Rental Car Surcharges and Taxes

I just dropped off a rental car, (used on a road trip), and noticed that the amount of taxes that are levied on rental cars have risen a good deal in recent years.

I am very curious what you have found on your own roadtrips and have started the poll above to share some information about this trend.

Rentals made from Las Vegas are subject to nearly 28% in taxes, surcharges and levies. Supposedly these taxes are distributed to the local airport commission, the county, the state and other taxing authorities.

It is my understanding that such levies now exceed 90% in locations like Kansas City and Detroit. What has been your experience?

In many locations, locals can request and receive a discount on the airport concession fee -- which in Las Vegas is 10% of the total rental.

Mark

Here in Phoenix, I know there are some extra charges but I am not certain where all of the money goes -- at least part of it goes toward building sports stadiums.

The city fathers (and mothers) and business people think it is OK to soak our tourists for these expenses after the taxpayers wouldn't approve higher general taxes for these purposes. I won't express my own opinion on that tactic. Or did I already? Bob

I'm heading to Dallas in a few weeks and will be renting a car, where taxes and fees will make up 80% of my rental cost.

The cost for my car will be 45.96. The cost for the taxes will be 36.95: including $16 for DFW facility fee, $6 TX License Fee, $5.11 Airport Access fee, $2.30 City of Euless Tax, and $7.54 Sales Tax.

An Airport Access fee and a Airport Facility Fee???


Adding to Bob's comments about Pheonix taxing tourists, in March the whole state of AZ also adds a "spring training" tax to all rental cars.

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Originally Posted by imported_Midwesterner

I'm heading to Dallas in a few weeks and will be renting a car, where taxes and fees will make up 80% of my rental cost.
The cost for my car will be 45.96. The cost for the taxes will be 36.95: including $16 for DFW facility fee, $6 TX License Fee, $5.11 Airport Access fee, $2.30 City of Euless Tax, and $7.54 Sales Tax.

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It is getting crazy -- being a local in Las Vegas, I have been able to ask and secure an exemption for the tax used to "transport" me from the airport to the rental facility (which I have never used), but the airport authority is getting ready to close that loophole.

I would think that being a customer service representative at these places would be unpleasant at best. I have seen shocked tourists almost scream at the desk operators when their rental was nearly double what they expected.

Thanks for the intel on Dallas. Phew!

Mark

Hi people,

We are coming to New York in May and hiring a car for 30 days and the cost for car rental is approx $1049 US dollars and $458 US on top of that for taxes of some sort. It was put to me by a New Yorker that they are slugging tourists to pay for things in New York that the locals refuse to pay for, as seems the case in Las Vegas. As my husband says, we could nearly buy a car for that. Oh and BTW we still have to sort out part of the insurance which is on top of that.

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Originally Posted by tickford

We are coming to New York in May and hiring a car for 30 days and the cost for car rental is approx $1049 US dollars and $458 US on top of that for taxes of some sort.

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Airport use taxes are the way many local governments pay for their services. Kansas City is currently running about 93% taxes and Las Vegas is about 28% --

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It was put to me by a New Yorker that they are slugging tourists to pay for things

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Actually the one group of people that really get slammed are business travelers. The average business traveler (without a Saturday usage/stay) pays about 34% more per week than that average tourist.

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As my husband says, we could nearly buy a car for that.

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Not really -- But in our view, the HUGE ADVANTAGE is that a rental car comes essentially maintenance free -- if something breaks, you can new one with little problem. Try doing that with a car you purchase for a month...

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Oh and BTW we still have to sort out part of the insurance which is on top of that.

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RoadTripping is an an adventure and adventure travel can be costly -- but worth every penny.

Mark

Editor,

Husband's comment was with tongue firmly in cheek. Of course renting a car from a reliable source is for us the only way to go, any problems and we call the rental company. Road tripping is what we nearly always do and are looking forward to this adventure, can't wait to go.

Doing some research with Hertz, I learned they have off airport terminals that rent cars much cheaper and with less taxes then airport terminals.

Does any one know of a rental company that will rent to users under 25? Hertz is the cheapest being $25 a day for a driver under 25. So my week long road trip will cost an extra $175. Thats a bunch of "nonsense" if you ask me.

As far as Dallas goes, the extra tax is so the Cowboys can get a better stadium. If you ask me, they should just "increase" the cost of tickets for games and get the money that way.

I've always paid less than 20%, but I only rent in more rural areas (I really think you can do without in most major American cities).

-M.Monetti

For $1500 you could buy a car that would worth $1500 a month later... not my depreciation there.

