ISLARENT rents cars in Sardinia without a credit card and without a deposit: we block no amount on any card, either at pick-up or at return. What we need is a valid driving licence and an ID document for the main driver. Fully comprehensive insurance with zero excess, unlimited mileage, child seats and a second driver are included in the price, and you pay when you collect the car at Olbia, Alghero or Cagliari airport.
What you actually need to collect the car
A valid driving licence and an ID document for the main driver. Nothing else. We do not ask for a credit card in the driver’s name, we do not ask for a prepaid card as security, and we do not sell extra insurance at the desk.
There is no age limit to rent and no young-driver surcharge, nor any supplement for recently issued licences. If a second driver takes turns at the wheel, their details and licence go on the booking: it is free.
Payment is made at pick-up, not online and not in advance. You do not have to enter card details to request a car: we reply with the final price and the booking is confirmed from there.
Why there is no deposit and no excess
A deposit exists to cover the excess: the amount a customer pays out of pocket if the car is damaged. Almost every rental company works this way — an excess of €800 to €2,500, a hold of the same size on the card, and additional cover sold at the desk to "zero it out", often at €15–25 a day.
With us the excess is already zero, because comprehensive cover is part of the price of every rental. There is no sum the customer could be asked to pay for damage, so there is no deposit to block and no policy to sell at pick-up. It is the same reason we do not ask for a credit card: the card only ever existed to secure that deposit.
There is no compulsory cleaning charge and no return fee either: you take the car with a full tank and bring it back full, and the final cleaning is optional — €30, only if you choose it.
Is it better than an online comparison site?
On comparison sites the price you see is almost always the bare rental: zero-excess cover, the child seat, the second driver and sometimes the fuel are added later, at the desk, where there is no longer any way to compare. Over a week with a family that easily means €150–250 appearing at the last minute.
Our quote already includes comprehensive insurance with zero excess, unlimited mileage, child seats and a second driver. The only possible supplements are written plainly in our conditions: €75 if you return the car at a different airport, a €30 preparation fee for rentals of up to 3 days, and €30 for the optional final cleaning. None of them is a surprise at the counter.
There is also a practical difference: who you are talking to. Bookings come straight to us, and we hand over the cars ourselves. There is no call centre in between and no local supplier other than the one you booked.