We talked about visas, food and other topics before, so the most important thing when going abroad is transportation. With reasonable transportation, you can not only find more delicious food, but also travel more safely. Today we will talk about those things about self-driving overseas.
I once had my driver’s license notarized at the Fangyuan Notary Office in Chaoyang District, Beijing and changed my Chinese and English driver’s licenses, so I have rented cars in Europe, the United States, and Southeast Asian countries, but every time I am confused, I always feel that Hertz, AVIS and some Local car rental companies are not so formal, so it is very important to better arm yourself and rent reasonably.
An old friend who has lived in Europe for 30 years told me that the car rental company will rent the car to you (because he wants to make money), but the uncle of the police can only judge whether you are legal when he stops you. If we are driving a car illegally, then the police have the power to impound the car and arrest you. At this time, if you encounter a black policeman, just give some money and it will pass. If it is normal, it is possible to be arrested, and you have to pay rent to the car rental company during the detention of your car.
Hailiang was caught by the police in Malaysia before, and he said a lot (the point is, you have to follow the laws and regulations here when you come to Malaysia), but in the end the policeman said in a trembling voice, “Three hundred dollars, I Help you pay the fine.” And he didn’t give me the list.
Obviously, I met the black police. But who asked me to go online retrograde, this way of handling is also spending money to do things.
The theme of this issue is overseas self-driving, so let’s talk about how we rent cars overseas. In fact, there are three types of overseas car rentals.
1. Car rental at overseas stores. This can be done at many international airports.
2. The international website of the car rental company is the most reliable, and there will be no situation where there is no order.
3. The domestic third-party car rental software places an order. Its advantages lie in simplicity, convenience for users to compare prices, and perfect service.
Because there are too many unstable factors in overseas car rental, and the car rental company cannot understand English, we often choose to use domestic third-party car rental software to place orders. Domestic third-party car rental software is relatively speaking, the whole process is in Chinese, mobile phone login, the greatest degree of simplicity and convenience.
So what materials do you need to rent a car?
In fact, most countries support the Chinese driver’s license to pick up the car. It is only necessary to carry out the translation and certification of the driver’s license in advance. We can translate it on the official car rental website, or we can do justice as mentioned above.
1. The original driver’s license, which must be held for at least 1 year
2. Original passport
3. An international credit card under the name of the main driver, Mastercard/Visa with an embossed card number, the available limit is 500-3000 US dollars, and two credit cards are required as guarantee for high-end models.
We also take Barcelona as a case today, here is a detail we need to pay attention to. When renting a car in Europe, regardless of whether the model is new or old, most of the time we rent a car with a manual transmission, while in the United States, most of them use a large-displacement V8 automatic model. This is why we must look at the model configuration clearly when renting a car, and don’t just look at the car.
Hailiang is not a headline party either. I mentioned earlier that I can rent a MINI Cooper for 99 yuan (without buying insurance). Considering the practical use, there are four of us and four luggages, so I chose a Passat on the B8 platform, which is the domestic cash Magotan. Familiar with the model, it will be handy to drive.
But in the process of car selection, if time permits, try to choose a unit of 7 days a week, so that the unit of the cycle will be much cheaper. For example, renting a Passat for a single day may cost 200 RMB, but I rent it for a week at 188 RMB per day.
As for how I rented to 154 yuan per day, then I have to wait, refresh frequently, and place an order immediately when I encounter a discount.
about insurance
If you are not short of money, we still recommend you to buy insurance, after all, to keep you safe. There are two parts to this car insurance, vehicle insurance and personal insurance. Vehicle insurance is the one in the screenshot above, including collision insurance (more than 750 euros is borne by the car rental company), theft insurance (more than 750 euros is borne by the car rental company), and a third-party liability insurance (protected vehicle and driver).
In addition, domestic third-party agencies such as renting a car will also recommend super full car driving insurance. During the lease period, you can get global emergency rescue, legal protection, 1.7 million yuan of vehicle occupant insurance and 20,000 yuan of property insurance.
During the car rental process, we will encounter stores that force us to take out other insurances. This is where the car rental companies charge opaquely. If we are not going to buy, we can show him our order and refuse it.
Well, we can go to the store to pick up the car after the above, the process is as follows.
1. Show the pick-up receipt to the counter staff to show the pick-up voucher
2. Sign the car rental contract, check and keep the contract and related receipts
3. Credit card guarantee pre-authorization, freezing a certain amount
4. Pick up the car at the yard, check the vehicle, and complete the pick-up
In the process of picking up the car at the store, we will also encounter models that are not scheduled, because the car rental company may have insufficient vehicles. The rental car company will usually give you the same model group or a free upgrade. Everyone knows about the upgrade, so the same model group, such as Passat, will give us Camry, Accord and other models. This will also be calculated according to different countries. Some European countries will also classify Focus as a medium-to-large car.
Overseas mostly pick up the car by self-service, the key is in the car
Generally, overseas car rental companies will pick up the car by themselves after going through the procedures at the counter. At this time, we need to go to the parking lot and check the car. If we find any scratches on the car body, we can explain it to the staff. It is recommended that you take pictures of the surrounding areas and check them when you pick up the car, for example, tire bulges, lack of oil, etc. are very dangerous.
In addition, here we also need to check the vehicle oil, most European models are diesel versions. The fuel tank is full when you pick up the car, and you must also fill up the fuel tank when you return the car, otherwise the car rental company will charge for the unfilled part of the fuel and the working hours of the staff to refuel. Please keep the receipt of the last refueling for future use.
TIPS: In some special cases, the fuel tank may not be full when you pick up the car. When you return the car, you only need to ensure that the fuel level is the same as when you picked up the car.
Talking from experience
Regarding others, there are actually many issues that need attention. For example, when we are driving overseas, it is best to prepare a pair of sunglasses, which can resist strong light. In addition, it is also recommended that you purchase a reasonable phone card, and a stable signal is also the basis for navigation. Most importantly, you should simply learn the local traffic laws, some of which are different from those in China.
There are many historic cities in Spain, the roads in the urban areas are narrow, and there are relevant laws and regulations to strictly protect the ancient cities. Be careful when driving and parking in urban areas. When a motor vehicle is pulled over, if the car does not turn off the engine after parking for more than 60 seconds, the owner will be fined 100 euros. Failure to turn off the engine when driving on the highway will also be punished according to this clause.
The last point is very important. If you need to leave the vehicle, please take your belongings with you, or place them in the trunk to reduce the risk of theft.
The picture above is when I met border police while driving across the country, pay attention to what they are holding.
Source of pictures and texts: WeChat public account: Hailiang.
