Car rental Inquiry

[Anonymous]

I am wondering what credit score is needed to rent a car? I am planning on renting through Budget for approximately one week. My current FICO scores are just over 600 (currently rebuilding). I have a secured credit card through Capital One but the limit is only about 200 and the total price is about 280. Thank you all.

[SunriseEarth]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I am wondering what credit score is needed to rent a car? I am planning on renting through Budget for approximately one week. My current FICO scores are just over 600 (currently rebuilding). I have a secured credit card through Capital One but the limit is only about 200 and the total price is about 280. Thank you all.

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Credit isn't pulled in order for you to rent a car.   Often, people use cash for both the deposit and the actual rental fees.   You could always use your secured credit card for the hold for the deposit and use another method to pay the rental fees.  

[Anonymous]

Some places DO run a credit report when you're paying with a debit card. Is there anyway you could increase the secured limit on your Capital one card before you rent the car? They won't know your card is secured and won't run a credit check if you're paying with a credit card.

You might call around and ask the question to local car rental places. They should be able to tell you exactly what they're looking for. Better to know in advance then be embarrassed at the counter. 

[elim]

How old is your secured card?  With a 600+ Fico you should be able to get a Cap1 Plat I think.

I just rented a car for 10 days from Avis and no credit check was made (I used CSP and they held $3000.00 because I declined insurance).

[Anonymous]

Thank you all for the responses!

SunriseEarth: do you happen to know what agencies allow cash to pay? I do not believe I have come across from one.

750by50: my limit is 200 so I added another hundred dollars to cover the costs. My only fear is that they attempt to hold more than my limit for incidentals and I get declined.

Elim: I got my secured card approximately three months ago. I am debating applying for another card but it might have to be a secured card which I don't think benefits me right now. My Cap1 limit is 200 right now.

[Anonymous]

Most car rental places will  not accept cash. Also on a credit card they would hold a minimum of 250$ or price of rental, whichever is higher.

Most places accept a debit card to rent your car as long as you bring to pieces of current wage information. This could be a recent pay stub and a utility bill. The hold on the debit card would be 250 or cost of rental as well.

[Anonymous]

I did not think so either but it was worth a try. The total for the trip is 265ish so I am sure my cc will cover. I just don't want to get penalized for incidentals. I have no problem paying with my credit card. I will look into the debt card info. Thanks!!

[Anonymous]

Rent from Avis. They only hold the amount of your rental on your credit card. Also, look for AWD codes such as H857100 to get a discount on your rental. You can usually find a bunch on Retail Me Not.

If you need insurance for the rental, never buy it from the car rental agency. Use Protect Your Bubble or Insure My Rental Car. Full coverage for much less.

[elim]

check the Cap1 pre-qual and see if they are helping you out yet.   :]     If not then you may have to wait another 3 months.

[Pway]

I would call and verify that they are only going to hold the amount of the rental.  I know I have rented a couple cars here lately and on top on the rental charges they have held an additional 200 as a deposit on my credit card.  

Using your debit card rental car companies does require a credit check, the rep told me they don't just go off your scores, they look at the whole picture.  Lates, derogs and etc and the system either auto decline or approve.  There is a higher depost being held on your debit card as wel..  You just may want to check around.