I live and work in the UK and will be shortly undertaking a 12 month
assignment in Kansas City. My employer will give me an allowance while
I am there for the purposes of car rental, approx $10,000.

I am trying to find the most efficient way of using this. The best
option I have come up with so far is an Avis Mini Lease.

http://www.avis.com/AvisWeb/JSP/US/en/programs/business/minilease.jsp?IID=3288-14740-4240-32

This looks reasonable until you add on the Loss Damage Waiver option
which at $22.99 doubles the price.

What is the most effect use of this allowance to have a reliable car
with breakdown cover and full insurance cover?

I understand that some credit card will cover this but am not sure
that I can apply from the UK.

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Request for Question Clarification by czh-ga on 15 May 2006 13:23 PDT

Hello mulletm-ga,

Are you interested only in long-term car rentals? Might buying a car
and then selling it at the end of the year make sense? How much
driving per month do you plan to do? What type of car do you
prefer/require?

Here's an interesting option.
http://www.leasetrader.com/

Also, most rental car companies offer similr deals to the Avis Mini
Lease. Have you already narrowed your search to this company or are
you looking for similar offers from other car rental companies?

Can you tell us anything else about your plans and preferences? 

I look forward to your clarification.

~ czh ~

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Clarification of Question by mulletm-ga on 18 May 2006 06:37 PDT

I am really looking to lease so I can do away with the hassle of
maintenance etc. Also I don?t want to be in a position of having to
sell at the end of a year and worrying about doing that before my
final flight home. I want a mid range car within my budget which is
£6,000 or $11,331  for the year ? say about $945 a month.

I will look at the option you suggested.

No I have not narrowed down to Avis this was just the first I found ?
It looked OK until I added the CDW cost.

Essentially I want to spend the allocation of $11,331 for the year and
get a reliable car for commuting around Kansas City and the occasional
holiday trip.

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Request for Question Clarification by pafalafa-ga on 18 May 2006 06:46 PDT

Have you actually contacted Avis about their long-term arrangements? 
If not, fill out the form at this site to being a dialogue:


https://www.avis.com/AvisWeb/profile/MiniLeaseRateInvoke


Their online pricing only seems to be for short-term arrangements --
no way they will charge $22.99/day for insurance over the course of a
full year!

Send them a note explaining your circumstances, and let them provide a
quote for you.

Then let me know how things work out.  By the way, there are two
Kansas City's -- one in Kansas, and (the larger) one in Missouri --
make sure to specify which.

All the best,

pafalafa-ga