Day trips from London with PCR
We know what city living is like and sometimes you just need to make a break for it and head to somewhere new. Zipcar is there to for easy to find car rental and hire options for a day trips or a long weekend escape. We've got the perfect vehicles to get you to where you need to be. London is a great base for exploring the surrounding countryside. You can use a Zipcar to visit nearby towns and villages like Windsor, Oxford, and Cambridge. There's stunning beaches and seaside towns under 2 hours from London, so you can rent a car and see the sea and reconnect with nature. You can also hire a Zipcar to visit popular attractions like Thorpe Park and Stonehenge.

The cheapest time to book a hire car, revealed!
When it comes to booking your rental car, is it best to book early or leave it late? It’s an age-old question for our customers, so we did some digging into our data and can now reveal that the cheapest time to book your hire car is around two weeks before you travel.
Our data, which compared booking times and prices across a 18-month period in thousands of destinations across the globe, shows that, more often than not, it’s best to leave it later.

There are a few caveats to bear in mind. Most importantly, don’t book exactly 14 days before your required pick-up date. Last-minute demand tends to surge exactly two weeks out, which drives up prices on that day.

You’ll also need to be flexible with travel times and not too set on a specific model of car to get the cheapest deals.

Ed Sharp, Head of Car Hire here at TravelSupermarket, says that the good news is that car hire prices are fairly predictable.

“The key is understanding that car hire pricing follows predictable patterns, and smart travellers can use this knowledge to their advantage,” he says.

“Car hire prices aren't swinging as wildly as they did post-pandemic, so there's less pressure to jump early.”

In general, at non-peak times when there is good availability, prices can get cheaper the closer you get to the start date of the rental. However, if you leave it too late you can miss out.

“I'd recommend using a deal with free cancellation – book something you're happy with, then check back for drops as your trip approaches,” Ed advises.

When is the cheapest time to book car hire?
The cheapest time to book car hire is around two weeks before your pick-up date, when average prices are £46.75 a day. That’s 13% cheaper than the yearly average of £53.74.

When is the most expensive time to book car hire?
Early bookers are in for a costly error. Booking a full year ahead of travel almost doubles the daily price, at £93.12. Prices also surge exactly 14 days before pick-up due to a spike in demand on this exact day.
Ultra last-minute bookings carry a premium too, with day-before bookings costing around 15% more than average.

Does this apply all year round?
The Christmas period (20 December - 5 January) is the most expensive time to hire a car in general, with prices soaring 60% above the yearly average.

In contrast, October half term offers the best value for families, with car hire prices 16% below average – making it an ideal time for budget-conscious parents to plan their autumn getaways.

Those travelling without children, and aren’t bound by fixed travel dates, can therefore afford to leave it late in the hope that a good deal arises. Our data shows that prices tend to steadily decline from two months to two weeks until the departure date – but you’ll have to have nerves of steel!

We’re travelling as a family – should we really leave it late to nab a bargain?
Booking at the last minute can save money, but it also limits choice. Families after a specific car type in peak periods when demand is higher, for example, are better off booking in advance.

A lot of companies offer early booking promotions in January so this is a good time to secure availability of special vehicles such as people carriers and MPVs. Leaving it later can be a risky tactic, especially if you want that big, roomy people carrier to schlepp the kids around Orlando during the February half term.

Is booking late for me?
If you’re flexible with your dates, your top motivation is nabbing a deal and you’re not daunted by an element of risk, then leaving it late could work out cheapest for you. If you’re after a certain car or are travelling in peak times, it’s better to book in advance.

For the summer period, booking as much as five months in advance – but no earlier – is the sweet spot for good prices, range of vehicles and choice of rental company.

It’s also worth noting that price isn’t the only thing you should be concerned about when choosing car hire. Fuel policy, mileage limits and the terms and conditions of the individual deals all play a significant factor – and can push the overall price up significantly if you get them wrong.

What’s more, you should never leave booking until you arrive at the airport. If you just turn up on the day without a reservation you’ll pay a higher price – in some cases, it could be over double.

7 car hire rip-offs and how to avoid them
Exploration and discovery are yours for the taking when you hire a car on holiday, but without a little planning you can end up paying way over the odds.

It’s no secret that some car hire firms have less-than-stellar reputations, pressuring customers to spend more at pick-up and adding unexpected charges at drop-off. Arm yourself with a few car hire basics, though, and you can approach the car hire desk with confidence.

From pricey excess policies to expensive extras, we’ve rounded up seven of the worst car hire rip-offs – and reveal how you can avoid them.

Rip-off #1: Sky-high excess costs
Insurance is included when you hire a car in Europe, but you may find it comes with incredibly high excess charges – that’s the amount you have to pay to cover the cost of an accident before the policy kicks in. This can be up to £2,000 in some cases, potentially leaving you well out of pocket if something goes wrong.