Here in Phoenix, our public transit really takes the low points, and our taxi service will cost you an arm and a leg just to go a few miles. If I was only spending a day or two, or was in a city like New York where transit is abound, I wouldn't bother with a rental, but for most the the cities I've been to (Seattle, San Francisco, LA, Phoenix), to do much out away from your hotel without having to dole out the dinero or be inconvenienced by late bus service/no taxis, a rental car seems best. Yet, I'm too young to rent one... so I'm stuck with transit, taxies, and super-shuttle to get around if I go off without my own wheels.

-Brad

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Originally Posted by kcstockdale

Does any one know of a rental company that will rent to users under 25? Hertz is the cheapest being $25 a day for a driver under 25. So my week long road trip will cost an extra $175. Thats a bunch of "nonsense" if you ask me.

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Enterprise is only $10 extra a day I believe. If you don't use a credit card you WILL have to surrender a deposit or a hold against debit card funds, but I believe this is for all renters, not just someone under 21.

-- Ashley

Enterprise's 21-25 fee varies from location to location. I have seen it as low as $10 at some places, up around $25 or more at others, and some places Enterprise won't allow anyone under 25 at all.

I rented a 2007 Chrysler Torrent AWD (SUV) from National at Las Vegas from May 23rd to June 6th. Taxes (called a variety of things ranging from "customer facility charge, city car rental fee, license recovery surcharge, Tax recoup and Nevada government surcharge fee") added 29% of the rental fee to the total cost. ($113.95)

Total cost for the 15 days (including my discounts) was $397.52 for a brand new car with unlimited mileage and was a nice ride!

Mark

I've been to Florida fairly frequently, from the Wash DC area, and have noticed the taxes there boosted the bill around 50%. I investigated further and found some (not all) of the taxes are levied on travellers and not the local population. The true difference comes in how long you've been in Florida before you pick up your car rental. At the time I asked, the magic time span was 72 hours. After that you are treated like a resident. Now, I've relatives in Florida, so immediate transportation has not been critical.

Another option if you in the N.E. is to send your own car down by Amtrack's AutoTrain, leaving just South of Washington DC. I've found if you are in Florida two weeks or more, Amtrack's ticket for the car, will be less than renting a car for the same time period. For just a week, the cost is about the same. BTW - You have to travel on the same train as the car. Very roomy seats are standard, more private accomodations are also available. An overnight trip. The cheaper private accomodations can be cramped if you have more than two people, regardless of what you might see on the train's website.

Here's another saver for California that worked well for me. This is from a trip I took late May, early June (yes over memorial day). Flew into Sacramento. Two months before I left I checked rental car prices for a 10 day period,
and found them $200 - $300 more than what I expected, i.e. over $500 for an intermediate 5-passenger car. I got the price I wanted by (a) staying overnight in Sacramento at a motel, then (b) getting Amtrack part-way to Yosemite (my first "real destination), and picked up a rental car at a small town part way there. Presto, no high fees.

Point is, if you have the flexibility, and can do without the car for a few days, there are ways to make that drive more affordable. BTW, in the past year, I've twice rented at one location, dropped of at another without a surcharge -- perhaps because I'm a AAA member, perhaps it was just the locations. :-?

Hope that helps.

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Originally Posted by The Taco Monster

Here's another saver for California that worked well for me. ...I got the price I wanted by (a) staying overnight in Sacramento at a motel, then (b) getting Amtrack part-way to Yosemite (my first "real destination), and picked up a rental car at a small town part way there. Presto, no high fees.

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VERY interesting -- thanks for sharing these tips!

Mark

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Originally Posted by The Taco Monster

Another option if you in the N.E. is to send your own car down by Amtrack's AutoTrain, leaving just South of Washington DC.

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I had no idea these types of trains existed in the US. I knew they were in Europe but didn't know they were here. Very cool.

I too have heard that, although avalibility may be less ample and the selection of vehicles limited, you can shave quite a few bucks off the Metro Rental prices by getting as far from the Metro Area as possible.

As soon as I reach the age where I can rent a car without being asked to pay an unthinkable surcharge, this idea will lay well into my origional plans of flying into Sea-Tac from Phoenix then taking the Super Shuttle to Amtrak/King St. Station, and off to Wenatchee.

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Originally Posted by Arizona Brad

I too have heard that, although avalibility may be less ample and the selection of vehicles limited, you can shave quite a few bucks off the Metro Rental prices by getting as far from the Metro Area as possible.

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In my limited experience, I have found that the best place to find the lowest prices are at the high-volume sites -- like airports and metro locations. I have paid large premiums for cars when renting in locations with small number of cars in the local fleet.

Mark

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Originally Posted by Editor

I have found that the best place to find the lowest prices are at the high-volume sites -- like airports and metro locations.
Mark

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That was especially true many years ago when I compared prices in San Diego to a small airport to the West by 20 miles. Back then, I think the taxes were fairly low, regardless of where you got the car - the price was just say 5% higher than the quoted rate, regardless of location. Long time ago.

