Paul Jolly: No-fuss car hire abroad

Car hire overseas can be a tricky affair, and there are several points to watch out for.

I recently hired a car out of Alicante airport and made a fundamental mistake without thinking.

I used what I thought was an actual car hire provider, but it turned out to be an agency with no physical presence at the airport. Instead, I was hiring from Hertz via a third party. Yes, their rates were competitive on the face of it, but hidden in the small print were some clangers I should have spotted.

The fairest fuel policy is to go with Full/Full which means you get a full tank and return it with a full tank. You therefore just put back into the car what you use.

Full/Empty means you pay for a full tank regardless of how much is left afterwards, and a service charge of around $50 is also charged. In my case, I was stuck with Full/Empty, unable to change policy.

It is also essential to check the age eligibility prior to making your booking. If it says age 25-69 and you are 70, then they charge a senior person fee of around another $100 at pick up.

Make sure all body damage and scuffs, no matter how small, are photographed on your phone so on return day you can evidence them to the handler. Otherwise, your card will be deducted indiscriminate and disproportionate amounts. Dimly lit car parks hide a host of marks.

Take out your own 12-month excess insurance to cover the $1000-1500 deposit held against your card. This is on top of the usual CDW insurance included in the hire fee. Use icarhire insurance.com for a worldwide policy around £40, even if only used once, which will be much cheaper than what is offered at the airport.

Select airport collection. not shuttle collection; otherwise, you are forever waiting on buses to pick up and return back to the terminal. Not fun if you are running late.

Clean the car inside and out before return, or it’s another excuse to charge your card.

It’s them against us!