Hi to all. We are planning our 3rd trip to Ireland and I am as confused as the first time with booking a car. Has anyone used carhire.ie? They seem to have the lowest price and I was wondering if anyone has had problems with them. Last time we used Dan Dooley and had no problems. We prepaid in the US with our Mastercard Debit Card from our bank and took out all the insurance, but this time their quote is much higher than the rest of the car rental agencies??? Any advice?? Thanks.
Carhire.ie are an Agency they take your money and pass you on to whichever rental operator is giving them the most commission at the time.. The reason they are cheaper is more than likely because something along the lines of a necessary optional extra is missing.
Dooley are a rental operator include all the necessary bits in their quote which is possibly why it is the highest, have you tried comparing there US and IE offices quotes, the US office generally give a better insurance rate to US licence holders who are hammered by Irish insurers.
Always compare apples to apples and get a detailed quote which should be what you pay at the collection desk with no surprises. Agents in general can't do that simply because they have no idea who they will place your business with.
Along with all the great advice available on this forum, this is a post I ran on the TA forum.
Thank you! I will call Dan Dooley in the States. They really did give great service, but our last trip was $800 for car rental and now it is 1400. Quite a difference, but last time we went in Sept. and this time we will arrive May 28 and be there 3 weeks. I know the time of year can make a great difference.
Insurance has also hiked the mountain this year.. we paid 20% more for our annual premium so its a fair bet temporary policies have shot up even more.. June is on the cusp of high season so that adds on as well as you say.
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Two rules for Ireland, Take your time & bring a sense of humour
I ended up with Dooley, all insurance. Because I was a return customer, gave me a discount that included tires and windshield. Online, the quote was $1470, on the phone, it was $1266! I have paid with our debit card in full and we only have to pick up the car now. We used Dooley last time and had no problems. I should have gone to them first. Thanks for the info everyone!
Glad to hear that you got it all 'Sorted'. The only Additional charge, at pick up, should be for the Initial tank of fuel. That could run 40-90 Euro, depending upon the vehicle's fuel tank. If you return it FULL, they should refund the Fuel charge!
What class/ vehicle did you reserve? Automatic or manual shift?
The New Jersey folks tend to be QUITE helpful and pleasant.
Plus -- you avoided the Foreign Transaction fee on you card.
Sounds like a 'Win-Win'!
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Bob
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