At a glance
This document forms part of the agreement between you and Zeptotravel LLC (“Zeptotravel”, “we”, “us”). It applies to every booking made through this website or through our telephone reservations desk.
Effective date: 28 August 2026 · Governing law: State of Delaware, USA · Questions: legal@zeptotravel.com
1. The rental agreement signed at the counter is the operative contract
1.1 Zeptotravel LLC trading as Zeptotravel arranges vehicle rental as an agent. We do not own, maintain, insure or hire out vehicles, and we do not staff rental counters.
1.2 What we sell you is a reservation. The contract for the vehicle itself is the rental agreement you sign at the counter with the rental company. That document — with the company's terms and conditions and the applicable local law — governs the hire from the moment you sign it. Where it conflicts with anything on this page or in your reservation voucher, the signed rental agreement prevails.
Read the counter agreement before you sign
Counter staff are frequently incentivised on the sale of protection products, upgrades and prepaid fuel. Everything added at the counter is a new contractual commitment that we did not quote and cannot reverse afterwards. Check the total on the screen against your voucher before you sign, and decline anything you did not intend to buy. If the counter total does not match your voucher, call us from the counter on +1-888-555-0119 — that is far easier to resolve there than a week later.
2. What a reservation guarantees
2.1 A reservation guarantees a vehicle class — compact, intermediate, standard SUV, and so on, usually expressed as a four-letter ACRISS code — and a rate. It does not guarantee a specific make, model, colour, transmission or feature set. Vehicles shown in class illustrations are described as "or similar" for that reason.
2.2 If the class you booked is unavailable at pick-up, the company will usually supply a higher class at no extra cost, but that is a matter of its own service policy rather than an entitlement.
2.3 Specific attributes must be requested and are not guaranteed unless the company confirms them in writing: automatic transmission (particularly in Europe, where manual is the default and automatics carry a supplement), a roof rack, a tow bar, snow tyres or chains, child seats, hand controls, and GPS units. Book these by phone so an advisor can confirm availability with the location before you rely on it.
3. Driver eligibility
3.1 Age. Minimum age is set by the rental company and by local law, and varies by jurisdiction and by vehicle class. Twenty-five is the common threshold above which no surcharge applies. Drivers aged twenty-one to twenty-four can usually rent, but pay a young driver surcharge per day and are often barred from premium, specialty, large SUV and van classes. Some US states set lower minimums by statute; some countries also set a maximum age or require additional documentation from older drivers.
3.2 Licence. Each driver must hold a full, valid, non-provisional driving licence, held for a minimum period — commonly one to three years — and must present the physical licence at the counter. A photograph of a licence is not accepted. Endorsements, points or recent disqualifications can lead to refusal, and in some countries the company will run a licence check.
3.3 International Driving Permit. Where the licence is not in the Roman alphabet, and in a number of countries regardless of alphabet, an IDP is required alongside the home licence. An IDP is a translation, not a licence: it is only valid presented with the original. Obtain it in your country of residence before you travel — it cannot be issued abroad.
3.4 A driver who cannot satisfy these requirements at the counter will be refused the vehicle, and the reservation is normally treated as a no-show with no refund.
4. Payment cards, security deposits and authorisation holds
4.1 Nearly all locations require a credit card in the main driver's name, physically present and embossed or otherwise verifiable, with sufficient available credit for the rental plus the security deposit.
4.2 Debit cards are restricted. Many locations decline them entirely; those that accept them commonly impose additional conditions — a credit check, proof of a return travel ticket, two forms of ID, proof of address, a larger deposit, or a block on premium classes. Prepaid and virtual cards are almost universally refused. Airport locations are usually stricter than neighbourhood ones.
4.3 The security deposit is taken as an authorisation hold on the card, sized by the company according to class, location and the protection you carry. It is released after return, on the card issuer's timetable, which commonly runs to several business days and occasionally longer.
4.4 Where a rate is prepaid through us, the counter still takes a deposit hold. Prepayment does not remove the deposit requirement.
5. Additional drivers
5.1 Only drivers named on the rental agreement may drive the vehicle. Each must attend the counter in person with a licence and, where required, an IDP.
5.2 Additional driver fees are charged per driver per day, subject to caps in some jurisdictions and waived for a spouse or domestic partner in some US states and under some corporate rates. Adding a driver later means returning to a counter.
5.3 Allowing an unnamed person to drive is a fundamental breach. It voids the company's damage waiver and any liability protection, and leaves the named renter personally exposed to the full value of the vehicle and any third-party claim.
6. Permitted use, geography and cross-border travel
6.1 The vehicle may only be used on made roads suitable for it, by named drivers, for lawful private or business purposes. Off-road use — including unsealed roads in many jurisdictions, beaches and forest tracks — is usually prohibited even in a four-wheel-drive vehicle.
