Very cheap car rental deals: where does the money come back, and how do you compare the real price?

A week of car hire for the price of two coffees a day looks too good to pass up. Sometimes it really is a good deal. But a rental company that rents a car at a loss still has to cover its costs somewhere. With a very cheap deal, the real price is decided at the desk, not on the booking page. Here is where the money usually comes back, and how to compare offers on what you will actually pay.

Why some deals are so cheap

In its summer 2026 advice, ECC Austria explains that most holiday bookings go through online platforms. These platforms reserve large numbers of cars from local companies for the season and can often offer lower prices. The contract itself is then signed at the desk with the local company, under its own terms.

That split matters. The booking site shows a base price. The desk contract decides what you pay for cover, fuel, deposits and extras. In research published in May 2026, the Irish consumer authority CCPC found that more than 40% of Irish holidaymakers had a problem with a rental car abroad the previous summer, and 31% paid more than they had expected.

Where the money comes back

1Cover at the desk

This is usually the biggest gap. In 2024, Which? compared prices for a week in Malaga and found that a super damage waiver from the rental company cost on average 177 pounds, against 38 pounds for excess insurance from a broker and 23 pounds bought directly from an insurer. The CCPC found that people who bought cover from the rental company were twice as likely to say they spent more than expected.

If you already have excess insurance, the desk can still offer its own. Read extra insurance at the rental desk before you travel, and work out what each option costs with the excess calculator.

2The fuel policy

ECC Austria calls full to full the fairest and usually cheapest policy. Other policies, such as full to empty, often cost more through service fees or a high price per litre. ECC-Net adds that with full to empty you do not get a refund for fuel you did not use. In the CCPC research, 23% of people with hidden fee problems mentioned fuel charges. See fuel policies explained.

3The deposit

A cheap deal can come with a large deposit, especially if you decline the company's own cover. The hold has to fit within your card limit, and ECC Austria notes that debit and prepaid cards are often refused and that the main driver usually has to be the cardholder. In the CCPC research, 76% of renters had to give a credit card for the security hold. Read how a deposit hold works.

4Surcharges and extras

ECC-Net says prices must include all charges in the total booking price at the time of booking, including surcharges such as airport, young driver and one-way fees. Optional extras can be added, but must be itemised. When ECC-Net screened 78 rental booking sites in 2022, 21% had pre-selected optional paid extras, and information on mandatory charges such as young driver or one-way fees was sometimes missing. Check what applies to you in young driver surcharges and age limits and one-way car rental fees.

5Liability cover

ECC Austria warns that very low third-party liability cover in cheap offers can leave you exposed after a serious accident, and recommends at least 1 million euros. It notes that cover of 10 or 50 million euros often costs only a few euros more per day. This is not about the excess, but about what happens if you injure someone or damage their property.

How to compare offers on the total

1. Start from the same trip. Same dates, pick-up time, driver ages and number of drivers in every search.
2. Add the cover you actually want. Either the desk's zero excess price, or your own excess insurance plus the full deposit.
3. Add fuel. With full to full, count nothing extra. With any other policy, add the price of a tank and any service fee.
4. Add the extras you need. Second driver, child seat, out of hours fee, cross-border or one-way fee.
5. Compare the totals, then the conditions. A slightly more expensive offer with a lower deposit and full to full fuel is often the cheaper trip.

At the desk

A cheap booking is where the pressure to add cover tends to be highest, because that is where the margin is. Say clearly which extras you decline and check the total on the contract before you sign. Our guide to reading a rental agreement in ten minutes shows which lines to look at, and the terms check helps you spot the clauses that matter.

After the trip

Cheap deals do not end at the return. ECC Austria notes that many companies ask for the credit card to stay valid for at least six months after the rental, so later costs such as fines or damage can be charged. Keep your booking, contract, fuel receipt and photos together until that period has passed. If an extra appears that you did not agree to, read why your rental car bill can be higher than the booking and object in writing.