Angie's List: How To Save On Your Car Rental

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – Families are dreaming of spring break getaways.

Chances are you have spent a lot of time planning your perfect vacation, from booking the hotel to researching restaurants.

But there' one thing you may have overlooked: how to save money on your car rental.

Megan McCain and her family are flying to their spring break destination. Once they arrive, they'll need to pick up their rental car.

"It was fairly easy," McCain said. "We went on the website and looked for a car that would fit five people with two car seats so we needed a car with a third row."

Renting a car is a convenient option for many families - but it's often an afterthought. Doing some legwork before you arrive at our vacation destination can really pay off.

"If your plans are pretty definite prepaying is a really good option," said Jeff Neiman with Hertz Corporation. "You can save up to 20 percent if you pre-pay. Now, there could be a fee if you cancel so that's got to be a pretty firm plan."

"When renting a car, shop around," said Angie Hicks of Angie's List. "A lot of times people are picking up cars at the airport when they fly into their destination, but you may find it may be worth a cab ride to an off-site location because they might have lower fees."

One common mistake consumers make when renting a car - not reading their rental agreement before they sign.

"Many times people rent cars over their vacation, but they last thing they want to do is read the details of the agreement on their way to having some fun, but it's important," said Hicks. "You need to understand what you're responsible for with that car, what happens if it breaks down, what happens if you get into an accident? Know exactly what your obligations are."

"Treat it like it's your own," said Neiman. "What would you do if you got into an accident in your car? You'd report it to the authorities. You would come back and let the rental car company know and fill out an accident report and go from there."

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