Best credit card for car rentals

Anonymous · ‎08-03-2014

Hi all,

Have posted here a few times before & got some great info/advice from you all. So, here I am again!!

I am looking for a credit card that will give me the best rewards/cash back for all my car rentals. I do NOT have a car, so I sometimes rent cars out when I need them for interviews, job fairs, etc. This past year, I spent a pretty good amount of cash on these rentals. Since the beginning of this year I spent nearly $500 on Enterprise vehicles (I signed up for their rewards club, and am nearly to my first free rental!). I also regularly use Zipcar, as they have vehicles on my campus...very convenient & comes with insurance and gas. I spent an additional $500 or so with them. All the rentals took place between January-April.

I am NOT looking for a card that gives good cash back/rewards for gas. I am looking for a card that would give good cashback/rewards for rental car reservations. I noticed that the payments normally do show up as "travel" in my current payments. I would prefer a card that doesn't have an annual fee. Does anyone have any good suggestions for me? I am hoping to get the card before I go back to school, so that I may use it when I need to make my reservations for various events.

Thanks in advance!

signaturecardmember · ‎08-03-2014

Silent Pen, I would also look at who has the best insurance coverage included with the rental too.

off topic but relevent, i have a lot of member affiliations but find carrentalsavers.com to cut a lot of time out of trying to get the best deals.

Started: 4/14 Bank of America Signature $6k, 85% Utilization, 745 Fako
Currently: 6/18 Bank of America Signature $99.9k, Chase Slate $0, Chase Freedom Signature $2.5k, American Express Gold NSL, American Express Everyday $6k, Lowes GE $0 (From $35k), Discover IT $38.5k, Capital One Quicksilver $5k, Barclays US Airways $24k, DCU Platinum $30k, PenFed Promise $47k, Chase Freedom Unlimited Signature (From CSP) $50k, Chase AARP Signature $7.5k, American Express Blue Cash $7.5k, Citi American Airlines Platinum $10.5k, Capital One Venture Signature $30k, Chase Sapphire Preferred (From Reserve) $12k, Chase Ink Business Preferred $10k, Barclays Aviator Business $14k. Total Available Credit: Over $350k, Utilization 4%, AAoA 7 Years, TU Fico 799, EX Fico 727

OHWWCB · ‎08-03-2014

The Chase cards like CSP and Marriott Rewards give double points for all travel, including car rentals. However, they both have an annual fee. Freedom is obviously 1% on everything with no AF so maybe that's an option although it's not great.

Ashhh1991 · ‎08-03-2014

Amex provides optional primary insurance on all of their cards for $24.99 per rental (same price no matter how many days you rent it for, up to 42 days). This can be much cheaper than the renter's coverage if you rent for more than 3-4 days.

You can read more about AMEX's car rental insurance coverage here: https://www295.americanexpress.com/premium/car-rental-insurance-coverage/home.do

Two of their cards I'd recommend for your purposes are:
Blue Sky - no AF. 1.33% cash back towards travel purchases (including car rental).
Blue Sky Preferred - $75 AF, 2.66% cash back on travel purchases, must be applied towards travel purchases.

Another card to consider is:
BarclayCard Arrival (no AF), has 2% cash back on travel, for travel, but it doesn't have primary insurance AFAIK.

There are some other cards that have coupons and such for car rentals, but those require you to be aware beforehand and would probably be too much trouble.
One example is Discover IT. Currently, they have coupons for Budget ($20 off weekly rental), Hertz ($5 off per day, up to $25, and 5% to 25% off depending on class), and a few more.

For rentals, my main concern would be the insurance. If you rent for more than 3-4 days often, I'd recommend Amex for the primary insurance coverage. If not, I'd go with BarclayCard Arrival, for the 2% back.

TU Fico: 709 8/5
Auto Loan: Chase 11.9k/16.9k, 4.99% APR, $507.28/mo
CC: BoA BBR 6.1k, Slate 4k, Sapphire 3.5k, Citi TYP 3.2k Fidelity Amex 3k, QuickSilver 3k, SallieMae 3k, WF Cashback 2.8k, Citi DP 2.4k, Arrival 2.25k, Amex BCE 2k, Discover IT 1.5k.

mongstradamus · ‎08-03-2014

@OHWWCB wrote:
The Chase cards like CSP and Marriott Rewards give double points for all travel, including car rentals. However, they both have an annual fee. Freedom is obviously 1% on everything with no AF so maybe that's an option although it's not great.

I think CSP in their most recent changes updated their auto insurance on car rentals.

EX Fico 804 11/16/16 Fako 800 Credit.com 11/16/16
EQ SW bank enhanced 11/16/16 839 CK fako 822 11/16/16
TU Fico discover 10/19/16 814 Fako 819 Creditkarma 11/16/16

OHWWCB · ‎08-03-2014

@mongstradamus wrote:
@OHWWCB wrote:
The Chase cards like CSP and Marriott Rewards give double points for all travel, including car rentals. However, they both have an annual fee. Freedom is obviously 1% on everything with no AF so maybe that's an option although it's not great.
I think CSP in their most recent changes updated their auto insurance on car rentals.

I believe that's right. I rarely rent cars so I haven't paid attention. But I didn't see the OP talking about insurance, I thought they were looking for rewards.

longtime_lurker · ‎08-03-2014

Yeah, I thought the CSP became primary CDW? Plus it would be 2% on travel

Current cards: MSUFCU Platinum, Amex PRG, Amex Surpass, Amex BCE, Citi Prestige, Citi Double Cash, Citi Premier, US Bank Cash +, Huntington Voice, AAviator, Sallie Mae, Discover IT, Chase Freedom TU:753 EQ Enhanced: 758

Hubcapjw · ‎08-03-2014

What about the gold delta amex. U get travel reward mile and you can use amex's ins. as well.

TiggerDat · ‎08-03-2014

Discover It card using Shop Discover can get you an additional 5% cash back.

It is by will alone I set my mind in motion.....
Always follow these rules: Only take a HP for a new account. Always use the best rewards card for that reward category. Don't close a card unless you know you really should. Never use more than 35% of a credit limit. Recon as much and as best you can. Use the introductory period to the best advantage. Get the signup bonus. Whenever possible PIF or balance transfer so you pay less in interest. Never give an excellent rating when it is actually the norm. Always look for a discount as more is always better.
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longtimelurker · ‎08-03-2014

The US Bank Cash Plus has a 5% category for car rental you can select.