Suppose you rent a car at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). In that case, it will be inevitable to pay a lot of additional charges. Travelers often have to pay so much that they ask why LAX car rentals are so expensive. Most of the sites desire between $500 to $600 weekly.
Finding a reliable and cheap car rental becomes a problem because of the high rates at LAX. But there’s a reason for LAX car rentals to enforce exorbitant charges. In this post, we will describe the reasons for this issue. You will also find some handy tips to slash your car rental bills.
Why LAX Car Rentals Are So Expensive
Booking a car at LAX certainly gives an unpleasant surprise. From the high fees, consolidated facility charges, and license recovery fees, many factors increase the rates.
Also, the daily rate is inflated, and avoiding the whopping 10% local sales tax is also unavoidable. Here are some reasons that, when combined, make LAX car rentals so expensive.
1. Customer facility charge
Customer facility charge or CFC refers to a user fee. It is charged by the operator of the airport to every user of a rental vehicle. The rental car enterprise collects it. This fee is mandatory and can be considered a conventional tax.
At LAX, this fee includes an alternative fee that a rental company gets from the renter for the following purposes:
- To finance, construct, design, or enhance consolidated airport car rental centers.
- To finance, create, design, operate, maintain, or enhance public transportation systems and consolidated car rental centers.
- To finance, create, design, or enhance terminal modifications to accommodate and offer public access to common transportation systems.
Renters at LAX need to pay a huge $9 facility charge every single day for up to five days.
In total, it comes out to $45 as a maximum assessment on a single rental. The fee puts short-term renters at a considerable disadvantage.
2. Airport concession recovery fee
Another reason why LAX car rentals are so expensive is because of the concession recovery fee. This fee is any amount or surcharge that an airport operator individually states. It charges this fee to people to recover the percentage fee of the operator that accrues under this agreement.
In simple wording, this fee is the rental vehicle company charging customers to recoup the money that the airport charges to provide services there. This fee is over 10% of the overall rental cost.
At LAX, this fee is an 11.11% surcharge. Note that the fee is not compulsory by the airport authorities. It is just there to provide the rental vehicle company with a portion of the revenue.
3. Tourism commission fee
This is another airport-specific fee that you need to pay at LAX car rental. The California Travel and Tourism Commission charges this fee to car rentals. This fee is charged on revenue that the airport and hotel rental places generate. It is usually 3.5% of the rate.
Although 3.5% does not look like a high amount, it still removes a prominent part of your budget. But you cannot evade it because car rental companies at LAX or hotels need to pay the authorities.
Related – AAA Car Rental Discounts
4. Vehicle license recovery fee
This is another fee charged over everything else mentioned so far. This fee is passed on to renters by the car rental agencies at LAX. Do you know that the California Department of Motor Vehicles in the US levy rental companies a lot more fees than others to title their automobiles?
Some US states permit these companies to pass on a part of this expenditure to the customers. This takes the form of a license recovery fee.
5. Sales tax
The local sales tax rate in LAX is 10%. The rate of sales tax in California is 6%, while the county sales tax rate is 0.25%. The sales tax is so high mainly because of the exorbitant cost of living. This tax is levied by the government because most of it is devoted to enhancing the quality of life of people. The government uses it for building roads and enforcing the law.
Can You Avoid the Pricey LAX Car Rentals
There’s a way to get past the numerous taxes and fees at LAX. It is to rent a vehicle from another place. You may resort to an independent car rental agency instead of the LAX car rental. Doing so will be lighter on your pocket and will specifically benefit those on a tight budget.
Independent rental companies feature a selection of budget-friendly vehicles. You can locate a major company’s office that is nearest to LAX but not at the place. You may use an off-airport rental place and use a cab there while you are arriving from the airport. This will benefit those who need the rental for several days.
Read Also – How Much Is Enterprise Deposit
Final Words
LAX car rentals are so expensive mainly because of the various charges and fees mentioned above. From customer facilities to airport concession, and sales tax, they take a lot from renters. But if you think you cannot afford LAX, find out another car rental. It will help you save a lot of your money.
