As a renter, when we pick up the vehicle, we experience that the service provider will block a certain amount on our credit card. This amount, known as a deposit or caution, is legally a security deposit to cover the expected rental fee, damages caused during the rental period and any fines occurred. The rental company is typically notified of offences committed with the vehicle days or from abroad even weeks, after the car has been returned. That’s why the practice of requesting pre-authorisation has evolved, giving the car rental company the possibility to charge our card after the rental in justified cases. It’s good to know that the card companies pay attention to these ex-post transactions particularly strict, so we can rest assured that, for example in the event of a question, the rental company will have to provide full documentation to support the legitimacy of its transaction.

How does it work? During the pre-authorisation process the deposit amount is blocked, which means that the money remains in our account, but we cannot spend it temporarily. After unblocked we can access our money again. Don't worry if we don't receive an SMS notification, as this is not a transfer transaction, our account balance will not change when it is unblocked. Our account will be charged really by the rental company when the car is returned, at the time of settlement of rental fee and damages, which automatically initiates the release of the previous block. However, the actual date of release depends on the internal rules of the bank concerned.

Car rental companies usually accept embossed international credit cards (typically Visa and Mastercard in Europe) as a guarantee, so if we have for example a debit, a non-embossed (electron) or a prepaid card, always check in advance whether it is suitable for our rental. The amount of deposit depends on the rented category and typically ranges between €500 and €3000. For current terms and conditions of GAME Rentacar see Car rental information page.