Car rentals are a highly popular service among foreigners in Dubai. People who come to this vibrant city for work or leisure want to have maximum freedom of travel. And of course, they want to fit the style of this colorful and affluent megalopolis. Apart from renting a vehicle, you might consider using a taxi. But if you have a classy modern car at your disposal, you won't need to wait a single minute. At any moment, you'll be able to drive wherever you want, enjoying the maximum comfort and listening to your favorite music. In this article, you'll find detailed and up-to-date information on how to rent a car in the UAE if you're a foreigner. You might be surprised by how easy and inexpensive it is.
Which Documents Do I Need to Rent a Car in the UAE?
Local distributors require their clients to provide the following list of documents for rentals:
- Driver's passport
- Two driver's licenses: a national and an international one
- A personalized credit card that you will use to make a deposit
Unfortunately, it's impossible to rent a car in Dubai if you have only a national driving license or only an international one. According to the local laws, that would incur a fine. Consequently, hardly any agency will sign a contract with a client who provides just one license. When driving, you should always have both licenses with you.
Also, it is impossible to use anonymous credit cards. The name on your card must match your name on the passport and driver's licenses. Local rental offices don't accept debit cards or cash. So before setting out on a trip to the UAE, make sure to take a credit card with embossed letters with you. It's important that the card should allow you to carry out financial transactions in both directions — that is, not only pay for goods and services but also receive money.
By the way, you should be able to use the same credit card to pay for toll roads. This is not the only possible payment method — but one of the most convenient ones. Toll roads in Dubai are not too numerous.
How Can I Pay for My Car Rental in Dubai?
Previously, clients who wanted to rent a car needed to pay the full rental price of the vehicle and the insurance amount for the deposit at the moment of signing the contract. Today, the process has become much easier. Instead of transferring to us the full sum of the insurance for the deposit, you'll need to pay just the symbolic value of $1. That's a bargain! We need that $1 only to meet the legal requirements. For you as a client, it doesn't involve any additional conditions or obligations.
This is a step-by-step guide on paying for your rented vehicle in an agency in Dubai.
- Send your personal data to our managers. This data needs to include your valid passport data, email address and phone number (the one that we can use to contact you in Dubai, in case we might need it).
- Place an order for the cost of renting a car.
- Send us a link for your payment.
- We'll issue a deposit for $1 + 3% bank tax on the cost of car rental.
- Pay the cost of renting a car, using the first link.
- Pay a deposit of $1, using the second link.
After you complete all these steps, funds on your card will be frozen for up to 30 days. Mind that local rental companies are usually in no hurry to remove the lock from the deposit. The thing is that the Dubai police charges fines within 3-4 weeks after the driver violates traffic rules. So the rental company will wait for approximately a month to make sure that you have no fines.
As you see, the process is genuinely simple. Dubai authorities try to increase the city's popularity among foreign tourists. They do their best to facilitate rentals and make car bookings as seamless as possible. Rental companies gladly support their efforts and do everything to facilitate and accelerate the process.
Is It Possible to Refuse the Car?
Yes, but only if it has not been delivered to you yet. If the vehicle is already delivered, you have a right to refuse it only in one case: if you discover a technical breakdown in it. In case you refuse a car, the rental company will write off its daily rental cost and promptly pick up another vehicle for you, with similar characteristics. If you discover a technical breakdown later, after you've already accepted the car, the agency might not write off the daily rental cost — but you'll be able to ask them to replace the auto.
In our practice, refusals would be an extremely rare occasion. Our fleet is being regularly inspected. We're proud to say that we strive to maintain our vehicles in perfect condition — and our clients appreciate that.
How Can I Extend the Rental Period of My Car?
One deposit enables you to extend the rental period of the vehicle you chose. Alternatively, you can select any other auto from our fleet and sign a new rental contract — in this case, you'll get your first deposit back and will need to pay another one.
To extend the rental period, you should call us or send us a text message through WhatsApp. You can find our main number indicated on the main page of our site.
Our managers will require you to specify the following information:
- Car brand
- The dates when you booked it or a photo of your contract
- Driver's personal data (first and last name, date of birth)
- Up to which date you would like to extend the rental
The process of confirming the extended rental should take only a couple of minutes. You can repeat the process as often as you wish and keep using the car as long you need it — provided that it remains available.
Sometimes, the manager might refuse to extend the rental because a reservation has already been accepted for this car from another client. That's why we recommend that our clients should try to plan things in advance if that's possible. However, if you make a spontaneous last-moment decision, we'll nevertheless be able to offer a top-notch car to you. Depending on what we have available at the moment, we'll try to find for you a vehicle of a similar make and with identical parameters.
Good news! If you would like to extend your car rental, we might offer an additional discount to you! The same offer might be valid for clients who have already booked one car with our help and would like to book a second one.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully, this article came in handy and now you better understand the process of renting autos in the UAE. If you have any other questions about car rentals in Dubai, feel free to get in touch with us at any moment! Our friendly and competent support team will be glad to consult you. We'll offer a dream car to you that will allow you to enjoy maximum comfort and impress the surrounding people.