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How to rent a car?

When going on a trip, an independent traveler often has a question: do you need to rent a car in Baku? I will consider an economical traveler option.

It is necessary to clearly understand how you eat in Azerbaijan. If your journey is limited to one small city, then in most cases you do not need it. If you want to visit the capital of Azerbaijan, then there are options. Read reviews about Baku. As in this city, the situation with public transport. Our public transport is not suitable for them, so there is no need to be afraid of it. Of course, in many ways, will have to understand. Where to buy tickets, for how long, how to compost them, etc. For example, in Baku, in the afternoon, you will not buy a ticket from the bus driver, but only in special kiosks or in tobacco shops. And in the suburban buses, I personally did not understand how to pierce them, so I traveled at my own risk and without a ticket)

How to rent a car in Baku

If there are several cities in your route, then there are also options. Everything depends on the region, if it is a mainland Azerbaijan, then it will be easier and cheaper to travel between cities by high-speed trains. When the train travels at a speed of 300 km per hour, and the ticket costs from 5 euros, the choice is obvious. But if you eat, for example, in Sicily, then there it is very difficult, and in general public transport is not very, therefore without a car in any way.

So, you decided to rent a car in Baku. We divide this process into stages and consider each in detail.

Where to rent a car in Baku?

If you want to save money, then you should start the search for car rental at least one month before the trip, but better still earlier. This will provide you with the most favorable offers. In the peak season, even if you find a car, its price will be transcendental, and the condition will most likely be bad.

To find a car there are many services, I will consider one of the normal, in my opinion. They are approximately similar, it is worthwhile to deal with one and with the other, you will definitely cope.

SkyScanner

Service that I use all the time - SkyScanner.ru. It is universal, and should be in the arsenal of any independent traveler. Its main purpose is to search for air tickets, but it also copes well with finding hotels and car rentals. Let us dwell on car rental in Baku.

On the main page of SkyScanner.ru from above, approximately in the middle there is a button “car rental”, we need to go there, click it and go to the car rental search service.

SkyScanner - car rental in Baku

You get to the page with the search form.

You need to immediately determine in which place you will take and hand over the car. If the place of delivery of the car is different, then you need to tick "Return the car to another place" and enter it. I’ll say right away that in most rentals this service is quite expensive, at a cost often comparable to the price for rent, so think carefully about whether it is needed.

Next you need to enter the date and time, I think this issue should arise. The only thing to consider is that there is working time and not working time, if you want to get a car outside working hours, then you will also need to pay extra for it.

Most rentals set an age limit for drivers, usually 25-75 years. If you are in this group, just tick the box “Driver's age from 25 to 75”. If your age is less or more, uncheck the box and a field will appear for entering another age. Most rentals significantly increase the cost of rent, if you do not belong to the group from 25 to 75, keep this in mind.

When all the data is filled, click the "Find" button. The search will start and after you will be offered the available options.

SkyScanner - car search form

On the left you can limit your search options. If you need a specific option, for example, a car with a box machine, then just tick the appropriate box.

Let's see what data we are provided with. I marked the main points with numbers, below it is written what each point means.

  1. Here is the class of the car, and the possible options for brands and models. In this case, it is Economy Class and Fiat Panda, Skoda Fabia or similar. This means that at the rental point you will receive either the specified car models or something similar.
  2. Here is the number of doors in the car. 3-door options are usually cheaper, but for two the most.
  3. At this point, we see the number of seats in the car, the approximate size of the trunk and the presence of air conditioning.
  4. Here is the type of gearbox. In this case, mechanical.
  5. Here we see the rental price for the entire term, without additional payments, usually with minimal insurance with a deductible. What is a franchise, I will write below.
  6. This item is very important, it is indicated here in what distance from your location is rental. If you take a car in the city, it will be the distance from the center, if at the airport, then accordingly from the airport. Often, when you pick up a car at the airport, when 0 km is indicated, you will simply be taken to the rental point for free. Usually it is parked a couple of kilometers away.
  7. Here is the agent through which you will take the car. Notice, it’s not the rental company, but the agent, the direct company, that you learn only at the end of the booking.

So, you have chosen the option that suits you "in price and quality", press the "Select" button. SkyScanner will redirect you to the vehicle’s page on the agent’s website, where you can learn more about the rental conditions.

General rules and tips: how to rent a car?

So, are you going to rent a car, what should I look for?

The first thing you need to understand is that the cheaper the price, the worse it will be either the car or the service, and more often it will be both. "Miserly pays twice" - remember this. I now remember, but I still almost always take the cheapest options) As they say, life makes ...

