The rental car mistake most families make

READ TIME: 2 min 22 sec

My Rental Car System
Three tabs. Ten minutes. $200 back in your pocket.

Most families open one tab, search an aggregator, and book whatever comes up first.

That approach costs you $200 every single trip.

Here is the three-step system I use before every booking. It takes ten minutes and it works every time.

Step 1: Hertz Gold + your corporate code

Your employer almost certainly has a negotiated corporate rate with Hertz sitting unused on the company intranet. It takes two minutes to find and can cut your rate 20 to 30 percent.

Pair it with a free Hertz Gold membership and you skip the counter entirely. Although, lately Hertz hasn’t had my info correct and I’ve had to wait in long lines. For a family hauling car seats and luggage after a long flight, walking straight to your car is genuinely valuable.

Search "Hertz corporate discount code" plus your employer name. If you don't work somewhere large, ask a friend who does. These codes are not secret. They are just underused.

Step 2: Costco Travel

The most underused benefit in your Costco membership.

Costco negotiates bulk rates and bundles the additional driver fee -- which most companies charge $10 to $15 per day separately. On a week-long trip with two drivers, that alone is meaningful.

Check it every time, even when you don't expect it to win. It wins more than you think.

Step 3: Turo

I check Turo if the price is meaningfully better and the trip has flexibility built in. For longer trips in cities where traditional rental inventory runs thin, it can win.

But if your flights are booked, hotels are paid, and the schedule is tight -- factor in the risk. A major rental company has backup inventory. A private host has one car.

FIVE RULES I NEVER BREAK

Always join the rewards program
Hertz Gold. Budget Fastbreak. Avis Preferred. All free. Credits toward free days, counter bypass, better vehicle selection. No reason not to be enrolled in all of them.

Always confirm unlimited miles
Some promotional rates cap mileage. On a road trip, per-mile overages erase every dollar you saved. If it doesn't say unlimited, ask.

Fill the tank yourself
Prepaid fuel sounds convenient. It isn't. You pay for a full tank either way. Five minutes at a gas station near drop-off saves $20 to $40 every time.

Never prepay if you can avoid it
Prepaid rates lock you in completely. Flights get delayed. Plans shift. Book the cancellable rate. The savings aren't worth losing flexibility with a family.

Check the price once a week as your trip gets closer (this one is from Tori)
Got some extra time? Pull up your booking and check if the rate dropped. Rental car prices fluctuate constantly. Tori does this religiously and routinely saves $40 doing nothing but looking.

THE 10-MINUTE CHECKLIST

• Hertz.com with your corporate code applied

• Costco Travel (costcotravel.com)

• Turo if the price gap justifies the risk

• Compare total out-the-door: taxes, fees, additional driver

• Confirm cancellable rate, unlimited miles, rewards enrolled

• Book the lowest. Move on.

Follow along on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffrehmar/

Until next Thursday,
Jeff

The World Unfolding | theworldunfolding.com