How much should I pay for car hire?

Post by **Stef** » January 28, 2008, 8:33 pm

My wife, Porn has finally pursuaded me to visit Udon, so this August this where I'll be spending my hols, I'm gonna b there 4 a month, will I need to hire a car, if so wot should i expect to pay, nothing 2 flash.

Post by **beer monkey** » January 28, 2008, 9:02 pm

Leks car rental have a selection of new vehicles for 999baht inc, a day if renting for long periods ie:1 month, just click on the link to go straight to the web page, best book in advance,for a friendly easy service.

I have read on here that you can get a little bit cheaper rentals at some other places .....i .am sure someone will post details

http://www.lekcarrentaludonthani.com/

Post by **Roy** » January 28, 2008, 9:08 pm

You can also try Glyn at

http://www.englishmansretreat.com/

Has a couple of nice motors for rent and cheap to.

Post by **beer monkey** » January 28, 2008, 9:12 pm

Thats right Roy...at 21600B per month for the Honda Jazz it seems hard to beat.
Again would be very wise to book in advance i should think.

Post by **kevh** » January 28, 2008, 9:30 pm

Aussie bar car beat those prices for brand new cars or pickups,

Worth giving them a ring and check the best price.

Justin, +66 (0) 861086359

Post by **beer monkey** » January 28, 2008, 10:14 pm

beer monkey wrote:Thats right Roy...at 21600B per month for the Honda Jazz it seems hard to beat.
Again would be very wise to book in advance i should think.

kevh wrote:Aussie bar can beat those prices for brand new cars or pickups,

Worth giving them a ring and check the best price.

Justin, +66 (0) 861086359

i spoke too soon it seems.!!

Post by **Stef** » January 29, 2008, 11:31 am

Thanks for your replies, I checked out their website Roy, looks like a nice place to stay. It's got the gym I need. Anyway does anyone know the business name for Justin and does he have a website I can visit?

Post by **Roy** » January 29, 2008, 11:53 am

Yep it has Stef, lots of free weights if thats your thing and I'm guessing by the pic it is

Heres a link to Justin's http://www.udonmap.com/aussiebar/

Post by **Stef** » January 29, 2008, 1:30 pm

I just tried that website Roy, it says car hire but theres no link or more info, I'll phone on the works phone whem my shift starts 2nite, the code is still +66 to Udon si that right.

Post by **Roy** » January 29, 2008, 2:10 pm

yep and drop the first 0

Post by **dill** » January 29, 2008, 5:01 pm

yep i would agree on lek being a good place to hire a car plus you can be safe that they have got no short cuts.
when i first started to go to udon i found alot of car companies were cheap and was seprised with their prices but after found out that their insurance was worth nothing,i would hate to be in a accindent and the insurance was not worth the paper it was writen on,so be carefull with that.

Post by **Stef** » January 30, 2008, 10:47 am

Has anyone rented a car from the englishmans retreat, are they a good company? they can do a honda Jazz for 18000 a month, same as Justin at Aussie Bar Car. Do they have proper insurance, and how will I know?

Post by **Roy** » January 30, 2008, 10:57 am

Yep its all cosher Stef, if you rent a motor of any of the people mentioned here you can be sure its all above board.

Post by **Glyn** » January 30, 2008, 11:39 am

Cheers for the email Steff!

For yourself and anyone else concidering renting a vehicle in Thailand, insurance is a big issue, most insurance companies will not pay out if the driver is not in possession of a Thai driving licence. In your situation and with many other tourists, you cannot get a licence without having a NON-Imm visa. My cars all have 1st class insurance, and to over come the above problem I pre-arrange the driver details with the Insurance company, and as long as they have your records they honour the claim. To put your mind at rest further I will scan and send you a copy of my policy for the Jazz, although in thai I am sure your wife will translate the details for you.

PS. check out my customer comments at www.englishmansretreat.com/comments although not so directed at car rentals, they will show we run a professional and reputable business.

Cheers

Post by **Lek Car Rentals** » January 30, 2008, 3:00 pm

Glyn could not be more right when it comes down to Insurance,

If you drive a care without proper fully comprehensive insurance in Thailand and have an accident or incident, the land of smiles suddenly becomes the land of nightmares.

However much some rental companies assure you with that glimmering smile that they are renting you a car with full insurance, be very wary and ask to see the policy. That smile may soon disappear with excuses that the policy is not available to view at that time.

With many you will find they only have Third Party Insurance, this only covers any incident you are involved in only if you are not in the wrong, but if you are a westerner like myself you might know that normally whatever the incident is over her it is normally your fault anyway. Hence you will end up paying all types of ridiculously inflated damage / injury / theft costs. Including in most cases 1000B a day every day the vehicle is off the road. The police will not help you with this.

The main reason some companies do not carry full insurance is the cost, the difference of the premium (depending on vehicle) is approx 3000 Baht for third party insurance to 18,000 - 25,000 Baht per vehicle per year that we pay out for all our vehicles.

It might seem a good idea at the time looking & saving a few small baht for something cheaper but for the price of a couple of beers its better to be safe than sorry

Post by **wazza** » January 30, 2008, 3:01 pm

Do they accept International Driving licences to allow the insurance to be valid ?

Post by **Lek Car Rentals** » January 30, 2008, 3:41 pm

wazza wrote:Do they accept International Driving licences to allow the insurance to be valid ?

Yes a proper license is required, we are now advising customers to bring an international driving license or valid Thai license with them, if you only have your normal license from country of residence we have to inform the insurance company and put your name on cover.

The police are clamping down in all areas to do with motoring; you will still get away with showing your normal driving license at checkpoints or if you are pulled over by the police,

But if you are involved in any incident where you have to go to the police station they will ask for an international driving license, especially if you have had an accident with a third party involved,

Again, over here it is better to be safe than very sorry

Post by **kevh** » January 30, 2008, 5:09 pm

Totally agree with Doug and Glyn, 1st insurance is an absolute must in thailand and worth the extra premium.

However the comment about having to have a thai licence is totally wrong.

I have had 2 claims in thialand over the years, 1 on an international driving licence and the other on a normal british driving licence, both are valid in the land of smiles.

Although a normal british driving licence is only valid for 90 upon entry into the country. (the 90 days starts again every time you go out of the country and do a visa run).

Insurance company paid up both times without an arguement.

Post by **Lek Car Rentals** » January 30, 2008, 5:41 pm

Many Thanks Kev,

But recently, being a car rental compamy we have been warned by the police to inform western customers that they should have the proper license, an International or Thai, we too have been able to claim without any problems on MANY occasions when our customers have had a mishap and only carried normal licences. This is mainly due to having the full insurance, they seem to 'bend' the rules a little.

We have not encountered a problem as yet with normal licenses But as I said, the police are clamping down on everything and we have been warned...

Fine, without an incident is 500B

Doug & Lek

www.lekcarrentaludonthani.com

Post by **beer monkey** » January 30, 2008, 5:45 pm

Stef..If you want a International License they are simple to get in the UK, just contact RAC download a form on-line and it will cost a mere £5.50 ...best be on the safe side, also check with the rental company's how much deposit is required, Leks is only 2000baht, where as Big names like Avis are 20000baht held on a credit card,and if the car breaks down(highly unlikely,never happened to me in 18 years !!) a million miles away from Udon....what happen's then...?.

And the all important CDW...collision damage waiver, where you would/may/may not have to pay for a very very small percentage of the cost of repairs in the unlikely event of any claims.

Happy motoring.