Hamill Care Hire

Tom K · Member

Hamill Care Hire

Judy · Guru

Hi Tom,

That does sound too good to be true. Are you sure you are comparing apples to apples? A lot will depend on the type of car (group), is it automatic or manual, number of drivers and the big difference will be the insurance. Does it include CDW and CDI insurance?

We are renting for two weeks and the difference with and without just the CDW insurance is around $300. Just make sure you know what you are getting. We always take all the insurance available for peace of mind.

Judy M.

tony2phones · Guru

Always insist on a fully detailed ALL inclusive quote and request the name of the Hire company who will be providers. Far too many people get the sting in the tail when they arrive at the pick up desk. Insurance is the main cost factor for Ireland and as such there is little difference in the price between most of the more reputable operators, enything that looks too cheap is probably missing one of the bits you want or need.

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/consumer_affairs/motoring/renting_a_car.html

Michele Erdvig · Host

Tom,

I've never used Hamill's so can't comment. However, I have been shopping around recently. Of course any rental depends on time of year, type of car, etc.

I'm looking for:

28 day rental
small car
manual
waive CDW
shoulder season

Most of what I've come up with is in the $600 range without CDW. However, I just ran accross a $USD 380 that includes CDW. That sounds too good to be true. It was at Europcar, which Bob had a problem with before. But Bob went through a third party so that may have been the problem. Since I purchased an insurance policy from insurance4carhire that is still valid I would not have to purchase Super CDW.

There is a lot of fine print on Europcar's website. I have a list of questions for them that have not been addressed yet:

Changing a res - fee? (There is a cancellation fee of $65 if done 14 days after res)

Airport fee?

Road tax fee?

VAT included?

NI travel included?

Theft Waiver cost per day? (they mention this might not be included)

Is the car to be returned with a full tank of petrol or empty?

What other charges apply that are not included in the quoted price?

That is where I am with my search.

Michele

Tom K · Member

The odd thing about Hamills is that their quote includes the super CDW, but *they* handle it. That is, the provider deals with you as if you have the regular CDW (and presumably requires the dreaded deposit for the excess), but if any of the excess is due, you pay the provider but submit a claim to Hamills for reimbursement. That may explain a good portion of the price difference, although even factoring that out it's still the best quote by a decent margin. I could go ahead any buy the super CDW from the provider, too, and still come out ahead. I will follow Tony's advice to ask them the name of the provider. If it's anyone who seems reputable, I think I'll go ahead with Hamill but buy the super CDW from the provider, too.

Tom

Michele Erdvig · Host

Tom,

That sounds a little too convoluted even for me.

Michele

Roy · Guru

I sent an inquiry just to be curious.

Michele Erdvig · Host

Here's a new development. Dan Dooley just went from $682 for a 28 day rental down to $391. This happened overnight. Is there any rhyme or reason?

Michele

Roy · Guru

I hope you booked quick!

EngagingKate · Senior Member

Michele,

I don't know what happened in your case, but I just double-checked for the dates we'll be over in June, and the cost is about the same as the reservation we just made...

As Roy said, "I hope you booked!"

Michele Erdvig · Host

I didn't book it yet. The quote is good for 7 days. Every day I go and get another quote and have it emailed to me. I don't want to lose out on this one.

Michele

Roy · Guru

No response from my inquiry.

Michele Erdvig · Host

Roy,

Typical!

My car price just doubled again. The lower price lasted just a couple of days. Fortunately I saved the quotes and they are good for 7 days. Good idea to check on such things every day.

Michele