Let’s cut to the chase. The magic word is “Lease”. Yep, instead of renting a car on your next European vacation, lease it. It will save you 50% and includes amazing perks such as:
- Comprehensive insurance with no deductible
- You get a brand new car, fresh from the factory
- You get the exact car model you ordered
- Customize the car with options such as GPS, CD Changer, Child Car Seats, Luggage and Surf Racks
- Unlimited mileage
- Minimum age: 18 (unlike 23 for most car rentals)
- Pay no tax
- You can travel in 28 countries
- 24 X 7 road-side assistance
- No extra driver charges
- Fast and easy pickup/drop-off
- Pickup in one city, drop-off in another one
Check out the price difference.
The savings are certainly impressive, but the terms make this a no-brainer. Zero deductible insurance is a big deal. No matter what happens you are fully covered. When we scraped the side of our leased van down a rock wall in Southern France, It didn’t cost us a penny.
Another thing I want to stress is you get to order a brand new vehicle, loaded with just the right options. Personally, we ordered a GPS system for our van that was a lifesaver when navigating unfamiliar roads.
Speaking of the van, when traveling as a family you need a little more space. Standard rental agencies have a limited supply or SUV’s and Vans. If they do have one available you’ll pay a premium for it. With a lease, you order from the entire line-up of Peugeot or Renault cars - and customize it to your specifications.
So what’s the catch?
There are a few restrictions. First, leases are only for tourists. You CANNOT be a citizen of the European Union, although you can be an EU expat living outside Europe currently.
You also must have the car for a minimum of 17 days. Of course, with the money you save, you can probably afford to stay a little longer than the standard American two-week vacation.
How is this possible?
The reason these “leases” exist is simple. Tax avoidance. New cars in France are taxed at a much higher rate than used cars. The leasing of brand new vehicles to tourists ensures an ample supply of barely-used automobiles for savvy French car buyers. Peugeot and Renault both offer these short term leases to visiting tourists.
How to book your lease:
The process is very easy. First, book your car online at one of the links below.
Europe By Car
Renault EuroDrive
Kemwel
In a few days you’ll receive a FedEx package of forms to complete. NOTE: There is a bit more paperwork than a traditional rental, but you get to do it at home, instead of standing at a rental counter after a 12 hour flight. Once you’ve returned the papers they will send your confirmation package.
Our Personal Experience:
We arranged to pick up the Peugeot Van (pictured above) at the Avignon Train Station in Southern France. Our instruction packet said to call when we arrived. The person who answered told us to exit the train station and look for a woman holding a sign with our name on it. We were then driven a few miles to the leasing office. The pick-up took less than 5 minutes.
25 days later we dropped the van off at the Lyon airport. It had sustained serious body damage but we were completely covered by the insurance. In fact, the drop-off procedure didn’t include an inspection. When we told the attendent about the damage, she just smiled, took the keys and wished us “bon voyage”. It was painless.
A Final Question:
We’ve also heard that some tourists buy a used car upon arrival and sell it when they leave. If you have any experience with this, we’d love to hear it.
{ 32 comments… read them below or add one }
Perfect timing! I am supposed to book a car next week. Great site…thanks.
Awesome, thanks for the tip!
When I was in Australia for 4 months, I bought a car. It cost $1850 plus about $100 for insurance. After the 4 months (and only 1 minor repair), I sold the car for $2800. I managed that due to the fact that I arrived in the off-season and left in peak season. I would highly recommend doing it because it gives you all the freedom. In fact, we did 18,000km that trip.
@ Paul - Thanks for the great info. I hope more people who have done that around the world chime in with their stories. Thanks for getting the ball rolling.
Those prices quoted above are very high. 3,600 (is that USD or Peso?) to rent plus insurance? Many credit cards include auto insurance when you pay with that card, and I have never seen a car rental that price anywhere in Europe. (and I live in Europe)
@Jeff - Those prices in dollars and are high because it’s a Van and it’s a for 30 days. I used it as an example because it is what we got for our family. Standard sized cars are much less.
Ok, now I get it. You’re supposed to lease the van in the picture. Other than that, there is nothing wrong with it.
Thanks for the tip.
I leased a new 2007 Peugeot 407 wagon for my European vacation and everything worked out perfect. We picked up our car in Munich and dropped it off in Madrid (although had a bit of trouble finding the Madrid office). The other advantage is that we were able to get a diesel, saving a ton of money on gas (gas is extraordinarily expensive in Europe; more than double US prices). When I called rental places, they didn’t seem to be able to guarantee a diesel, so this was another big plus– better mileage, cheaper fuel. And the zero deductible insurance left us without a worry. All in all, I would highly recommend this for anyone staying about 3 weeks or longer.
@Brandon - I forgot about the fuel aspect. Like you, we also opted for a diesel. Thanks for making this point. It’s a very important one.
Quote: “You CANNOT be a citizen of the European Union, although you can be an EU expat living outside Europe currently.”
If you are an expat living outside Europe currently, you are still a citizen of the European Union. Maybe you mean you CANNOT be a RESIDENT of the European Union?
can the same be done with touring motorcycles?
$15K CDN value BMW touring bikes? for example?
@Adam - Since this is a way for French Auto makers to avoid charging sales tax, I would think a French Motorcycle company might do the same thing. It’s not a BMW, but a place to look.
Author of this article doesn’t know the meaning of 50%.
Hi.
Great tip. However you can book a mini van at any of the rental car companies through their USA websites and get an USA price.
