2007 at 4:55 pm |
Thanks for the good advice! Now to start hitting the phones ^_^
April 9th, 2007 at 7:54 pm |
Good luck Kristin, underage fees were the bane of my existence for years. Made turning 25 that much better!
Also, I don’t know where you’re going in Alaska, but if you’re heading north of Fairbanks, make sure to check that the rental agency allows their cars on the Dalton Highway. Some companies charge an extra surcharge if you’ll be driving on it, others won’t allow their cars on it at all.
April 9th, 2007 at 9:43 pm |
I don’t understand why this isn’t illegal. Isn’t it pure age discrimination? How can they get away with this behavior, why aren’t we seeing the same outrage as we would if a car rental company refused to serve a particular race or gender?
April 10th, 2007 at 5:50 am |
if there’s anything worse than being under 25 and wanting to rent a car, it’s being under 21 and wanting to rent a car outside of like…well, maybe New York’s the only state in the US that has a law requiring rental places to rent to 18 year olds.
Some mom and pop car rental places are willing to rent to people 18-21 who aren’t on government business, but virtually nobody will rent to someone under 21 otherwise.
The irony is that my mom, who sucks at driving and has only driven a car maybe half a dozen times in the past year doesn’t have to pay as much and can get pretty much anything she wants vs. me, who, like Kristin, didn’t even so much as get a parking ticket in 3 years of excessive almost-daily driving tens of thousands of miles all over LA and Southern California and I can’t rent in 99% of places, and in the 1% that do, I have to cough up unbelievable surcharges.
April 10th, 2007 at 6:00 am |
Erk, on a sidenote, some car sharing companies aren’t that crazy about age minimums and let people 21+ sign up for memberships. I think Flexcar’s minimum age was 21..so you might want to see if there are such services available up in Alaska, sometimes they’re cheaper than renting (particularly with the aforementioned surcharges).
April 10th, 2007 at 9:28 am |
The underage surcharge is legal because it follows the same statistics as insurance companies use to calculate the premiums for young drivers. Though honestly not much of a calculation the $25/day keeps most younger drivers in smaller less-expensive cars rather than the $40k luxury vehicles.
Something that you can try in some situations (but this comes with a BIG warning) is to have a friend or family member rent the car for you and then pay them back. You save the $25/day. However the BIG warning here is that if you are in an accident you will void the collision/damage waiver since you are not the renter. This leads to another possible downfall. When you return the car, if the rental agent suspects that the car was driven primarily by an under 25 driver the car often goes through a much tougher service check and it will be notated in the file of your friend or family member, meaning future action might be possible by the rental company.
April 10th, 2007 at 11:51 am |
If you happen to work for a mid to large company that does any sort of travel, check to see if there is a corporate account. Most of the big companies will allow an under 25 to rent at the normal corporate rate without surcharge (as you are technically renting for business).
April 10th, 2007 at 12:28 pm |
[…] If you’re under 25, how do you rent a car without huge surcharges? [Upgrade: Travel Better] (Photo: dtkindler) […]
April 10th, 2007 at 1:42 pm |
UHHHH what the hell? How is this even a suggestion? Get someone over the age of 25 to rent the car for you? Wow! Did you come up with that one all by yourself? Horrible idea - get in an accident and you’re screwed.
Being under the age of 25 myself and renting cars on a regular basis here is the best thing I was able to come up with that is a million times better than just biting the bullet with all the fees:
Get an Executive membership at costco. The cost is 100$ but you get the membership right away and it’s worth it.
Then rent a car from Budget Car Rentals.
The executive costco membership waives the 21-24 underage driver fee (savings of 25$/day), allows you a free upgrade in car categorey, so basically if you’re going to get a full size vehicle, you only pay for what a mid-size would cost - and finally they also waive 10% for being a costco executive member.
April 10th, 2007 at 1:57 pm |
Actually it was a real world example from my time as a rental agent. We saw it quite a bit, especially around Prom and graduation time. And yes, as I said, if you are in an accident you are liable for the full replacement cost of the vehicle. However, that fact did not deter a lot of parents and friends from doing it anyway and legally all we could do was inform the renter of the liability if they let another person drive the vehicle.
Next time, be a bit nicer when replying, your insinuation of ignorance or stupidity wasn’t appreciated. Cheers.
April 10th, 2007 at 2:08 pm |
Brent,
While your Costco suggestion is good, your tone with Jason’s comment isn’t. Please be civil.
April 10th, 2007 at 4:38 pm |
USAA members get the surcharge waived at Avis, along with a decent discount. I wanted to rent a car over spring break and this saved us a nice chunk of change.
April 11th, 2007 at 11:41 am |
Hi Kristin,
I work for the Alaska Railroad and saw your mention that it’s expensive. I wanted to let you know we have specials all through the summer, including one for half off to Denali.
And, we offer discounts! Military and Alaska Residents get 20% off -and they are allowed to book travel for visiting family and friends, even if they aren’t traveling with the visitors. If you are a University of Alaska Fairbanks or Anchorage student, you get 1/2 off the rail price with your student ID.
We have “Web Specials” & “Deals for Alaskans” pages on our website at www.alaskarailroad.com/passenger and an RSS feed on the site to announce new specials. You can subscribe to this feed for automatic notice when we post a new discount or special.
Finally, there is also a 2 for 1 coupon in the Northern Lights coupon book sold by Great Northern Publishing & Alaska Travel Discounts. (alaska-discounts.com)
I hope this will help you as you plan your Alaska vacation.
April 11th, 2007 at 12:40 pm |
[…] If you’re under 25, how do you rent a car without huge surcharges? [Upgrade: Travel Better] (Photo: dtkindler) […]
April 11th, 2007 at 11:30 pm |
I’ve seen under-21 pilots unable to rent a car at destination. “I FLEW here in a rented AIRPLANE, and you won’t rent me a CAR?!”
It’s funniest when it’s a 20-year old FO who has just climbed out of a jet.
May 2nd, 2007 at 9:26 pm |
Brent,
To use the executive membership to get the 21-24 underage fee, do you have to call Costco Travel?
I did not see anything on their website.
Thanks,
jess
May 7th, 2007 at 6:12 pm |
Interestingly, I called Costco Travel and Budget and both say that the underage
May 19th, 2007 at 6:12 pm |
Did anyone find out whether and how that Costco/Budget deal actually works? Would be interesting to know as I will also be needing a rental car in LA this summer.
May 19th, 2007 at 9:03 pm |
FYI, an update from a reader:
April 10th, 2008 at 11:48 am |
Thrifty has a discount code - HT14004112 - that waives the additional charge for under 25 drivers or additional drivers. It worked for my son.
Good luck!
May 7th, 2008 at 10:58 pm |
Are there any considerations for CDL holders under 25? I can drive a 75′ long, 40 ton truck through any major city and average 120k miles a year accident free, but still can’t rent a tiny car without a surcharge? I’ve wondered about that for a couple years now.