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Advice needed re long term car rental - Scotland
Hello everyone,
I will be spending 6 months in Scotland this Fall / Winter. I plan to rent a car as I will be staying outside any major city and will need it for transport. From the research I have done so far, I understand that most car rental agencies require the car be brought back in every 30 days for a contract extension. That's fine. If that's what I need to do, so be it. Also, I have sorted out the specifics of Collision Damage Waiver so I have that covered as well. What I am unclear on is the need for roadside assistance insurance. My current roadside assistance insurance does not cover me in the UK. and I do not know if it is worth purchasing this service through the car rental company. What do you think? Do I need to purchase roadside assistance insurance? If so, is the car rental agency's service my best option? Lastly, if it is needed, any idea if it is expensive for a long-term rental? Thanks so much for your help. |
This question comes up from time to time and there isn’t really an easy answer. The most cost effective way if to enter into a short term contract lease which for a small car could be around £150 a month over six months. However, you would need a permanent residence and more importantly a solid credit history. People I know have used companies who broker deals for those with specific circumstances like yours or for instance with poor credit ratings. The other two options are Buying a car and reselling : lots of hassle and invariably you are going to do it through dealers who will cream off large margins at both ends of the deal Renting from a recognised hire company The breakdown issue is usually pretty straight forward, the AA or RAC or National Breakdown usually offer very reasonable rates. My 52 year old Porsche is covered for £39 per annum, they must be mad! How much have you been quarters for a 6 month rental? , |
Might depend on your nationality - but a lease buy back would probably be your best bet.
But - where are you staying? It might be that between rail and bus service you might be able to get by with just a series of shorter hires??? |
Hi,
So far, I have not be able to get any quotes. All the online tools say that there is no car availability and to change my dates. I have called and left messages for Enterprise and AutoEurope. If no one, gets back to me within a couple of days, I'll call them again. |
Hi,
I am a citizen of the USA and will be staying on the Isle of Skye. |
Janis i’m not sure a lease buy back is possible without a credit history in the U.K. It would definitely be the most cost effective route, |
Oh Dear Skye. im sure there’s people in Skye who rely on public transport but I wouldn’t like to be one of them. Some incredible opportunities for travel over a six month period .,,,with a car. |
I have heard back from AutoEurope. They said that the reason I cannot find long-term lease pricing on their website is that the 2 companies ( Peugeot and Citroën) they use for this service are no longer making it available due to the pending Brexit. They hope the service will resume after Brexit is finalized. The alternative they offered me is to similar to what Enterprise has offered, (a series of 1 month rentals.)
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Per Auto-Europe long term leases are not currently available to me due to the pending Brexit. They suggested I do a series of 1 month rentals as a work around.
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Try Avis long term car rental
Avis Long Term Car Rental Hertz offer a long term car rental service https://www.hertz.co.uk/p/hertz28 And Europcar https://www.europcar.co.uk/yelllongterm |
This is a local car hire/taxi on Skye. Skye Car Hire and Kyle Taxi service
Maybe contact them and see if you can arrange a private party 6 month hire of one of their vehicles. |
Thank you. I'll check into these!
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Thank you. I'll check into this option.
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Short Team Leasing | Any Car Online lots of brokers out there, just google. the term of lease is fine and much cheaper than hiring, they seem to offer no deposit, no credit deals. |
Good point Janis and the car hire company isn’t going to have people banging on the door in Portree for winter rentals. |
Hello everyone,
I've not made my final leasing arrangements. I have a plan in place though with several options. So, I thought I would share the Tips I have learned thus far in hopes of helping others. #1 Google it. One poster suggested I Google for a list of companies that lease autos. The trick/tip to this being successful is to use the version of Google for the country you're going to visit, in my case, the UK. I got much better results when I used Google.co.uk than when I used Google.com. The reason for this is that Google serves up information based on your location. #2 Leasing companies prefer to speak directly (vs. email). Of the 12, car leasing companies I sent emails to, only 3 responded. I found I had better luck purchasing an International Calling plan for my mobile phone and calling the companies directly. #3 Do your research on costs of monthly car rentals. When speaking with the leasing car rental companies you will need to know a baseline for cost comparison to ensure that your short-term lease is not more expensive than monthly rentals. #4 Book about 1 month out from the date you plan to pick up your car. From the car leasing companies I have spoken with, 1 month in advance of your need for the leased car is the best time to book. At this time, car leasing companies will know the inventory they will have available. Also, be sure to ask them about delivery and pick up fees. #5 You will most likely need to book your on car insurance. The car leasing company will be to help you identify companies that they see frequently used with their business. Remember to ask the leasing company about the value of the car you plan to lease and about how to handle the question about "how long you've lived in the UK". You'll need this information for the insurance. Lastly, on insurance, the CDW that is available through credit cards is only good for 30 days. After that, a contract extension or a new contract is required in order for the credit card CDW to be renewed. Hope this info helps. |
>>Remember to ask the leasing company about the value of the car you plan to lease and about how to handle the question about "how long you've lived in the UK"<<
That sounds more than a bit dodgy to me -- are they telling you to claim you live in the UK? |
Sorry for the confusion. No they are not telling me to claim I live in the UK, currently. I will be living there, however. The challenge I have encountered is with the online insurance applications. Several of them do not offer an option to enter future dates.
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