One way to get around it is to buy an excess waiver policy, which reduces the charge to zero or a small sum. Your car hire provider will offer you a policy at the desk, but these can cost up to £20 per day. Instead, buy your car hire excess insurance via a standalone provider before you travel and you could pay from just £3.49 a day.

For multiple rentals a year, an annual policy with a standalone provider can work out even better value, so make sure you do the maths!

Rip-off #2: The ‘full-empty’ fuel policy
Being hit with a petrol bill before you’ve even got in the driving seat isn’t the best start to a holiday. But many car hire companies employ a so-called ‘full-empty policy’, which means you pay upfront for a tank of petrol and can return it empty.

There are two drawbacks to this policy. First, you’re likely to be charged an inflated price for the petrol. And second, you may not use all the fuel you’ve paid for if you’re on a short trip or don’t end up driving much. In some cases, you’ll be offered the right to a refund on unused fuel, but there’s still usually a service charge attached.

Look for car hire firms that allow you to return the vehicle with the same amount of fuel it had when you picked it up – either a ‘full-to-full’ or ‘same-to-same’ policy. All car rentals compared on TravelSupermarket come with this fair fuel policy as standard, so you know you won't be out of pocket.

Rip-off #3: The ‘upgrade’ option
When you arrive at the rental desk to pick up your pre-booked car, you may be told the company has run out of vehicles in the category you chose and be offered an upgrade – at a price.

Don’t fall for it. You should either be offered a higher category of car for no extra charge or a lesser one with the appropriate refund. Make sure this is the case before you sign your contract and drive away.

Rip-off #4: Paying for extras you could bring yourself
Want to use a sat nav when driving abroad or think you’ll need a baby seat? Go for it – but don’t fall into the trap of hiring them through your car rental company. Sat nav hire, for example, could cost you the best part of £15 a day – that’s over £100 for a week. Avoid the charge by bringing your own.

If you’re travelling abroad, you can usually bring pushchairs and car seats for free on your flight. You could also hire them in your destination (Spain, for example, has loads of rental providers for holiday equipment).

For directions, many sat navs cover both the UK and Europe. Alternatively, you can use Google Maps in offline mode. Simply download the map of the area you are travelling to and you'll have access to a free sat nav, without the excessive roaming charges.

Whichever you use, be aware that you may need to turn off speed or traffic camera alerts before you hit the road – they are illegal in many European countries. If all else fails, there’s always the option of a good old-fashioned paper map. 

Rip-off #5: Booking your car at the wrong time
With so much to organise before a holiday, it’s easy to put off hiring a car until you arrive at your destination. But booking a vehicle online in advance will save you a chunk of cash and ensure you get the right car for your needs.

So, how far in advance should you book your car hire? Our data shows that the sweet spot is between five months and two weeks before your pick-up date, when prices are around 13% cheaper than the average. Book the day before, however, and you could be hit with prices that are 15% more expensive.

For example, a quick search on TravelSupermarket found that a week’s car hire from the same rental company at Tenerife South Airport was 15.6% cheaper when booking two weeks in advance (from £7.65) compared to next day pick-up (from £9.07).

That said, it all comes down to finding a price you’re happy with. If you think you’ve found a bargain deal with free cancellation, book it. You can always cancel and rebook another deal if you find a better deal later.

And if you have left it to the last minute, it’s still worth comparing prices online before you pay up at the desk. It might not be much, but it could still save you some sterling.

Rip-off #6: Unexpected charges when you get home
You expect to return from holiday with a lighter wallet – but it’s infuriating to find extra taken off your credit card for a bill you thought you’d squared. Car hire firms may charge more than you expected if they claim you’ve damaged the vehicle in some way or that you returned it without the agreed amount of fuel.

To protect yourself, give the vehicle a full inspection both when you pick it up (take photos and video as evidence) and when you return it, and ask for a receipt stating it’s in good order with the required amount of petrol.

It also pays to keep all documents, contracts and other evidence (such as the photos) if you need to dispute unexpected charges.

Rip-off #7: Hidden charges
Always read the small print of your car hire policy to check for any hidden charges or exclusions. For example, most car hire companies will add a fee for renters under 25 or for including a second driver, while some charge extra if you’ve been driving for less than four years.

Others – and we're talking about the really unscrupulous operators here – may try and sneak hidden fees, such as their own insurance policies, onto your contract. You will have to sign this before you leave, so ensure that you’re clear about every item/fee on it.

And others will levy an ‘admin’ fee for theft or damage to the car – even if you’ve bought an excess waiver policy. To put it in a nutshell: being thorough in your research when hiring a car is the way to get the best deal.