Top Features of RentalCars.com
Since I rent a lot of cars for business travel, I have used several rental websites as well as car rental companies. To tell you the truth, most of them are about the same. I haven’t run into many companies that I would call terrible. Then again, very few of them have blown me away, either.
I keep returning to RentalCars.com for a few reasons. In this section of the review, I’ll try to explain what features I like most about RentalCars.com. Keep in mind that you might have different reasons to use RentalCars.com or another company. This is just about my personal experiences and my opinions.
Access to International Rentals
I have to travel internationally a few times a year. In my industry, though, most of the companies I need to talk to are located in the countryside where there are more farms. That means I inevitably have to rent a car to drive from the airport to a meeting. No cab driver is going to drive 100 miles out of the city limits. At least not for an affordable rate.
Most of the people in my industry speak English. I also have a little bit of French, which comes in handy on occasion. When it comes to other languages, though, I barely know how to say “hello” and “goodbye.”
That can cause some real messes when trying to rent cars in other countries. My worst experience was in Italy. I arrived in Rome thinking that most people knew some English. Either the guy at the counter didn’t know a word or he was just messing with me. Either way, I arrived completely unprepared.
By using RentalCars.com, I don’t have to worry about language barriers. Instead of talking to a sales rep, I can just make all of my reservations online. When I go to the car rental location, my vehicle is always waiting for me.
If you have ever experienced the frustration of trying to rent a car in a foreign country, then you already know how important this feature is. It keeps me coming back to RentalCars.com time and time again.
Easy Cancelations
Every now and then, someone will offer to pick me up at the airport. This usually happens because they already plan to be in town. I guess they figure they might as well pick me up since it’s pretty close. Plus, it makes a good impression that can lead to better business deals. I really do appreciate it when a partnering company has someone pick me up instead of forcing me to drive a couple hours by myself.
More often than not, though, I don’t find out that someone will pick me up at the airport until the last minute. Here I am, packing my suitcase a couple days before my flight leaves, and I get a text telling me that I already have a ride. I love those texts!
The only bad thing about it is that some companies don’t want to take last-minute cancellations.
I’ve had similar problems with companies that don’t want to add a couple days to my rental agreement. I don’t always know exactly what my plans are. Business deals can change within a moment. Sometimes I just can’t get the car back on time.
With RentalCars.com, both of these situations are simple. The website handles customer care, so I can cancel or amend my reservation without hesitation. It has always worked out well for me.
Considering that a lot of people need to make changes to their travel plans, this seems like a rather obvious feature to offer. For some reason, though, a lot of companies will fight you. They try to act like your original request is set in stone. (Of course, then you show up and they have a different car from the one you asked for!)
Plenty of Choices
RentalCars.com has connections to the world’s most important car rental companies. Of course, that’s true of a lot of websites that will help you book car rentals. What’s really impressive is that RentalCars.com also tries to build relationships with smaller companies.
Hooking up with Avis isn’t a big deal. It seems like anyone can do that. Making a connection to a small rental company in southern France? That’s impressive.
RentalCars.com Prices
RentalCars.com can’t control car rental prices. Ultimately, that’s up to the companies that actually rent the cars to consumers. RentalCars.com does, however, make it easier for people to explore their options so they can choose low-priced cars from reliable companies.
The company recognizes that there are some occasions when another website will have a lower price than it does. If you find that one of its competitors has a better price, you can just contact RentalCars.com and tell them about it. Assuming that the offer is legitimate, RentalCars.com will beat the price.
Notice that RentalCars.com will do better than match the competitor’s price. They will beat it.
In my opinion, this shows that RentalCars.com is really committed to helping people rent quality cars at the lowest possible prices.
Criticisms of RentalCars.com
I have never heard of any serious criticisms of RentalCars.com. It’s a pretty straightforward concept, so I don’t know what someone would complain about. In my experience, the service works very well.
I suppose there are probably some people out there who have had negative experiences. That’s true of any company, though.
Given the number of times that I have used the site, I think it’s pretty unlikely that you will have a bad experience with RentalCars.com.
Customer Support for RentalCars.com
As far as I’m concerned, RentalCars.com is all about strong customer support. It is what makes the difference between dealing with individual rental companies and just going through the site.
I have a strong opinion about this because a rental company tried to rake me over the coals once. I had made a reservation for an SUV because I knew that I would have to drive on some pretty rough roads at high altitude. When I got to the rental location, though, they presented me with a sedan.
What!?
That’s not even remotely what I asked for, so I told them I would go elsewhere. They tried to tell me that I would have to pay since I had reserved the vehicle.
Obviously this is insane, right? I mean, I had made a reservation, but I had not reserved that specific vehicle.
Since I had made arrangements through RentalCars.com, I contacted the company immediately to tell them what had happened. They took my side immediately. I’m sure they could see where I had made a reservation for an SUV. After a few minutes (during which they were probably talking to the rental company), they came back and told me that I would not only get a full refund but I could get a get one day for free.
I ended up using a different rental agency, and RentalCars.com was fine with that since it was within its network.
It was a frustrating experience, but I got a full day of driving for free. Plus, I think the company that tried to screw me over got into some hot water with RentalCars.com.
It feels good to have someone on your side for a change.
Pros of Using RentalCars.com
- International rentals
- Policy to beat competitor prices
- Connections with large and small rental companies
- Awesome customer service
Cons of Using RentalCars.com
- I can’t think of any
Conclusion
Since I rent a lot of cars, I think that my opinion matters when it comes to RentalCars.com. Most people just rent cars when they go on vacation. I travel a lot for work, so I come into contact with a lot of rental and travel companies. That means I know what I’m talking about when I say that RentalCars.com offers unparalleled services and prices.
Whether you rent cars every week or just once a year, I think RentalCars.com will work well for you. It has helped me lower my travel expenses, which has helped my business become more successful. It really matters when you rent cars as much as I do. Even if you just need a car for a weeklong vacation, though, you would obviously rather spend less money than more money, right? Throw in great customer service, and you get an experience that blows the competition out of the water.
If you want the advice of someone who travels constantly, then you will give RentalCars.com. If you don’t, then there is a good chance that you are spending more money than necessary on subpar services. The choice is pretty obvious. You just have to make the right call.
