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Need some advice with car hire. I will be travelling to Perth this year and will be hiring a car for the first time in 25yrs of travel. Does anybody have any suggestions on a reliable car hire company?
I’ve noticed the car hire company have very large excess on their policies – what’s the best way to manage this? Not sure if my Amex Platinum would cover this.
Any of the major companies should be fine; we’ve had good prices from Avis (using the .com.au site). Alternatively we rented from https://www.bayswatercarrental.com.au/ when we were there in November, £220 for a week with 2 drivers and no issues at all.
Depending on where you’re driving check the terms and conditions for use on unsealed roads – there are a decent number of these around even in more developed areas (e.g. the Margaret River). Also keep a weather eye out for ‘roos and emus on the roads!
Thanks – bayswater car rental has some excellent prices. What insurance did you have? I need to figure out what my Amex Platinum car insurance covers.
Had no issues with Sixt or Hertz last yr. The main issue at Perth is that the airport signage to the car hire does not necessarily point you in the right direction at all as they are not all together :D. So if you are hiring from the airport then spend a few minutes with Google maps working out where the office relevant to you is located.
My experience: Perth car hire prices are very variable, particularly around holidays. Avis and Hertz have on-airport pick up, whereas Bayswater and Ace require a shuttle. If the cost is not much more for Avis/Hertz, I’d go with on airport.
Finally, parking in Perth can be a pain. Uber and public transport is plentiful and cheap. If I was just doing “Perth”, I wouldn’t hire a car.
Anyway, enjoy your trip. We have now been 3 times, and loved each visit. Rottenest Island is a fantastic day out.a relative booked a car for us using Turo
Thanks for the help. Stayed in Perth last year and explored (including Rottnest) using trains and uber and it was great. We will be heading out towards Margaret river this time after spending a week in Perth so pick up will not be airport, probably around Perth somewhere just as we head out – avoids painful parking in Perth.
Did anybody use Amex Platinum card to cover car insurance?
Amex Platinum used in December for car hire insurance – no claims made in Perth/Western Australia but previous claims have been no issue.
For us, picking up a car in Perth city centre and then returning to the airport to fly home (we did Margaret River etc too) was very expensive compared to picking up and returning to the airport with all companies. We just got the train to the airport and collected the car from there.
Hertz was originally the cheapest but getting closer to the travel date, Avis dropped their prices by a huge amount so we cancelled Hertz and booked with Avis.
Perth airport is a good idea. The insurance excess is high (about 5k AUD)- did you have to buy additional insurance (on top of AMEX Platinum to bring this down?
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