Hi

Does anyone know if it is possible to hire a care in the Algarve with out having to possess a credit card?

Thanks

Im sorry no all car hire companies need a credit card im having problems now because i only hold a debit card but my mum has let me use hers for it... ive also booked my car hire from ebay it was the cheapest going they are also doing a 5% off if i pay by cash at the airport so its not bad..
Hope this helps you

Hi Julie, who have you booked with on Ebay.? The car hire firm we use regular on the Algarve and is well recommended with lots of us on this thread is http://www.economycarhire.com all inclusive insurance and no excess the only thing you have to pay for up front is 50 euros for petrol, maybe they would let you pay for this cash, if you put the same amount of petrol in when you return the car the 50 euros is refunded.. I would go into their website and ring them direct to see if you could pay cash for your petrol. Hope this may help for future reference. Cheers Jayjan

My brother paid the CDW in cash a few years back as he was wary of being stung giving the company a blank credit card slip. They happily accepted euros and I would think other companies would be the same, especially if just for petrol or CDW.

Surprised a previous poster said they got their petrol deposit back in cash, I have always just been given the credit card slip on returning the car.

Just make sure you get a receipt if you do pay cash. I have used economy carhire a few times and they have always been excellent, the best we have used anyway.

Good luck

Lummie

I booked from ebay the company is called **spam** they are based in gale, albufeira, faro airport... ect ect... these offer full insurance and its quite cheap for it also, ive asked them about the fuel they just told me just to make sure its the same amount when i drop it back off to them as when i collect it from them at the airport.. they seem very friendly to talk to and seem to have an high standard for there company... The person ive been dealing with is Ian who works for the company and he is english which is good because i would come stuck if he didnt lol.. also the fully comp insurance is optional..

What do you need your credit card for Julie? is it just the petrol side or have you got an excess on your insurance, I would check. If someone bumps you even when you are not in the car & damage is caused you could end up paying an excess which will be taken from your credit card. A lot of car hire companies can have a 600 euro excess unless you have fully comprehensive insurance with no excess.
That is why I recommended http://www.economycarhirecom as their insurance coverage has no excess . I think the only thing you are not covered for is damage to tyres, wheels & windscreen which is stated on the insurance cover note. The only other thing you pay for is petrol if you dont refill the tank to its original from when you picked it up on your arrival . Cheers Jayjan

Hello.
the car hire comes with fully comp but it is optional i got it just incase.. they needed a credit card for file incase we steal the car from them, thats all its for,,, well apart from if you dont take out the fully comp and then they charge the card if there is an accident i know there excess is only 450 euros, but i prefer to be safe than sorry..
take care all
julie

hi all
sorry just checked with Ian and he said no you dont need a credit card that if you havent got a card you just leave a deposit in cash which you get back at the end of the holiday..
just thought i would update everyone on this..
Julie

Economycarhire allowed us to leave €50 cash and was given back to us in cash when we dropped the car off in June this year.

Used http://www.argusrentals.com for car hire in Albufeira July, paid petrol deposit in cash and had no problems. They were the cheapest price I could find and you also get a discount if you register your email address with them.

Hired a car with http://www.carhirealgarve.net they were A+++++++, 1yr old Hyundai Getz car, super insurance so no excess to pay, delivered free to apartments in Alvor, no extra insurance to pay to go to spain, no credit card deposit needed for petrol, infact no credit card needed at all they didn't even ask for one! Arrived with half tank of petrol so just returned it with half. I booked from uk online no deposit needed, cost 90 euros approx £63 all inclusive insurance etc. for 3 days in Sept 06. Would defo recommend this company as I first tried, on recommendation from this site, INVALID URL but the quote came through as having to pay to go to spain £30 or £30 to deliver to Alvor so they worked out quite expensive.

http://www.carhirealgarve.net was also the cheapest!
Tip.....If you go over to Spain fill up there as petrol is cheaper .

Well Im back from my hols now and just to update you all on the car hire i took out, it was a fantastic service that i got from them, they were there waiting for me at the airport and then a member of staff shown me to the car,excellent people and service i couldnt fault it, we are hoping to go again & i will be using this company again for car hire and i would highly recomend it to anyone, Ive been on there ebay advert **spam** and now they are doing a great offer, well i thought it was cheap of €90 euros per week for a group c car.. but other than that had a nice time weather ok now & again. but we are coming back for sure..

Back from your holidays Julie ? - that's strange your ISP says Portugal.

Spammer removed.

Kath HT Admin

Good job Kath

Just back from a lovely holiday in Luz. Unfortunately this was spoilt on returning our hire car to Europcar in Faro. We declined the excess insurance when we took the car and when we returned it we were stung for over 200 euros for 'damage'. We really didn't harm the car at all - it spent most of its time parked up and we certainly didn't loose bits of the trim (we pointed this out when we collected the car, but the bloke said it was recorded, but they later said this only recorded a scratch).
SO - beware if you use Europcar. Go over the car with a microscope before you take it away because they will do this when you return it and heaven help you if you haven't taken out the excess and they find damage (and they will!!).

they are exactly the same in this country.....

wizard

Hi Algarvefan, If you intend travelling to The Algarve again try http://www.economycarhire.com their prices include insurance with no excess & covers 2 drivers . You just leave your credit card details for petrol deposit in case you dont refill it to the original from when you picked it up. I think the only things that arnt covered are tyres & windscreen, you can check this by looking at your insurance cover note that you sign on pick up. We use them regularly and have never had a problem. Its so easy for someone to scratch your car when you are parked up and then of course you loose your excess, so its better being safe than sorry. I also note that one poster on this topic said that you have to pay for exit into Spain but we have never yet had to pay this charge. Give them a try I'm sure you would be very satisfied. The website gives you lots of information on the coverage of car.. Cheers Jayjan

I can second that, and they are very competitive too. We booked 2 cars for February and it only cost us £130 for the week for BOTH.
I did get a vehicle where the gear knob fell off last time I was out, but it was replaced without any fuss.

Has anybody used http://www.economycarrentals.com
Looking at booking for June and their prices are coming in a lot cheaper than other mentioned companies inc economycarhire.com.
Price includes full insurance with no excess, extra driver, 1 baby seat and free delivery to hotel.
As I've not seen this company mentioned I'd like to know if any one has used them before.
Thanks