6.2 Geographic restrictions are real and enforced. Some US rentals restrict travel to specified states or prohibit travel into Mexico entirely. In Europe, cross-border travel typically requires prior declaration, may carry a cross-border fee, and is frequently prohibited into specific countries or excluded from the damage waiver there. Islands, ferries and the carriage of a vehicle by train or ship generally require written permission.
6.3 Declare your intended route at the time of booking. Driving outside the permitted area voids the waiver, can void the company's insurance, and makes you personally liable for loss, damage and recovery.
7. Mileage and distance caps
7.1 Many rates are unlimited-mileage, but not all. Caps are common on long rentals, on one-way rentals, on specialty and premium vehicles, on local and neighbourhood locations, and in several European and Asian markets where a daily allowance plus a per-kilometre excess charge is the norm.
7.2 The cap and the excess rate are stated on your voucher and repeated on the rental agreement. Excess mileage is charged at return and is not capped.
8. Fuel policies and refuelling charges
8.1 The three common policies are: full-to-full — collect and return full, buy fuel yourself, the cheapest option for most renters; prepaid fuel — buy a tank at the counter at a set rate and return it as empty as you dare, with no refund for what is left, which only pays if you genuinely run it down; and full-to-empty or same-to-same variants used at some locations.
8.2 If you return a vehicle short of the agreed level without prepaying, the company charges for the missing fuel at its own posted rate, which is typically well above pump price, and usually adds a separate refuelling service charge. Keep the final fuel receipt from a station near the return location — it is the evidence that settles a disputed fuel line.
8.3 Electric and hybrid vehicles use a charge-level policy in the same shape. Returning an EV below the stated state of charge attracts a recharging fee, and charging networks in the rental market are rarely included in the rate.
9. Tolls, transponders, traffic fines and administrative fees
9.1 Tolls. Many locations offer a transponder or all-inclusive tolling programme charged per day of the rental — often per day of the whole rental, not per day of use — plus the tolls themselves. Some regions have all-electronic tolling with no cash option, in which case tolls incurred without a transponder are billed back to the company and passed to you with a per-toll administrative fee.
9.2 Traffic and parking fines. You are responsible for every fine, penalty charge, camera citation, congestion or low-emission-zone charge and towing cost incurred during your rental period. Where an authority bills the company, the company identifies you as the driver and charges an administrative fee per notice on top of the fine itself. That fee is the company's, not ours.
9.3 These charges frequently arrive weeks or months after the rental, on the card on file. That is a normal feature of the industry, not an error.
10. Damage and loss liability, and the protection products
10.1 Unless a waiver or protection applies, you are liable to the rental company for loss of, or damage to, the vehicle — however caused, including damage where you were not at fault and no third party can be identified — plus recovery, storage and loss of use while the vehicle is off the road, and an administrative fee.
10.2 The products sold to reduce that exposure differ in what they cover and in what they very reliably do not. Terms, names and exclusions vary by company and country; read the specific wording you are offered.
| Product | What it typically covers | Common exclusions and limits |
|---|---|---|
| CDW / LDW (collision or loss damage waiver) | Contractual waiver of your liability for damage to, or theft of, the rental vehicle | Excess or deductible still payable; commonly excludes tyres, glass, wheels, undercarriage, roof, interior, keys, mis-fuelling, off-road use, unauthorised drivers and territory breaches |
| Super CDW / excess reduction | Reduces or removes the excess left by CDW | Sold at the counter at a daily rate; usually keeps the same exclusion list |
| SLI / LIS (supplemental liability) | Third-party injury and property damage above the statutory minimum | Caps apply; does not cover damage to the rental vehicle itself |
| PAI / PEC (personal accident, personal effects) | Accident benefits for occupants; theft of personal property from the vehicle | Low limits; often duplicates existing health, life or home contents cover |
| Your own auto policy | Many US personal policies extend collision and liability cover to a rental in the US | Frequently excludes loss of use, diminished value and administrative fees; rarely extends abroad; a claim goes on your record and your deductible applies |
| Credit card rental cover | Often secondary, sometimes primary on premium cards, if the rental is paid entirely on that card and the counter waiver is declined | Country, vehicle-class and duration exclusions are common; usually excludes liability cover; requires you to decline CDW, which raises the deposit |
| Standalone third-party excess policy | Reimburses the excess you pay the rental company | Reimbursement, not waiver — you pay the company first and claim back; strict documentation requirements |
Check your existing cover before you reach the counter
Call your card issuer and your auto insurer and ask three specific questions: does the cover apply in the country I am renting in, is it primary or secondary, and does it include loss of use and administrative fees. If the answer is secondary, or excludes loss of use, buying the counter waiver may still be the sensible purchase. This is genuinely a judgement call and we do not earn more either way — our advisors will talk it through on the phone rather than steer you.
