Car Rental taxes and surcharges are all the stuff that's added to your base rate. When you see a car rental special being advertised for a day, don't get too excited! It will always cost more after everything is added up.
The base rate of a rental car includes the cost for time (the length of the rental) and mileage (if you are being charged extra for driving over a certain number of miles per rental period or per rental day).
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Amounts shown in the total price or approximate total of your reservation confirmation will include all mandatory fees that you must pay. The total price of your car rental will include the amount of taxes, governmental fees and other charges payable by you directly to the car rental agency when you return your rental car.
You often see the term approximate total on a car rental reservation, because it is based on the location, dates, times and vehicle size that you have specified. Any changes in one or more of these items could result in a different total. The car rental taxes and surcharges will include sales taxes, concession fees, licensing fees and other government imposed fees (like a convention fee or government building project fee).
License Fees
Some states allow car rental companies to charge extra to recover the costs of licensing their cars, usually between 3 and 8 percent of the cost of the rental. You would see this fee listed as a vehicle license fee, in your car rental taxes and surcharges.
Airport Fees
An airport fee or airport concession fee is a recovery fee. The airport charges the car rental company a certain percentage of each rental, for the right to operate on or near the airport. This fee is collected by the car rental company and paid to the airport.
Airport fees tend to average about 10% cost to your car rental. Some renters believe that they can avoid the airport fee if they are local, or wait until the next day to pick up their car, but the rental agency is contractually required to pay the concession fee to the airport, whether the renter is a local or has just flown into town that day. The same generally applies to near-airport rental locations. Of course you can avoid an airport fee by picking up at a neighbourhood location, but be sure to weigh the possible inconvenience and the price of any additional transportation against the concession fees charged by the airport location.
If you are picking up a rental car at a hotel-based location, you may see a hotel concession recovery fee, include in your car rental taxes and surcharges. It is the same concept as an airport fee.
A 2005 study from Travelocity stated that major American airport car rental locations added an average of 25.8 percent to your total bill in airport fees as well as local and state taxes. Many local governments also charge fees to fund local development projects, such as convention centers or sports stadiums.
State or City Imposed Funding Fees
The added taxes (such as a convention center surcharge) are imposed by local and state governments, as a means of drawing income from travelers in order to fund local projects. Travelocity's 2005 research findings also showed such taxes to be dramatically lower at neighborhood car rental locations than airport locations.
Many renters feel that it is the car rental companies that make up all these extra convention surcharges or stadium taxes and fees, but they are, in fact, government imposed.
Rental car fees have often been a way for local governments to generate funds for stadiums, convention centers and concert halls in various cities. It would seem that city officials believe that local residents are shielded from paying because out-of-town visitors - and therefore, non-voters - carry most of the burden to fund such projects. In October of 2006, a car rental spokesperson stated, in a USA Today article, that the car rental industry argues against such fees and taxes that have nothing to do with rental car operations. Based on the still-prevalent car rental fees for city projects, it doesn't appear like they won the argument.
So What's Up With All the Car Rental Surcharges and Fees?
Find answers to your car rental questions at http://www.best-car-rental-tips.com
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