Ireland - Car rental
 

I've booked a car through Atlas - the rate is very good - but they provided very little detail - simply that I can pick up the car at their partner, Thrifty, in Dublin and the "quoted price" is such and such. No confirmation number from thrifty or details of fees, taxes, etc.

Is Atlas a reputable rental agency? Would you recommend others?

Thank you -
Alan

We used Dan Dooley car rental last May and were very pleased with the rate and service when we had a flat tire and had to get a replacemnt car due to a bent wheel rim acquired when we ran over the rock that caused the flat tire.

You booked a car without knowing all the details? After booking you have no further details? I don't like the sound of it. They should at least have given you a "voucher number" so you can pick up your car at Thrifty. Do they have a toll free number? I would be on the phone to clear it up. Actually, if that is the way they do business I would cancel the car and book with another company that is more professional.

Short answer: Youneed to contact them.
Longer answer:

Here's an excerpt from my trip report the year I used Atlas. and a link to the full report as well, if you want the full context:

"Dennis informed us that he had booked a small car for he and Ben to use for side excursions (read: 'golf')and to get back to the airport without us having to drive them (since they were leaving early). He had followed my lead and booked it through Atlas and couldn't stop raving about how friendly and efficient they had been. He was especially impressed at how Atlas had phoned him that very morning, to verify his flight number and arrival time. I was pretty impressed too, though I must confess that a small TOUCH of apprehension furrowed my brow, as they hadn't phone me about MY reservation. Still, I had my confirmation email and a good memory from a previous rental that had gone well, so I shook it off.

It was cold and rainy when we landed at Shannon, about 8 AM. I left the group to deal with the luggage and breezed through Customs and Immigration, to beat the crowds to the rental desk and indulge my thwarted desire for burnt tobbaco. As I entered the Arrivals Hall, I heard a page for Dennis and mid-way to the rental counters, I spied a woman holding up a sign with HIS name on it.
"Are you looking for Dennis ____?" I asked.
"Yes", she replied. "I'm with Atlas Car Rental -- here to deliver his auto. Are you him?"
"No, but he's with our group", says I. "He'll be along shortly. But I have a reservation, too. Are you delivering my vehicle, as well?"

Her look spoke volumes, and every page of it spelled out TRAGEDY.

"But, we weren't expecting YOU until later this afternoon," she muttered. I must admit, I muttered a few things myself, but I don't think that I will repeat them, here.

The upshot was that she secured us a Renault Scenic from Irish Car Rentals and we finally hit the soggy streets about 9:30. The four of us were quite comfortable in the Renault, though it is substantially smaller than the Kia I had reserved. We decided we could live with it, since Dennis and Ben had their own vehicle,"



http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34679685

Bob

I hope you get this. I am looking into booking with Atlas. I havent read anyhting about them but from your post. PLEASE tell me your experience! They are by far the best price right now, but I am skeptical because I have never heard of them.

Eiremicks,

Just a word of warning. Most Visas/Mastercards stopped their coverage of your Collision Damage Waiver in Ireland, so be prepared to pay for it yourself---unless you have a World Mastercard.

Does anyone have experience with Atlas Car Rental, Dublin airport?

I would try to speak to someone. Their rate may be very good because they have not included the road fee, the location fee, the taxes etc. They also don't include a tank of gas which will cost about $6/ gallon--our Ford Fiesta cost 65euros/$91 to fill. If we returned the car full, they refunded the cost of gas.

Renting a car in Ireland is terribly confusing. I saw more people at the rental car desks trying to figure out all the extra charges. My sister in law paid an additional 200 euros when she picked up her car--that's 200 euros more than her quoted rate.

You will have to buy the CDI--or whatever they call the extra insurance, unless you have a WORLD Mastercard.

We rented from Dan Dooley and the quoted rate was what we paid--except for the tank of gas.

Good luck

You are going to have so much fun driving! You will have to pay for insurance in Ireland. Credit cards do not carry the insurance. It might have to do with all of those left side drivers jumping into the drivers seat on the right side of a little car and going down narrow lanes that have either brambles or rock walls lining them. They have a tendency to drive on the wrong side of the road, scratch the sides and take off the mirrors. We opted for the full coverage, as we did not think we would have an accident (after living in Europe for 4 years and being very good at traversing the narrow alleys they call roads) but wanted to protect ourselves from the other drivers. We opted for the full coverage, as they said all we had to bring back were the tires. We brought it back without even a scratch, but it gave us peace of mind that if something happened we were protected. It was a wonderful vacation and we put so many miles on that car. My favorite part was the Ring of Kerry. Good luck! Happy travels!

As I said in a previous post, if you can score a World Mastercard (I got mine from Citibank), it will cover the CDW. A previous poster said the card should begin with 5466, and when I got my card, sure enough, it began with 5466. It worked like a charm!

I rented my car through Europcar from Avis--15 days for $565. The car was quite small, Nissan Micra with automatic transmission. I'm glad the car was so small, because many of the roads are outrageously narrow.

Avis was great. My only complaint was that they should have tied on the hubcaps, because we lost three of them. We ended up buying a set because we figured they'd charge us twice the real cost, but it turned out they would just have charged us the actual cost.

I'd suggest you tie your hubcaps on or take them all off before you hit the road.

LindainOhio

Did you have this experience with ATLAS car rental or another rental car? You talked of your sister-in-laws experience. I am trying to see what people think of Atlas. Thanks for info. Im looking into the other fees now.