11. Vehicle condition at pick-up and return
11.1 Inspect the vehicle before you leave the bay and make sure every existing mark is recorded on the check-out sheet. Photograph, with a visible timestamp, all four corners and both sides, the roof and bonnet, the windscreen and all glass, each wheel and tyre, the undercarriage edges and bumpers, the interior and boot, the fuel or charge gauge with the ignition on, and the odometer.
11.2 Repeat the same set at return, in the return bay, before you hand over the keys. Where a location has an attendant, get the return signed off and keep the receipt.
11.3 A dated photograph set is the single most effective defence against a damage charge raised after you have left. Damage claims raised weeks later are common in this industry, and without photographs they are difficult to rebut.
12. Breakdown, accidents and roadside assistance
12.1 In the event of a breakdown or accident, contact the rental company's assistance number on the rental agreement first — not us — because only they can authorise recovery, repair or a replacement vehicle. Then tell us so we can track the file.
12.2 Report every accident to the police where local law requires it and obtain a report number. Most protection products are void without one. Do not admit liability at the scene, and complete the company's accident form before returning the vehicle.
12.3 Roadside assistance for mechanical failure is normally included; call-outs caused by the driver — lost keys, keys locked in, mis-fuelling, a flat battery from leaving lights on, a punctured tyre in most contracts — are chargeable and are commonly excluded from the waiver.
13. Return time, grace periods and after-hours return
13.1 Rentals are priced in 24-hour days from the moment of collection. Most companies allow a grace period — commonly 29 or 59 minutes, depending on the company — after which a further day, or an hourly charge, is applied. A vehicle returned several hours late can also lose a weekend or weekly rate and reprice at the daily rate for the whole rental.
13.2 If you will be late, call the location. An agreed extension repriced in advance is almost always cheaper than an unagreed one.
After-hours returns transfer the risk to you
Where a location permits a key-drop return outside opening hours, you generally remain responsible for the vehicle until it is checked in the next working day — including theft, vandalism and damage occurring in the car park overnight. Some contracts make this explicit; some are silent and rely on the general obligation to return the vehicle. Photograph the vehicle and the fuel gauge in the return bay, note the time and the parking space, and where possible return during opening hours instead.
14. One-way rentals and drop fees
14.1 Returning a vehicle to a different location usually attracts a one-way drop fee, which can be modest within a metropolitan area and very large across regions or countries. Cross-border one-ways are frequently prohibited outright.
14.2 The fee is quoted before you book where the supplier publishes it in advance. Changing the return location after collection, at the counter or by phone, is a new pricing event and the fee applied is the one in force at that moment.
15. Prohibited items and uses
15.1 The vehicle may not be used to carry passengers for hire or reward, including rideshare and delivery work unless the company sells a rate specifically for it; to tow or push anything without written permission; for driving instruction, motorsport, racing, rallying or speed testing; to carry inflammable, corrosive or hazardous goods; to carry more people than there are seatbelts; or for any illegal purpose.
15.2 Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, smoking or vaping in a non-smoking vehicle, and transporting unrestrained animals are breaches. Smoking and deep-cleaning penalties are standard and substantial.
15.3 Breach of this clause voids the waiver and any protection you bought, and exposes you to the full value of the vehicle and to third-party claims.
16. Liability and general provisions
16.1 We are liable for our own acts and omissions in making the reservation: the wrong date or location transmitted, a fee we failed to disclose, a booking we failed to cancel when instructed. We are not liable for the condition, availability, mechanical fitness or cleanliness of a vehicle, for charges validly raised under the rental agreement you signed, for refusal at the counter where eligibility conditions were not met, or for the acts or insolvency of a rental company.
16.2 To the extent permitted by law, our aggregate liability on a vehicle reservation is limited to the service fees we charged on that booking. Nothing here limits liability that cannot lawfully be limited.
16.3 Cancellation of the reservation itself follows the supplier's rule and our Refund & Cancellation Policy. Pay-later reservations are usually cancellable without charge up to a stated point; prepaid rates typically carry a cancellation charge or are non-refundable. Our own handling charges are in the post-ticketing service fee schedule.
16.4 These terms supplement our general Terms & Conditions. Where the same booking also includes air travel, the flight element is governed by our Flight Booking Terms & Conditions; these two documents are the only vertical-specific terms we publish. Practical guidance on renting through us is on the car rental hub. Questions about any clause on this page can be put to an advisor on +1-888-555-0119 during published desk hours, by email to support@zeptotravel.com, or in writing to legal@zeptotravel.com.