From the very beginning we choose not a car, but a company, or an intermediary (agent) with whom we will work. Read the reviews, read the terms of the lease, compare and select the one that you prefer, because here you can run into adventures. Do not be afraid of bad reviews, they all have, approximately estimate their number, who has less, the company is the best. And do not look at the estimates on the sites of agents, they are in most cases unrealistic. Look for reviews of real people in blogs, social networks and Tripadvisor.

Compare offers from different agents, what is included in the price. Let's take one of the suggestions.

1 block Here we are interested in who our direct service provider is. This is the company with which you have to work. It is very important to read the reviews, because If the entire Internet is replete with articles on blogs and forums about how this company has deceived customers, then you should not order here. It is better to overpay 500 rubles and stay calm. But remember that the high price is not a guarantee of quality. Those reviews that are written on the site of the mediator, we ignore, because real reviews there units, looking for reviews of real people on blogs and forums.

2 block Here the main characteristics of the car are written, if you are a driver, everything will be clear to you. If you are going to a warm country, take care of the air conditioner in the car, and then the heat will be unbearable. especially if you eat with children. Also, if you are going to travel more in cities, or in mountainous terrain, it is better to rent a car with an automatic gearbox, this will make your life much easier, but remember. that the consumption of gasoline in this car more.

3 block In the picture, I marked with an exclamation mark a link to the terms of the lease, this is one of the most important points. It must be read, and not just read, but delve into the nuances. This will save you from a large number of problems with the delivery, or in case of an insured event. Further, in this block, we see how we need to get to the rental office, in this case, you will be taken there, if there is written the distance in kilometers, then you have to get there yourself. Also, the conditions for gasoline are written here, in this case the car will be with a full tank and you need to take it with a full tank. There are options empty - empty, or prepaid gasoline, i.e. They give you a car with a full tank, you pay for it. but hand over the car with an empty one. But from experience I can say that the most convenient option is a full tank and a full delivery.

4 block. In this block we see what is included in the initial rental price. In this case, we see that cancellation and order changes are free, this is a big plus, but, you see a small exclamation mark, these are another conditions, you also need to read and understand them. Here we are promised to return all the money two days before the start of the rental, if we now and fully pay for the reservation. Everyone has different conditions and many pitfalls, so be careful and everything will be ok)

Reception and return of a rented car

All, you arrived at the rental office, often, defended quite a long queue, and are ready to rent a car. To do this, you need: a passport, a national driver's license, international driver's license (not always, but often, this will be a separate post), a credit card with which there was a payment for the reservation issued to the driver. Be prepared to reserve a franchise, usually 500-3000 euros, depending on the car and the country.

Franchise

Let's talk more about the franchise. A deductible is an insurance amount that is blocked on your card. This amount is blocked by the employee hire, and removed partially or fully in the event of an insured event (car damage, theft). If simple, this is the limit of your responsibility for the car in monetary terms. If the car is stolen, then you will pay not the full cost for it, but an amount equal to the deductible.

Franchise for car rental in Azerbaijan

When taking the car, pay attention to all damage, body, interior, headlights, windows, mirrors, etc. Insist that the rental officer notice all the damage in the act of receiving / transmitting, even minor ones. Often, when you deliver the car, you will give the car to a completely different person and there are often problems. If you give the car to the same employee hire, it does not relieve you from problems. Even if the car was not looked at with you, let's say you passed it after working hours, putting the keys in a special box, then they will look at it. As a rule, the cheaper the company, the more intently they look. In the act of receiving the transfer must always indicate all, even minor damage. Because for one employee, they are small, but for another not, so do not trust the words of the employee hire, insist on the mark of all damage. Also, be sure to take a picture of the car from all sides, better and above and below. It is necessary that if you have problems, you have proof that the damage has already been.

Additional car rental services


Practically in all rentals you will be offered the following additional services:

  • rental GPS-navigator;
  • child seat rental;
  • delivery / fence of the car.

Separately, I want to highlight additional insurance services. You can take a car without a franchise, i.e. Your responsibility will be minimal, but then the regular price will increase by 1.5 - 2 times. Intermediaries, quite often, have a franchise return service. This is cheaper than full insurance, but problems on return are added, i.e. you first pay rent, and then return through an intermediary an amount equal to the franchise. This is a rather complicated procedure, you need to provide all the documents, prove to the intermediary the fact of payment, etc. Difficult, but possible. Usually, I choose just the option with the return of the franchise. But this is your choice, think for yourself)

In conclusion, I want to say again: specify all the damage in the act of receiving / transmitting, take pictures of the whole car, it will save you from most of the problems. If you have any questions. waiting for them in the mail or in the comments. Successful lease! .