Las Vegas would make an interesting case for today. If I recall the taxes and other fees almost double the price when renting from the airport. I wonder if that's the case when renting from a neighborhood location.

On a recent business trip to Albuquerque/Santa Fe, the actual rental
cost for three days on a full-sized car (a Ford Taurus) was $134.67.

The taxes were:

State Surcharge: $12.15
Rental Tax: $ 6.73
Concession Fee: $10.17
Sales Tax: $13.32
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Total Taxes: $42.37

So the taxes amounted to 31.46% on top of the price of the rental.

AZBuck

AZBuck,

I really need to update my records from my last few trips -- Good reminder. And thanks for this info!

Mark

Who do you guys recommend for one-way rental Tacoma to San Francisco. I'm more than happy to pick up and drop off at off airport location if it's gonna save me some $. I always use Enterprise with off-airport(i.e. for NY/NYC, pick up in Jersey City and save big) but they do not do one-way rentals.

Would also consider driving a car tat someone needs moved from Seattle-Tacoma area to Sanoma-San Jose area. Any info on how to hook up for 'drive my car' deal would be great.

-Duck

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Originally Posted by kcstockdale

Doing some research with Hertz, I learned they have off airport terminals that rent cars much cheaper and with less taxes then airport terminals.

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Not just the taxes, but the fare as well. In Chicago, you can get a much cheaper rental fare renting from Midway as opposed to OHare, even using the same company.

BTW, the rental tax in Chicago is about 18%. (this is literally Highway Robbery)

regards,
-Lance

Interesting. That was certainly true for one of my trips in May/June. Its a great option when it fits in your schedule. I've advocated it too.

But my cheapest ever rental was Chicago Ohare many years ago -- I had to assume a price war was going on ... :-) Washington Dulles had really low rates one summer. So it pays to shop around. Also the airports have the best hours, if you don't arrive during prime time. Eg: I arrived in Oklahoma City last year, just after lunch on a Summer Saturday ... the only Hertz rental open in the city was the airport location -- fortunately I'd done enough research to know that ahead of time. At OKC, btw, the cars were walking distance from terminal building.

Those of you planning to visit the Pacific Northwest, I just wanted to clue you in to where you could rent a car with no extra charges at all, and no taxes as well. If you fly into Portland/PDX, you can rent a car in Beaverton, OR with no additional charges/taxes at all. There is light rail service directly from the PDX airport terminal to Beaverton, where you walk approx. 1/2 mile to either Enterprise or Budget agents on Canyon Blvd. I suggest you use Mapquest to help you locate the vicinity.

In addition, we have a fabulous market where you can get a free lunch of quality food samples (best on Saturdays). This pre-Thanksgiving week, we had a wonderful mini-plate of turkey, 2 dressings, gravy and cranberry sauce presented to us at the front door. In addition, they had a wine tasting and a dessert sampling in the store as well.

The Under 25 fee is bushleague for those of us "young" adults that have a fine driving record and alot of driving experience. Unforunately there is no way around it though. The one thing I have learned is that it varies by each company in each state, and even sometimes as the taxes by each branch. I know in Louisianna National Rent-a-Car is a wonderful ten dollars a day and that if you research the different companies and branches you can often (though not alway) find someone that offers a under 25 fee of less than 25 dollars a day.

~quinn

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Originally Posted by quinncallahan

The one thing I have learned is that it varies by each company in each state,

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What I have learned is that posing questions to real people often results in much better savings than anything one can find online. Welcome to the Great American RoadTrip Forum and thanks for your insight.

Mark

I rented a car from Budget.

It was a terrible experience for the most part. * Just little things like:
- They never went over the rental time / estimate costs.

- They never went around the car with me to point out dings so I was so stressed worrying about ones I noticed.

- They were hard to pin down on the phone.

- They didn't reply to my email to customer service trying to sort my issues.

- They ended up phoning at 5am CA time to say the car was "late" - when in fact I'd phoned them two days earlier to confirm it was being returned 2 days EARLIER - to San Jose (they were still expecting it to be returned to NY) Nevermind it's confusing and it was frustrating and it was by far the worst part of the whole entire month-long journey.

Now for the money - they charged me the following for one a month rental:

$ 1059.99 - rental
$ 300.00 - one way fee
$ 194.21 - 14.28% fee (Fuel service fee?)
$ 207.87 - tax @ 13.375

$ 1762.07

That's my car rental two cents at any rate. I won't use them again - though customer service on the West Coast (San Jose Intl)* was far superior to what I experienced at LaGuardia. I am sure there will be other people who had a great experience with Budget, but I simply am not one of them...

C'est la vie!

Cali

What a huge expense! I'm sorry your experience was so poor. I hope more people report back their experiences in the future so we can get an idea of what companies are good to do business with and which aren't. I'm sorry you had to find out the hard way.

