Rent-a-car in Mallorca

[sal]

Booked a week for a family holiday at the end of June in Mallorca.

Anyone knows a decent low-cost rent-a-car company that operates from the airport? In the internets I see a lot that offer small cars for as little as £30/week, which is suspiciously low. I know there were a lot of dirty tricks used by them in Spain a couple of years ago, but can't justify the expense for one of the well known brands as it will most likely be only used a couple of times. I know that there are decent low-cost companies as i have used Autoreisen in Tenerife and was wondering if someone might now a similar in Mallorca.

[northernladuk]

You checked IPSE to see who they have discounts with?

Whatever you hire take out the knocks insurance or whatever it is that covers the excess thing. You'll be covered if they try and rip you off over existing knocks and also when someone damages the car. IMO it's an absolute must when driving over there.

[clearedforlanding]

Rule of thumb - Only take prepaid fuel bookings unless you really have read the T&Cs end to end and understand them. Then read them again. This is where the lower tier (Goldcar, Firefly (Hertz budget) etc) hire car companies make their money.

I would recommend iCarhireinsurance to get an annual worldwide excess and tires & glass policy for under 60GBP (Europe Annual, under 40) as opposed to paying a daily fee to the car hire company in Spain which can really add to the price.

SIXT have been a customer of mine for over a decade, and as such, I have access to their internal rates. Please feel happy to PM me if you would like me to get a price for something fun for you.

*Use Amex where possible. They are very customer centric when it comes to car hire problems.

[FrontEnder]

Just do a search on the likes of rentalcars.com.

MSE 's guides on stuff like this are usually my first point of call:

Cheap car hire: £100s off hire & insurance abroad - MSE

[GJABS]

Rule of thumb - Only take prepaid fuel bookings unless you really have read the T&Cs end to end and understand them. Then read them again. This is where the lower tier (Goldcar, Firefly (Hertz budget) etc) hire car companies make their money.

+1
The problem with the "cheap companies such as Goldcar is that they require you to pre-pay for a full tank of fuel, but then also charge you a "fuel service charge" of around 30 euros ON TOP.
Best to use a more reputable company such as Enterprise or National.

[clearedforlanding]

A quick search tells me that you can have a midsize car, full to full with OK Rental for a week at 57,84GBP for a week in June. If you don't take their expensive insurance the credit card auth is quite high, but they have a high customer satisfaction score.

Just make sure you have an excess insurance policy. Some top tier Amex Cards include this. There are also solutions like iCarhireinsurance that I have mentioned above.

Note that if you use a third party policy, you will have to pay for any damages within the excess first and then claim for them. Check the handover document and make sure all damage, however, minute is marked. Any car accessories, car jack down to a screwdriver are present. And take photos of all angles of the cars in good light. If the car is parked at the back of the lot, there is probably a reason.

It is a huge issue in Spain and a common upset for tourists. Damage to a rental car in Spain is pretty much a given. as soon as you park it anywhere.

If you can't be bothered with the hassle and just want peace of mind, just book an all inclusive at a top tier rental company like Sixt, Hertz or Europcar. You will pay for it though, I guess it all depends on how much you value your time.

[GJABS]

I would recommend iCarhireinsurance to get an annual worldwide excess and tires & glass policy for under 60GBP (Europe Annual, under 40) as opposed to paying a daily fee to the car hire company in Spain which can really add to the price.

By coincidence I am going to Spain tomorrow, and have rented a car for three days from Enterprise for around £40. Without this excess insurance.
They had quoted around £12/day for it.
But the above link you provided did all three days for £12 in total, so I have bought it from there instead.
Brill

[SimonMac]

Before we took our car over there we always used https://www.goldcar.es/ for car hire, still get a Christmas card from them

[mdhd]

Try Vanrell, there fully covered insurance wasn't too expensive. Car was good, service was good. And they are a family run business.

[GJABS]

By coincidence I am going to Spain tomorrow, and have rented a car for three days from Enterprise for around £40. Without this excess insurance.
They had quoted around £12/day for it.
But the above link you provided did all three days for £12 in total, so I have bought it from there instead.
Brill

It was funny when I got to the Enterprise check-in desk at Malaga on Saturday; the woman behind the desk started selling me on the excess insurance policy at £12/day. So I showed her the policy I had bought online from iCarhireinsurance, for £12 for the whole three days, and she couldn't believe it.
"It ees soo cheap" she said, "and from a goood company as well!" (Allianz underwriter).

That was an interesting experience, and backs up a theory I have been formulating about the mindsets of different people in different positions in society. In this case a junior person was tasked with selling the expensive insurance. But to sell things effectively you have to believe in the product. Solution to problem: Ensure that every employee of the company is a little bit brainwashed, and genuinely believes that their company's products are the best.
And I predict that me showing her the reality that that was not the case (that the insurance was actually 3x the price) won't in fact change her underlying view at all. She will use some form of logic to try to reason it away. The result is an uncomfortable feeling known as "cognitive dissonance", which is (from Wikipedia): "is the mental stress (discomfort) experienced by a person who simultaneously holds two or more contradictory beliefs, ideas, or values"