← Back to blog
How Is the Rental Day Calculated?
How to Properly Extend Your Rental
What If the Car Is Already Reserved for Another Customer?
What If I Simply Can’t Return the Car on Time?
A Practical Example
If the vehicle is available on Thursday, we can extend the rental and agree on a new return time.
What If I Want to Return the Car Earlier?
The Simple Rule
What If I Return the Car Late? How to Properly Extend Your Rental
Author: Martin Russin
If you know you will not be able to return the car on time, contact us before the rental period ends. If the vehicle is available, we can extend the rental with an amendment signed electronically. If the vehicle is returned late without prior agreement, an additional day may be charged after the one-hour grace period, according to the rental terms.
Most delays do not happen because someone intends to return a car late. It might be traffic on the D1 motorway, a meeting that runs longer than expected, or simply a change of plans.
The difference between a situation we can easily resolve and an unexpected additional charge often comes down to one thing: whether you contact us before the rental period ends.
How Is the Rental Day Calculated?
The rental period is calculated in 24-hour cycles starting from the time the vehicle is picked up.
For example, if you pick up the car on Friday at 10:00 and return it on Sunday at 10:00, that is a two-day rental.
When returning the vehicle, you have a one-hour grace period after the agreed return time. If the vehicle is returned later, an additional day may be charged according to the rental terms.
For standard rentals, time beyond the grace period is therefore not calculated as individual additional hours, but according to the rules applicable to the next chargeable rental day.
Wedding rentals may follow different charging rules, as they are based on a specific time package. The exact conditions therefore depend on the type of rental agreed.
How to Properly Extend Your Rental
The simplest solution is to contact us before your rental period ends.
We will check whether the vehicle is available for the additional days and, if the extension is possible, prepare an amendment to the rental agreement for electronic signature.
The amendment may include:
- the new return date and time,
- the price for the additional rental period,
- an adjusted mileage allowance based on the extension,
- and any other applicable rental conditions.
The entire process can be handled remotely. You do not need to bring the car back to the branch or sign a completely new rental agreement just to extend the rental.
If the original rental has already been invoiced, the extension can be handled through an additional invoice for the agreed extra period.
What If the Car Is Already Reserved for Another Customer?
There is one important factor: an extension depends on vehicle availability.
If the vehicle is already reserved for another customer after your rental, we cannot simply keep it with you.
In some cases, however, we may be able to find another solution or another vehicle. This is exactly why it is worth contacting us as early as possible.
The earlier we know about the change, the more options we have.
What If I Simply Can’t Return the Car on Time?
Let us know.
Even a message saying “I will be three hours late” is much more useful to us than finding out only after the vehicle has not been returned at the agreed time.
This allows us to adjust the planning for the next rental and, depending on the situation, agree on the appropriate solution.
If the customer does not contact us and the vehicle is returned late, an additional day may be charged once the one-hour grace period has passed, according to the rental terms.
It is not a penalty. It is the cost of rental time during which the vehicle cannot be handed over to another customer or prepared for its next use.
In cases of significant or uncommunicated delays, the situation is handled according to the terms of the rental agreement.
A Practical Example
Imagine a five-day rental with the vehicle scheduled to be returned on Wednesday at 16:00.
If you arrive on Wednesday at 16:45, you are still within the one-hour grace period.
However, if you already know that you will not be able to return the vehicle until Thursday, do not wait — contact us on Wednesday.
If the vehicle is available on Thursday, we can extend the rental and agree on a new return time.
The price will then be adjusted according to the number of additional rental days and the conditions of the specific rental. The applicable mileage allowance can also be adjusted according to the length of the extension.
If you do not contact us and simply return the vehicle on Thursday, the situation is treated as a late return according to the terms of your rental agreement.
The difference is simple: when you let us know in advance, we can plan the extension. With a late return, we are simply dealing with a situation that has already occurred.
What If I Want to Return the Car Earlier?
You can return the vehicle earlier than originally agreed.
However, with a standard rental, returning the vehicle early does not automatically mean that you will receive a refund for unused rental days. The vehicle was reserved for you for the agreed rental period and could not be offered to another customer during that time.
For longer-term or individually agreed rentals, the conditions can be handled separately.
The Simple Rule
If you know you will not be able to return the car within the one-hour grace period, contact us before the rental period ends.
An extension is then a simple administrative change that we can arrange remotely.
It is always better to contact us a day early than an hour too late.