Budget Car Rental FAQs

Payments & Pricing

Budget Car Rental FAQs

Payments & Pricing

Yes, you can save time and money by pre-paying most reservations. We offer a discounted rate when you pre-pay, however please note that cancellation/no-show fees apply. Pre-pay is not available for bookings made within 4 days of your travel or for Corporate rate bookings.

If you need to cancel at least 24 hours prior to your scheduled pick-up time, you may cancel and request a refund less a fee of up to 82.50 AUD cancellation fee (including GST).

If you need to cancel within 24 hours prior to the scheduled pick-up time, you may request a refund less a fee of up to 165.00 AUD cancellation fee (including GST). If the value of the reservation is less than the cancellation fee, you will not be charged any further amount and will not be entitled to any refund.

If you fail to cancel your reservation prior to the pick-up time and do not collect the vehicle on the pick-up date, a non-cancellation fee of the entire prepaid amount will apply and we will retain the full amount.

A credit or debit card is required at pick up to secure funds for the rental. At vehicle return customers may have the option to pay by cash, please enquire with your selected return location. When paying by credit or debit card, a card transaction fee will apply of 1.29% (including GST) of the total rental invoice amount.

If paying by debit card a 'security hold' of $200 ($400 for commercial vehicles) in addition to the 'Estimated Total' value of the rental will be placed on the card account provided. The card holder will not have access to these funds until billing is finalised at the completion of the rental.

Final charges will be processed after completion of the rental including a card transaction fee of 1.29% (including GST) and if applicable, the unused portion of the pre-authorisation will be released by Budget. Please note the pre-authorisation may take up to 7-10 business days to be released by your bank. Budget will not be held responsible for any overdraft fees based on this policy. Please check with your bank for more information.

Prepaid and Reloadable Debit cards or gift cards, as well as Travel cards and EFTPOS cards are not accepted.

Budget accepts the following credit/charge cards for the payment of a vehicle rental:

Visa / Mastercard / Budget / American Express / Diners Club

Debit cards are accepted provided that the card displays the Visa or Mastercard logo, has been issued by a bank or other financial institution and has the customer's name and card number on the card, and funds are debited from a cheque/current account. If paying by debit card a 'security hold' of $200 ($400 for commercial vehicles) in addition to the 'Estimated Total' value of the rental will be placed on the card account provided. The card holder will not have access to these funds until billing is finalised at the completion of the rental.

Prepaid and Reloadable Debit cards or gift cards, as well as Travel cards and EFTPOS cards are not accepted.

A credit or debit card as outlined above must be presented at commencement of rental. When paying by credit or debit card, a card transaction fee will apply of 1.29% (including GST) of the total rental invoice amount.

A. Your travel agent can sell you a prepaid voucher that you can use to pay for rentals at various locations within and outside Australia. In some cases vouchers do not cover taxes, surcharges, additional coverage, extra days, upgrades, etc. Therefore, you should carefully read the voucher information to understand exactly what is included. You may also be asked to present your credit cardwith your voucher and drivers licence. 

A. Most rental locations in Australia will accept credit card, cash, a traveller's cheque, or a debit card as payment for a rental. A personal cheque or money order is not accepted. When paying by credit or debit card, a card transaction fee will apply of 1.29% (including GST) of the total rental invoice amount.

See 'What credit or debit card can I use?' for details on what card types we accept.

When paying by cash: For details on 'cash qualification', the required pre-payments, refunds and the time required to process qualification applications, please call Budget Reservations in Australia on 1300 362 848.

Note: if you have paid a cash deposit any refund will be issued via cheque, this can take up to 30 working days.

A. Rates are subject to change based on supply and demand, much like the airline and hotel industries.

Yes, when making a reservation you can choose to pre-pay your booking.

A. Car rental pricing is like airline pricing - if you travel at off-peak times or make a reservation seven or more days in advance, you often get a better deal. Also, check out our 'Deals' section on the Budget web site.

At the counter, in all cases you will need to present a valid credit or debit card when you collect the vehicle.

If paying by debit card a 'security hold' of $200 ($400 for commercial vehicles) in addition to the 'Estimated Total' value of the rental will be placed on the card account provided. The card holder will not have access to these funds until billing is finalised at the completion of the rental.

Final charges will be processed after completion of the rental including a card transaction fee of 1.29% (including GST) and if applicable, the unused portion of the pre-authorisation will be released by Budget. Please note the pre-authorisation may take up to 7-10 business days to be released by your bank. Budget will not be held responsible for any overdraft fees based on this policy. Please check with your bank for more information.

See also the FAQ 'What credit or debit card can I use?'