How does paying a deposit for car rental work?
If you book a rental car from Sunny Cars, then you know that all the arrangements have been made down to the last detail. You pay for your rental car in advance, and you don’t have any surprises on site. What do you still have to pay on site? The deposit. The amount of the deposit may differ depending on the rental car. Usually a valid credit card in the name of the main driver, with a pin code and sufficient available funds, is mandatory unless it is possible to pay the deposit in cash, with a debit card or make use of our unique No Deposit service.
Why must you pay a deposit when collecting the rental car?
You pay for the rental car in advance in the Netherlands, on site you pay the local rental partner for any extras or accessories. The rental partner also requires a mandatory deposit: after all, you are receiving an item of significant value. The deposit is a guarantee for the partner in the event of any damage, theft, fraud or negligence.
What is the difference between a deposit and an excess?
The deposit and the excess are two different things when it comes to car rental:
- The deposit is an amount that is temporarily blocked on your credit card as a guarantee for the local rental company.
- The excess, on the other hand, is the amount for which you are personally liable in the event of damage to the rental car or theft.
This means that if there is any damage, you pay the excess amount before the insurance covers the rest. The deposit is refunded after the rental period, provided no additional costs have been incurred. You can easily claim back the excess once you return from your holiday.
Why do you have to pay a deposit if the excess is covered?
Even if there is no excess, you often still have to pay a deposit for the rental car. This is because the deposit provided broader cover for the rental car company. If covers not only potential damage or that that falls under the excess, but also other costs such as fines, missing fuel or additional cleaning charges. It ensures that the local partner has some assurance that any potential costs you might incur during the rental period are covered.
How much is the deposit for the rental car?
The amount of the deposit varies according to the rental car and is usually the same as the amount of your excess. You will immediately see the amount of the deposit for each rental car. You can also find this under “Important rental information” in the specific rental conditions for each rental car. Impossible to miss!
How to pay the deposit for the rental car?
For each rental car, the specific rental conditions clearly state the deposit for that rental car. There are 4 ways to pay the deposit: with a credit card, a cash deposit, debit card or with the No Deposit service.
1 Deposit with credit card
In most cases a credit card is mandatory to pay the deposit of the rental car. The local rental partner temporarily sets this amount aside as security against any damage, traffic fines, etc.
To pay the deposit, the credit card must:
- be in the name of the main driver;
- have a PIN, which you must be able to enter on site;
- have a sufficient available fund to cover the deposit.
We cannot emphasize this enough: the credit card cannot belong to your parents or a friend, but really must be in the name of the person signing the rental contract as the main driver. Without this, the local rental partner will not supply a rental car, unless stated otherwise in the specific rental conditions.
What if the main driver does not have a credit card him or herself but a fellow traveller does? Then ensure that the travelling companion is the main driver. This is because the main driver requires a credit card in his or her name.
Tip: Before you rent a car, check that you still remember your credit card PIN. You’ll usually need this. Have you forgotten your PIN? With some providers, such as ICS and ING, you can view your PIN online via their app. In other cases, you will need to request a new PIN. You can usually find out how this works with your credit card provider on their website.
2 Cash deposit
You don’t have a credit card? In some cases, you can pay the deposit in cash for certain rental cars. However, this isn’t possible everywhere. Whether a cash deposit is accepted varies depending on the rental car partner and destination.
Would you like to view only rental cars that do not require a credit card? When searching for a rental car, select ‘Rent without a credit card’ from the filter menu. You will then only see rental cars where you can pay your deposit in cash or by debit card, or where you can use our No Deposit service.
Note: booking a rental car with a cash deposit is only possible if this is explicitly stated in the rental terms and conditions for the car in question. You should therefore always check these terms and conditions in advance. In that way, you will know exactly which payment methods are available when you pick up the rental car.
Can I pay a cash deposit using my debit card?
No, if a cash deposit is required, you must pay it in cash. Debit cards are not accepted for this purpose. You can find out which deposit applies to your booking on your voucher and in the rental terms and conditions.
Will my cash deposit be refunded to my account or in cash?
