Do I need a deposit to rent a vehicle in New Zealand?
For customers who have provided a valid credit or debit card for payment of the rental cost or optional extras at the time of rental, no deposit is required (excluding customers who meet our local renter criteria - please see below).
For customers who have pre-paid for their rental costs via an external agency, with no further payments required when picking up their vehicle, a rental deposit will be required. This deposit will be pre-authorised to your credit card at the time of rental. The credit card must be in the name of the renter. A credit card authorisation is not a charge but it will limit the funds available on your credit card. If no charges are processed by us your bank will release the hold on your funds after a period of up to 28 days.
In most cases, the rental location will require a deposit of AUD 200.00 at the commencement of the rental. However, if all the local renter criteria below is met, the rental location will require a deposit amount of up to 1,000.00 AUD along with proof of residency such as a current utility bill in addition to the rental charge:
• Lives within the greater metropolitan area of the city in which the vehicle is collected
• Is a first time renter with Enterprise, National or Alamo, and
• Is not a Corporate Renter
For the security deposits of 200.00 AUD, the rental location will accept all major credit cards and Visa or Mastercard debit cards. For security deposits of 1,000.00 AUD, the rental location will only accept major credit cards.