jofrommelbourne

Hello Everyone,

We need to hire a car for a few days in the USA and all the prices seemed very high to us until we came across a company called Go Star Car Rentals. Their prices are very low and seem to include everything (as far as we can tell - although some of the terminology is not quite clear to us) and we were wondering if they are reliable and if the cars are in good condition?

The prices are so much lower than Hertz or any of the major companies and we are wondering if they are too good to be true - is there some sort of catch?

It is awful to be so suspicious but these days one has to be careful.

Any advice would be appreciated.

jofrommelbourne

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jofrommelbourne

I am bringing this topic to the top again as I am really anxious to get feedback on this company if possible. Their prices really good and I would like to take advantage of them if they are an ok company.
Thanks to anyone who can help.

mpkp

I have never heard of them and I think that is why you are not getting a response --where are they located and where are you thinking of renting?

Try renting away from the airport or a service like Hotwire that is well known. I would not rent a vehicle from an unknown company -- no telling what additional expenses could appear on your credit card.

NeoPatrick

A little Googling showed me that GoStar is a booking agency based in the UK and had been in business "since 2007". Since they book your car from various other agencies, there is no reason to think the cars would be different from any direct from those agencies. When you book, you pay GoStar a fee for booking, and then you pay the agency they booked you with direct at the time of pickup the confirmed price they got from that agency. One nice thing is they tell you what company you will get the car from -- even giving you a choice before you book it.

For fun, I just checked the exact same rental for a week in Los Angleles that I booked with AutoEurope (Dollar) this morning. AutoEurope's price was $187. GoStar's price is $303. GoStar includes CDW insurance though, which I don't need with my credit card.

If their rate including their fee is lower than you can find any other way -- then I see no reason not to go for it. Have you checked AutoEurope by the way?

NeoPatrick

Hmmm. Now I'm a little confused. I left that window open that I got the quote from GoStar. When I went back I noticed something.

At the top it clearly says:
"Please Note:- Unlike many of our competitors, most of the cars below do not require you to make any payment now!

Gostar Direct will NOT charge you any booking FEE! This is a special offer free booking service from Gostar Direct.

You only pay, direct to the car rental company, when you collect the vehicle."

Then right below on the contract it says:

"Rental Cost:

Total Rental Cost: USD 303.78
Amount Payable Today: USD 39.64
Total payable at the rental desk: USD 264.15"

So which is it? One says you pay no fee or nothing today, and the other shows you pay $39.64 today! And it also says you credit card will show the charge as "Car Trawler". HUH?

NeoPatrick

Ooops. Sorry to keep posting, but now I see another BIG red flag. Nowhere on the GoStar website is there a link to "contact us". I thought I might do that and ask for clarification. Nor is there any phone number, emergency contact, or even an actual address of the company.

I take back what I said before. I would avoid this like the plague!

jofrommelbourne

Thanks NeoPatrick - that does sound a bit suspicious. We would need the insurance. We would be renting out of Las Vegas just for 3 days but have friends who want to rent for 9 days out of Los Angeles.

I will have a closer look at their website.

LindainOhio

I have had luck searching for car rentals on www.carrentals.com. I have also searched on www.kayak.com.
These are comparison sites that link you to various agencies. Perhaps searching with those would be helpful to you.

I often use those to search for rates and then I bid lower on Priceline.