The average 29 days fee is about $1500. Third party insurance is included. The remaining liability insurance will add $500 for the period. However most credit cards provide this insurance.
I am used to use Sixt.com, works great for me.
@Mario - Thanks for the tip on Sixt.com. I’ve heard good things about them. If you’re staying for less than 17 days, I’d definitely check them out. Otherwise, we prefer leasing since we avoid extra driver fees and get a guaranteed diesel motor…a real money saver.
I sure hope you’ll stop by FamilyHack again and share more terrific tips that others can use.
Thanks again,
Michael
Company offers you to rent cars in Moldova. The best rent car Moldova.
Those prices quoted above are very high. 3,600 (is that USD or Peso?) to rent plus insurance? Many credit cards include auto insurance when you pay with that card, and I have never seen..
Is there a way to become a content writer for the site?
Always use your credit card to lease or rent. We had a fender bender in Spain, we hit a Mercedes, and everything was covered.
does that hold true for the united states? how about leasing r.v. motor home any tips
The U.S. doesn’t offer this arrangement. The French setup is mainly a way for car companies to provide a large and steady supply of “gently used” cars, avoiding the need for consumers to pay a higher sales tax on “new” cars.
Best,
Michael
Does anybody know the cheapest way to rent or lease a van in Costa Rica? I’m going there for 18 days and need to know?
Does this work in Germany, too? We are getting ready to go there.
Hi Angie,
You can drive the leased cars in a lot of European countries, but you may have to lease it in France. All the paperwork is done ahead of time via Fedex, and you can arrange a pickup close to Germany. Check out the info and links in the post for all the details.
Best,
Michael
This is an answer to Bob.
Renting a car in Costa Rica is going to be expensive no matter what, if they offer you a suspiciously great deal, probably there is a catch.
I live in Costa Rica, I recommend you to use Adobe Rent a Car.
They may not seem the cheapest at first but they are very serious, their page is easy to understand with no hidden costs so you get no surprises. Also they are very friendly and usefull in case you get lost or in trouble.
Contact them directly, if there is a way to lower your fee they will help you.
http://www.adobecar.com
While it was several years ago, we had a very good rental experience in Costa Rica. We had the rental confirmed in the US, but when we got there the vehicle we had reserved was not available. We were were upgraded to a Toyota Four runner Diesel. We drove the vehicle from coast to coast and back again. Only problems we really had were two flat tires and a service station attendant who started putting gas into the diesel tank. Not too much gas put in, but we got a free tank of fuel…
We were there for 10 days and the rental was only 240.00 with insurance. And we paid for the tire repairs ourselves so that didn’t go against any cost they could have added.
Note: Be very careful driving in Costa Rica.
Many of the roads, outside of town, are not paved. Most of those that are paved, wash out in the spring and summer rains.
The curves were all washboarded. You will find yourself lined up along the edges of the washboards. We went to the middle of the washboard and increased our speed enough to go across rut tops. It was bouncy at first but smoothed out as we got up to speed.
The mountain passes are narrow and can be treacherous. If someone passes you slow down and let them go on. There is a possibility they will be in the wreck ahead of you.
Is there a age limit to leasing oversea’s? Some rental Car Co. will not rent to you if you are 70 or older?
Thanks,
dick
Dick,
I don’t know if there is an upper age limit. One of the perks is that you only have to be 18 to drive the leased vehicle. Most rentals require you to be at least 25.
Best,
Michael
Please note that most credit cards DO NOT cover you in Europe. I know for sure AMEX doesn’t. Call your CC company before assuming…
Hi,
A friend from Switzerland came to visit us in Canada, where he attended language school and did a couple months of travelling. He bought a small used suv after he completed lanuage school in B.C. and used the vehicle to travel around B.C., Alberta and even up to Alaska… the accumulated kilometers were significant, but he was able to sell it again for more than he bought it for. I would assume that for an extended stay - like 2 or 3 months +, buying something used and (hopefully) reliable could be a worthwhile investment.
~K
Having bought a good used Suzuki convertible in Mexico for CDN $3,300. I sold it three winter seasons later (when the CDN $ was worth slightly over 10 pesos) for 28,000 pesos. Including maintenance and replacement of two tires I reckon it cost me all of CDN $1,000. to joy-ride three entire winter seasons. Hard to beat, eh?
Now, as we get ready to revisit western Europe I’ll try your suggestion of leasing versus renting. Some points of interest: airport rentals are often much higher than city rentals (try 24% or more of VAT at Vienna’s airport), whereas it pays to fly to a nearby airport and drive the extra mile, e.g. to Munich rather than Vienna. The only pain is that in order to avoid exorbitant drop-off fees one would have to drive the vehicle back to the original point of pick-up. We’ll be reporting back to you after our next European adventure to compare leasing versus purchase. Keep up the good work, it pays to be informed!
Since the “Chunnel” is in place, this would be a great deal better than renting a car in Scotland! We went in 1990 and while the freedom of the car was worth every penny, it cost almost half of our total amount spent during the time we were there! I could see getting the car in France and driving Great Britain!
Great hints on rental versus leasing - we also use http://autoeurope.com for monthly rentals - all road taxes ($60 US dollars) on Italy, insurance with no deductibles, etc included at half literally what Avis or Hertz would charge. Family in Italy found prices of about $110 daily versus our less than $60 daily fees all inclusive!
BTW - your site is chock full of great hints - hope you don’t mind but am going to post a link back to you on my blog.
Bonnie(valentinoswife)
http://valentinoswife.wordpress,com
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