Car rental without a deposit
Most rental desks block a deposit on the driver's credit card when the car is handed over, often several hundred euros, and release it days after the car is returned. The rental companies on Local Car Rentals do not. Each has agreed to hand over its cars with no deposit taken and no credit card held as security.
What no deposit means
- Nothing is blocked or pre-authorised on any card, at booking or when the car is collected.
- A credit card is not needed to rent. The rental can be paid in cash or by card.
How the rental is paid
Nothing is paid online. The rental is paid to the rental company when the car is collected, in cash or by card. Depending on the rental company's bank, some cards, such as Mastercard or Diners, may not be accepted. A booking can be cancelled free of charge until the car is collected.
The driver's responsibility
No deposit does not change the driver's responsibility for the car. That responsibility is set out in the rental contract signed with the rental company:
- Damage to the car: the driver is responsible up to the excess stated for that car. Damage costing less than the excess is paid in full; damage costing more is limited to the excess. Extra cover, where offered, lowers the excess.
- Fuel, traffic and parking fines, and tolls are the driver's, as with any rental.
- Anything the cover does not include, and the rental company's other conditions such as fuel policy, driver age and ferry travel, are shown with its cars and accepted at booking.
The excess for each car is shown before booking, on the voucher and in the rental contract.
Who rents the car
Local Car Rentals is a booking site, not a rental company. The car is rented from a local company, which hands it over and signs the rental contract with the driver. Local Car Rentals makes a separate agreement with every rental company listed, and under that agreement the company provides its cars without a deposit. The terms are set out in the guarantee.
Where
Cars are offered in Kos for now, collected in Kos Town and at Kos Port. Bookings open in early 2027.