No Credit Card Car Rentals
No credit card car rentals may be hard to find, but if you're in a bind credit-wise, they may be the only way you can acquire a rental car. We all need to rent a car from time to time -- while our car is being repaired, or to take a long trip. There are plenty of no credit card auto rentals to be had, you just have to know where to look.
Rent-a-Wreck is a national chain of car rental companies whose policy has always been "No credit card -- no problem". The company may have a funny name, but if you're not looking to rent a luxury car, visiting a Rent-a-Wreck location may save you a ton of hassle. Admittedly, they do not rent to as many cash or check-only customers as they used to (debit card rental is becoming the norm) but it can't hurt to call the location and ask. Putting your neck out may seem frightening at first, but you can get a great deal on a rental car without a credit card, often just by calling and speaking to someone high up enough in the administration. Most franchise owners are willing to make a deal with you, though it will probably involve a hefty cash deposit. If you're looking for no credit card auto rentals, Rent-a-Wreck might just be your savior.
Car Rental No Credit Card
A recent survey of the top rental car companies, made by Credit Cards, shows that nearly all of the companies will allow you to rent their vehicles without credit cards. However, there are steps you have to take, and it may take a boatload of patience to get your no credit card car rentals.
If you don't have a credit card, or have one and don't want to use it to rent a car, debit card transactions are now widely accepted by rental car companies. Unlike credit cards, which require their customers to borrow money to pay for purchases, debit cards draw funds from the user's own checking or savings account. Debit transactions are limited to how much cash is available in those accounts, meaning you can't spend more money than you have.
The CreditCards.com survey looked at nine major car rental companies: Alamo, Avis, Budget, Enterprise, E-Z Rent A Car, Hertz, National, Rent-a-Wreck and Thrifty. The first response about no credit card auto rentals was often a simple "no". However, that answer quickly became "yes," after they were asked about renting cars with debit cards.
For a few obvious reasons, the car rental companies prefer customers use credit cards to secure auto rentals. In order to use a debit card to make a car rental, these companies impose a ton of restrictions for the customer, especially if the customer plans to use cash only to rent a vehicle.
Because more people are using debit cards exclusively for all their financial business, the car rental companies have had to begin accepting debit cards for rentals. For years and years, the major name auto rental companies stood by their company policies of only accepting credit cards for their vehicle rentals. However, as the climate in credit has changed, it has become easier to find no credit card auto rentals.
Even customers with credit cards are nervous about using them to secure a car rental -- with foreclosures rising and debt mounting for most Americans, a number of people may choose to pocket their plastic and beg car rental companies to make no credit card auto rentals.
And while the rental companies do allow debit card rentals and payments, many have restrictions and additional requirements for those not paying with credit cards. These "additional documents" may include any of the following: Credit checks, a valid driver's license or U.S. passport, the presentation of a recent utility bill, or even a copy of a return airline ticket or e-ticket itinerary. Some companies have even further restrictions, especially for customers looking for no credit card car rentals. These additional requirements and restrictions may include exclusion of certain "high end" rental cars like SUVs, daily fees for cash or debit card customers, extra deposits, and a complete ban on in state residents looking to secure a rental without a credit card.
Car rental companies say they put these restrictions in place because not having a credit card is often a sign that the renter is a credit risk, and when you're renting a vehicle worth between $20,000 and $30,000, credit risks can be too much to take. You can secure no credit card car rentals, but you'll simply have to kowtow to the will of the car rental company.
Car rental companies tend to weigh the risk of damaged or lost vehicles with the cost of the rental and deposits or fees. These companies are known to try and balance this risk and be fair to their customers, but ultimately it may end up costing these companies too much money to rent to customers without credit cards to back up their rentals.
A rental car transaction is made up of three phases: reserving a vehicle, picking up the car, and finally paying for the rental in full at the end of your rental term. Auto rental companies prefer their customers use a credit card for all three steps. Their so called "premium customers" -- those customers who are processed quickly at airports and require little or no waiting in line before they've successfully obtained a car and are on the road -- tend to use either their own credit cards or corporate credit cards. In other words, the ideal car rental customer isn't looking for no credit card auto rentals.
Without a credit card, reserving a vehicle may seem difficult, especially if you want a certain quality of car. Reservations made online or through national toll-free hotlines may accept only credit cards in the name of the renter or one of the drivers named on the rental. You may have to dig a bit -- it might be necessary to call a particular rental car agency and ask to speak to the manager in order to reserve a car with a debit card or cash. But if you really need a rental, and are looking for no credit card car rentals, this work will be worth it.
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