If you return the rental car during opening hours, you will be refunded the cash deposit immediately in cash. If you return the rental car outside opening hours, please make clear arrangements with the local rental partner when you pick up the car. In most cases, it’s not possible to pick up or return the rental car outside opening hours if a cash deposit is required.
3 Deposit with a debit card
At more and more destinations, you can pay the deposit with a debit card. Convenient! But note: we often see that a debit card is confused with a regular bank card (such as Maestro or V Pay). Unfortunately, the local rental partner does not accept your regular bank card for the deposit.
You can often recognise a debit card by the Visa Debit or Mastercard Debit logo. The card also has the features required for car rental, such as a 16-digit card number, an expiry date and a CVC or CVV code. This allows the local rental partner to reserve the deposit in the same way as with a credit card.
A standard debit card with Maestro or V PAY does not usually have these features. As a result, the rental partner cannot block a deposit on such a card, and this type of debit card is generally not accepted when picking up the rental car.
Not sure whether you have a debit card? Check whether your card has:
- a Visa Debit or Mastercard Debit logo;
- a 16-digit card number;
- an expiry date;
- a CVC or CVV code.
Debit cards can also be used worldwide and are increasingly accepted for car rental. However, not every car rental company accepts a debit card for the security deposit. You should therefore always check the rental terms and conditions for specific car in advance. During the booking process, it will be clearly stated whether a debit card is permitted for that particular car.
Check in this table whether your debit card is suitable for car rental.
| Feature | Bank card (regular payment card) | Debit card (Visa Debit / Mastercard Debit) |
|---|---|---|
| Logo | Maestro of V PAY  | Visa of Mastercard  |
| 16-digit card number | No | Yes |
| CVC/CVV code | No | Yes |
| Expiry date on the card | No | Yes |
| Use abroad | Limited | Worldwide |
| Suitable for car rental | No | Yes, if debit cards are accepted. This will be stated during booking. |
4 No Deposit service
You don’t want to pay a deposit, or don’t have a suitable credit or debit card? Then the ‘No Deposit’ service is ideal. With selected rental cars, you don’t need to leave a deposit when you pick up the car. Next to that, a credit card is often not required.
You will see straight away during the booking process whether a rental car is eligible for the No Deposit service. In that way, you will know exactly where you stand in advance. Want to find out more? Read all about our unique No Deposit service here.
When do you pay the deposit?
You pay the deposit when collecting the rental car. The amount is pre-authorized on your credit card, or it is debited. Tip: there’s a good chance that you will want to pay for your hotel stays, meals, trips and other nice activities with the credit card during your holiday. So please bear in mind the amount of the deposit and the fact that you temporarily have lower available funds.
When will the deposit be returned?
If the rental period has gone smoothly and you have returned the rental car on time, the local rental partner will release or refund the deposit. Has the deposit been collected? Then the deposit will be returned within 10 days. Has the deposit been pre-authorized? Then it may take up to 30 days for the deposit to be released.
For example, if your credit card billing cycle runs from 6 August to 4 September and you return the hire car on 25 August, the booking may not expire until 4 September.
Should the refund take longer, then it is advisable to contact your credit card company and ask whether the deposit has already been released by the local rental partner. Is this still unclear? Then you can contact our customer care department via customercare@sunnycars.nl so that we can see why the deposit has not yet been refunded.
Has the deposit not been refunded to you in full?
The local rental partner may possibly not refund the deposit to you in full. There may be several reasons for this:
- You have incurred damage and the excess is deducted from the deposit
- You have damage to the windows, tires, roof or undercarriage of the rental car and the loss amount is deducted from the deposit
- You have booked an accessory such as a GPS or child seat and the costs for this are deducted from the deposit
- You have booked a hotel delivery, or one way rental and the costs are deducted from the deposit
So just check the final payment information carefully to see what you have been charged for. Do you need help? Our customer care team will be happy to help you. Send an email to customercare@sunnycars.nl including your booking number and a copy of the final payment information. With all their car rental experience, they often see what’s going on straight away.
