This is an article about all the extra costs that can come up while renting a car on SnappCar. Read more about how to pay for fuel, mileage, charging electric cars, paying congestion fees or toll fees, and what to do if there is a traffic fine or parking fine.
- Fuel
- Charging electric cars
- Mileage
- Congestion fees and toll fees
- Traffic fines and parking fines
- Equipment (child seat, storage box)
Fuel
The car owner and the renter are free to handle the fuel used during a rental in every way they see fit. SnappCar does not play an active role in this process. We facilitate a step in the check in process of the app, that lets both parties fill in the fuel tank level at the start of the rental and at the end of the rental. This does not mean that any costs connected to this are regulated by SnappCar.
The most common way to handle the fuel situation is that it is the owner’s responsibility to make sure that the car is fully fueled when the renter comes to pick it up. It is then the renter’s responsibility to bring back the car fully fueled. However, the owner could also leave the car with say 80% and the renter would then fill up the tank to the same level.
To make it easier the owner should instruct the renter on how many liters/how much money they should fill up since they know their car best. They could for example say that a full tank is usually xx Euros and xx liters.
The reason why the fuel level is registered at check-in and check-out is to help SnappCar mediate if the renter and owner have a dispute, any differences will not be regulated automatically.
The renter and owner are free to make different arrangements, as long as both parties agree. Our recommendation is this: always make it clear in your communication how you will solve these extra costs. The owner could for example write their preferred way in his/her profile, or they could both confirm it in the messages of the app. If SnappCar needs to intervene and there is no written proof of your arrangements, we can only look towards what is said in the check in and check out of the booking.
If you are a renter, always ask beforehand how the owner wants to solve the fuel payment if he/she hasn’t said anything about it before you pick up the car.
For information on Keyless cars, read here.
Charging electric cars
The same rules apply for charging an electric car. Most car owners don’t ask their renters to charge it to the same level, but might instead ask for a payment as mentioned above. Make sure to instruct the renter clearly on how you wish to handle the charging. For example, you could let them pay a cost for each kilometer but always ask them to at least leave it back with for example 30% so you are free to use the car afterward without charging.
Make sure to always ask beforehand and plan your time accordingly so you can charge the car to the correct amount before you return it.
Mileage
When you rent a SnappCar, you get a certain amount of kilometers per rental day of your rental period you are allowed to drive without an extra charge. This is the cost of the value decrease when driving with the car, and is separate from the fuel. The amount of free kilometers is set by the owner, as is the price a renter pays per kilometer when the renter drives more than the free amount. The total amount of free kilometers for a rental is calculated by multiplying the number of days the rental period is long by the number of free kilometers per day.
On top of this we withdraw the same fee as we do on the booking cost for the insurance and SnappCar fee, and the rest is paid out to the owner together with the rental income.
The limit of free kilometers is not saying that you are not allowed to drive more than that, only that it will cost extra when you pass that amount. It also doesn't matter how many kilometers you drive each day of the booking. As long as the total amount of kilometers driven are in the included range at the end of the booking, it will not cost extra.
If you enter the wrong kilometer in the check in or check out we will first ask you to solve the cost between the two of you. If we need to intervene, we will look at the proof from the pictures taken and send an invoice for the cost to the renter, and then send the money to the owner. SnappCar is not responsible for reimbursing the owner if this happens because of a mistake when entering the data, but we will do our best to help out.
Congestion fees and toll fees, traffic fines and parking fines
You as a renter are responsible for paying any fees related to your trip. For example congestion fees, toll fees, and parking fees, including traffic fines and parking fines.
The owner will most often get the invoice sent to his/her home address since they are the owner of the car. It is therefore important that you pay the owner for this as soon as they reach out to you.
If you notice a parking ticket during your booking, send a picture of it directly to the owner and arrange with them how to handle the payment.
If SnappCar needs to intervene because you didn’t reach an agreement we will add an administrative fee and sometimes a fine which will result in a more expensive cost. See the current fees in this article.
Equipment (child seat, storage box)
If the owner offers any extra equipment it is up to the owner to decide how to handle the payment for lending it. As mentioned above, our recommendation is to always make it clear in your communication how you will solve these extra costs, for example by confirming it in the messages of the app. If SnappCar needs to intervene and there is no written proof of your arrangements, we can only look towards what is said in the check in and check out of the booking.