Many things may be foreign to you in life especially when you don’t deal with them on an every day basis.  One of these things would be a car rental contract.  When it comes to a car rental contract, you often find yourself being rushed at the desk without being able to look at it.  Without feel like you’re being rushed, I’m going to outline a few things you should look out for or ask before you sign your name on the dotted line.

The names on the agreement – This is very important and I hope you pay close attention to this.  The names that show on the car rental agreement are the ones that should drive it.  If you get into an accident and your name didn’t show up on the contract then guess what?  You’re paying for the whole thing and yes, it’s 100% legal.

Look at the age ahead of time – If you’re under 21, you may want to contact the rental car company before you rent.  Some companies will require that you be 21 or even 25 before you rent a car.  You won’t want to travel all that way and find out you can’t get that car.  Also, make sure that you note that you’re going to pay more money if you’re under 25 years of age.

Rental insurance – Before you get rental insurance for your rental car, you may be already covered.  Certain credit cards and car insurance companies will insure you.  Make sure that you contact them before you pay the fee and insure it through them.  This alone will save you some money!

Look at the car before you sign – Before you sign the contact, make sure you look at the car.  Point out every ding and dent that’s on the car.  This way, this will show proof that you didn’t do it when you bring the car back.  There will usually be a little display on your contract showing you what kind of damages are associated with your rental vehicle.

Tickets are your responsibly – If you find yourself getting a speeding ticket or any other associated ticket, you’re going to have to pay for them so make sure you like them know if anything like this happens.  Most people think that if they just bring the car back, they won’t have to pay anything.  This isn’t the case with this!

Look at the late fees – See what kind of fees you’ll have to pay if your return the car late.  Some people are pleasantly surprised to find out that they may be charged double or triple just for bringing the car back a day late or so.  This is extremely important that you check out the late fees to see how much you’re going to pay just in case you do decide to bring it in late.

These are the important things you should look out for when you’re looking to sign a car rental contract.  It’s your duty to ask these questions because they won’t tell you these things if you don’t ask!