Friendly staff, lots of locations, good selection of cars, accept younger drivers
Disadvantages:
pricey for younger drivers, no inspection of car prior to rental . . . not always a bad thing . . .
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
After a last minute visit to friends in the US was arranged, it was quickly decided that I would need some form of transport when I got there, as the US is rather big! So I jumped on Google and started checking out car rental companies. Those of you that have found yourselves in a similar situation will be aware that there are rather a lot of rental companies out there, fortunately I was spared the agony of deciding between Thrifty, Alamo, Hertz, Avis et al by one deciding factor…. My age! Very few car rental companies in the US will rent to anyone under the age of 25, and only one of these had an office in Providence, Rhode Island. So it was that I became a customer of Dollar Rent A Car.
THE WEBSITE and MAKING A RESERVATION
This will most likely be your first point of contact with Dollar so they want to make a good impression right? Well, yes actually! The site is nicely laid out, with the "Rates and Reservations" screen displayed by default. From here you can select your pickup and if different, drop-off, point. Although I am reviewing my experience with Dollar in the United States, it is worth knowing that they do have sites throughout the world in a good selection of locations.
Anyway, once you have chosen your location(s) you then select your dates, times and car type. In the USA, you are given the choice of Economy, Compact, Intermediate, Full Size, Premium and Luxury cars with Economy cars at the lower end of the market - think Hyundai Accent etc, moving up to Luxury cars such as Daimler-Chryslers mighty 300C. As expected Economy cars are the cheapest option at around $20 (£12) a day + fees and taxes moving way up the scale to $250 (£145) a day + fees for a Luxury vehicle. Also available are Minivans, Convertibles and SUV's, all at a higher rate than a standard car.
A box on the right hand side of the screen shows you the cost of your choice including fees and taxes, and a link is available to display a comprehensive breakdown of said fees. Below this box is a link titled Important Local Policy Information, which I would strongly suggest you check out as it contains all sorts of useful information about driving restrictions and other terms and conditions…it was here and only here that I found out about the $30 a day surcharge for 21-24 year old drivers!
When you are happy with your selections, click proceed to continue. You will then be asked for your name, phone number and email, but not a credit or debit card at this point. Once you have provided your details, you are ready to make your reservation by clicking the green "Reserve Now" button. You are then given your confirmation number and rate breakdown and details of your itinerary are emailed to you. I would suggest you print a copy of this and take it with you, just in case.
THE PICKUP
Arriving at Providence Airport, I was directed toward the Dollar rental office by the main entrance (not all offices are located within the airport building, check before you leave!) a friendly and efficient clerk asked for my name and confirmed my reservation - I didn't need my printed copy but better safe than sorry!- I was then asked for my Driving Licence and credit card which I duly provided. At this point, the clerk asked if I would consider an upgrade from an Economy to a Compact, which I declined as I was on a tight budget as it was! Having confirmed all my details, the clerk got on her 2 way radio and asked for a Hyundai Accent to be made ready for me. A garbled response came back followed by a lengthy pause during which many buttons were pressed on my clerks computer…it turned out there were no cars suiting my needs available. I was not best pleased to say the least, but I was swiftly placated by a free upgrade to a Compact Dodge Neon, coincidentally the car my mother owns in the UK!
Having confirmed there was a Dodge Neon available, I was then offered the "Gold" insurance package, covering me against every possible eventuality including uninsured drivers. I would have liked to have taken this but at $49 a day it was beyond my means. I was then offered the "Silver" package which wasn't so comprehensive but still covered me for collision damage. At $25 a day this was still beyond my pathetic budget so I had to take the $11 a day "Liability" insurance. This is mandatory in the US and is equivalent to our Third Party Only cover. This meant that if anything were to happen to the car, I would be liable and would have to pay a $350 excess, fair dinkum, I'd just better be careful. At this point I was also advised that I would be charged a fuel surcharge of $40 but this would be deducted if I returned the car with a full tank of "gas". My card was then swiped on a manual card machine (one which takes a physical copy of the card on a sales voucher rather than electronically.) This is because your account is not debited until you return the car and an inspection is made.
Paperwork signed off, the clerk told me to wait outside the airport where I would be met by a driver. After 10 minutes waiting, with no sign of my blue Dodge, I went back inside to ask what was occurring, only to find out was being met by a bus driver who would take me to the Dollar Rental lot and office. How stupid did I feel! Stepping back outside I now got on the bright yellow Dollar bus I had somehow failed to notice! After a couple of minutes drive I was dropped off at the Dollar sales office proper. Handing the clerk my paperwork, I was given the keys and a map of the local area and left to get on with it!
Getting into the car my first thought was "Right, where's the steering wheel gone" Getting into the correct side of the vehicle enlightened me somewhat and I had a look round to get myself familiar with things. Fortunately I knew where everything was as my mum's car was pretty much exactly the same, albeit with the steering wheel on the proper side! This car was an '05 model 2.0 Auto in metallic blue and was spotlessly clean inside. There were a few marks on the bodywork but I had been assured that they had already been noted and I wasn't going to get the blame for them!
Setting off proved to be a bit of an adventure - I kept looking for the rear view mirror above my left shoulder instead of my right and kept opening the door instead of pulling up the handbrake! Driving on the left also took some getting used to, especially at the first junction when I totally forgot what way the traffic would be coming from and ended up looking both ways about 20 times to be sure the road was clear, god knows what I must have looked like! After the first drive on alien territory, things started to fall into place, and it started to feel natural being on the wrong side of the car, on the wrong side of the road! I had the car for a week, and in that time put over 500 miles on it. Not a massive amount I know, but for my first time it was enough!
THE DROP OFF
After a thoroughly enjoyable week tooling around in this nippy auto it was time to take the car back to Dollar. At some point in the week a largish gouge had appeared on the rear bumper of the car so I was freaking out, expecting a $350 bill on top of my $560 rental charge. When I returned the car I reversed into a parking space, went into the office and gave the clerk behind the desk my mileage, fuel report (full tank) and the keys. He smiled nicely, accepted the paperwork and printed off my receipt…for $560! I made no mention of the damage, and he didn't ask. Result!
The big yellow bus was waiting outside to take me back to the airport and I hopped aboard. The driver pulled away, only for me to yell at him to Stop! I had left my luggage in the "trunk" of the car! Running back to the office, I was dismayed to find the car gone already. Explaining my predicament to the smiling clerk, I was told to wait at the far end of the car park by a roller door. This was raised and there was "my" car, already washed and dried! The valeter popped the "trunk" and I reclaimed my baggage, all too aware of the gouge in the now very shiny bumper. Still no mention was made and I was free to get back on the bus. Somehow I had gotten away with it. Either they didn't care that much, or they weren't aware of the condition of the car before I took it. Whatever the explanation, I was one happy bunny!
CONCLUSION
All in all, I had a very enjoyable experience with Dollar, the staff were friendly and efficient, the choice of cars was very good and the booking process was hassle free, with no hidden costs other than the insurance which I should have expected. Definitely recommended for everyone, especially younger drivers.
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