| Another way to rent cars | 2004-04-28 14:34 5 comments |
 by Flemming FunchI hadn't noticed it before, but in France there's a different way of renting cars. I'm recording it here so anybody else who don't know about it can check it out. It is called achat-rachat, i.e buy & buy back. It is a system the French government set up to lure tourists to France, and make them drive French cars, I suppose, by allowing car companies to lease out cars without taxes or duties to tourists. It is not a normal rental, but a lease arrangement run by the big car manufacturers. You get a new car, full insurance is included, with no deductable, no extra charges, no taxes, and they'll take care of the car as a car rental company would (or should, rather). You only need to be 18, several people can drive that car, and you can go all over Europe with it. But you must be a tourist with permanent residence outside Europe. And you have to arrange for the car weeks in advance, and the lease has to be for at least 17 days. That period would cost roughly the same as a normal car rental. But after that the price drops to considerably less, like 1/3-1/2. So if you need a car for a month, or several months, it beats car rental on all counts. And after the period is over, you just give it back. Or if you for some reason decided you wanted to buy that car, the lease you've paid would be deducted from the sale price. Check out Renault Eurodrive, Peugeot Eurolease and some general information. |