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Originally Posted by RoadTripper 912

I rented a car from Budget.

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I am sorry you had a bad experience. For the future and for others considering renting a vehicle a few observations:

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- They never went over the rental time / estimate costs.

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That really isn't the job of the counter agent -- the renter has the responsibility to ask questions if the rate is unclear.

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- They never went around the car with me to point out dings so I was so stressed worrying about ones I noticed.

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The only rental companies that do this are the "budget" carriers like Enterprise Rent A Car -- Major chains don't worry about the little stuff and neither should you. I have rented hundreds of vehicles over the years from major firms and have never been charged for anything ding (and I never bothered to look at the car when I picked it up either...)

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- They were hard to pin down on the phone.

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This is odd and not good. You might consider contacting Christopher Elliott, he is a colleague of mine and an expert at resolving issues like you seem to have had with this rental. He writes a Troubleshooter column and if you write to him, I bet he can assist.

Mark

I'm sorry that Budget was such a hassle for you. I certainly understand how that can be an unwanted stress on a trip.

I will say that I have used Budget before without any problems. Although its been about 5 years and at the time I chose them mostly because they had the smallest under 25 fee.

It also does sound like you at least got a good rate. Most people who've posted rates for a 1 way, 1 month trip generally are quoted more than $2000. It might not make up for the lousy service, but at least its something.

As some know I am a CPA and I got my license at 24 and have worked as an accountant since I was 21. My first real job at the CPA firm was to perform an audit of a car rental company. I got the biggest laugh when I learned that I was compentant enough to audit the financials of the company but not trusted enough to rent a car from them. They had a strict no rental policy for anyone under 25. And it was a National Car Rental Franchise in Louisiana.

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Originally Posted by lhuff

I got the biggest laugh when I learned that I was compentant enough to audit the financials of the company but not trusted enough to rent a car from them. They had a strict no rental policy for anyone under 25. And it was a National Car Rental Franchise in Louisiana.

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I loved this story.

mark

I work for a travel agency and therefore make most of the pre-arrangement for the trip through work. I rent a car from Alamo-National via our local supplier which gives me a significant discount on a deal which includes insurance (plus waive of damage), two additional drivers and a tank of gas for free.

However, the longest rental period available through the local agency is 56 days. Not having any concrete plans for the trip besides a conference in Vegas in Mid-April, we had initially thought to drop off the car whcuh we'd pick up in Chicago in Vegas tgen pick up another car there and drop off that second car in Chicago. This would have cost $1000 plus tax.

This forced us to play around and actually plan, so we ended up renting a car for 56 days, pick up and drop off in Chicago, and then pick up another car in Chicago for 14 days and drop it off in NYC. The drop off charge would be $200 plus tax but taking a plane to New York would have cost even more.
We've been told that we can try and baragin at the rental station - perhaps take a smaller car or something in lieu of the drop off charge. Is it doable?

Well, it certainly never hurts to ask if you can get some sort of a deal. However, $200 for a drop fee from Chi to NYC doesn't sound unreasonable to me and I don't think you'll have much luck getting it changed.

Part of your problem is that most rental car companies keep their fleets at specific locations, and one way rentals are typically returned to their original location. Therefore, the rental car companies additional costs for renting a car one way are the same regardless of what size of car you are dealing with.

But like I said before, it never hurts to try and negotiate a deal. The worst that can happen is you'll end up paying full price.

I dont know too much about hiring face to face as I have only hired cars twice, both of which I picked up in California and dropped off in New York. I went through, http://www.airline-network.co.uk. As i am from England and our insurance is so different to that in the US I email all the information to the AAA to ask their opinion. I got a reply telling me that the deal I had got was about as comprehensive as I could hope for. The cost was not very expensive either. The biggest bonus was, both times they forgot to charge the one way drop off fee.

Oggy... I am planning on renting a car in San Francisco to drop of in New York, can I ask you:

1# What the name of the car rental company was that you used as I see the link provided different options?

2# Was there any other charges on top of what you where quoted or charged from the online booking?

Many thanks
Mike

I'm sorry to hear about Roadtripper912's experience with Budget.

My experience with them was pretty good, I got an almost brand new Hyundai Sonata, racked up 11,000 miles and had dinged the front bumper pretty good, but they didn't charge extra, didn't even bat on eye at the miles and didn't even notice that the front was a bit 'out of place'.

Maybe it's where you rented it- you mentioned LaGuardia... I rented mine in Long Island, don't have the specific stats on me, but it wasn't unreasonable. Plus, we used coupons we found for them and got a discount- they seem pretty good with honouring the coupons. You can get them on various travel sites, just takes poking around a bit.
And they seem to have the best rates in New York so far.

The worst abuse we've heard is Whistler Canada.